title: Quinn (soccer)

text: As a redshirt senior in 2017, Quinn earned Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Midfielder of the Year honors (the first Duke player to do so) and was a Hermann Trophy semifinalist. The same year, they were named All-ACC First Team and United Soccer Coaches First Team All-American.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: Quinn became the highest drafted Canadian in NWSL history when they were selected third overall by the Washington Spirit in the 2018 NWSL College Draft. During the 2018 season, Quinn started in 16 of the 17 matches they played and recorded 1,385 minutes their rookie season. The Spirit finished in eighth place with a record.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: Wanting to play in Europe ahead of the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, Quinn signed with Division 1 Féminine (D1F) club Paris FC. They made their debut for Paris FC during a 1–0 against Guingamp on 16 February. Quinn played in two matches for Paris during the 2018–19 D1F season while also competing for Canada at the Algarve Cup and multiple training camps ahead of the World Cup. The club finished in fifth place with a record.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In July 2019 (following the FIFA Women's World Cup in France), Quinn returned to the NWSL in the United States and signed with Reign FC based in Tacoma, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. Quinn made their debut for the Reign on 11 August in a 3–1 loss to Utah Royals FC. Quinn competed in six matches during the 2019 season for a total of 357 minutes. The club finished in fourth place with a record and earned a berth to the NWSL Playoffs They were defeated 4–1 by eventual champions North Carolina Courage during the semifinal.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In 2020, Quinn played 203 minutes for the Reign in the NWSL Challenge Cup, including two starts. Upon completion of the 2022 season, OL Reign announced that Quinn had signed a new two year contract with the club, keeping them with the club until the 2024 season.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In August 2020, it was announced Quinn was loaned to Swedish club, Vittsjö GIK for the 2020 Damallsvenskan. They played 660 minutes in eight matches for Vittsjö helping the club finish in fifth place despite the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: Quinn won a silver medal at the 2012 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship in Guatemala and competed at the 2012 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup and 2015 Pan American Games.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: On 7 March 2014 at the age of 18, Quinn made their senior national team debut in a 3–1 win against Italy in the 2014 Cyprus Cup. On 16 February 2016, they scored a hat-trick against Guatemala in a 10–0 win in the group stage of the 2016 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In June 2016 while still playing collegiate soccer for Duke, Quinn was named to the roster for the 2016 Summer Olympics where Canada won bronze. During the team's first match of the tournament, Quinn subbed in the 23rd minute helping Canada shutout Australia with a 2–0 win. They were in the starting lineup as a midfielder during the team's next group stage match against Zimbabwe resulting in a 3–1 win. During the team's first-ever win against two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champions Germany, Quinn provided the assist to Melissa Tancredi's second goal resulting in a 2–1 win for Team Canada. Finishing in first place in Group F with an undefeated nine points, Canada advanced to the quarterfinals where they defeated France 1–0. Quinn subbed in during the 81st minute to strengthen Canada's defence and maintain the shutout. Canada faced Germany for the second time in the semifinals and were defeated 2–0. Quinn was an unused substitute during the match. The team faced Brazil for the bronze medal match and won 2–1 marking the second time the national team medalled at the Olympics (both bronze and previously won in 2012).


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In March 2017, Quinn competed with Team Canada at the 2017 Algarve Cup in Portugal. They were a starting player during the team's 2–1 win against Russia. Quinn was a starting midfielder for the final match against Spain where Canada narrowly lost 1–0.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In September 2018, Quinn was named to the roster for the 2018 CONCACAF Women's Championship, the qualifying tournament for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France. During the team's second group stage match, Quinn was a starting midfielder and scored a goal in the 56th minute helping Canada win 12–0 against Cuba. Quinn started as a centre back during the third group stage match helping Canada win 3–1 to finish first in Group B and advance to the semifinals. Quinn scored a goal in the 7–0 semifinal win against Panama. The win earned Canada a spot at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup and advanced the team to the final match against defending Women's World Cup champions, the United States. Quinn played every minute of the final match, though Canada lost 2–0. Quinn was named to the Best XI at the 2018 CONCACAF Awards for their performance between 1 January and 10 December 2018.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: On 25 May 2019, Quinn was named to the roster for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. They made their debut during the team's second group stage match, a 2–0 win against New Zealand on 15 June. Canada finished second in Group E with two wins and a 2–1 loss against the Netherlands and advanced to the Round of 16. Quinn was a substitute for forward Janine Beckie in the 84th minute of Team Canada's 1–0 loss to Sweden.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In January 2020, Quinn was named to the Canadian roster for the 2020 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship (also known as the Gold Cup) where the top two teams secure entry to the 2020 Summer Olympics. During the team's first group stage match, Quinn subbed into the right midfielder position in the 62nd minute and helped the Canada win 11–0. Their next appearance during the tournament came in the third group stage match against Mexico — a 2–0 win. Canada finished in first place for Group B after going undefeated in all three matches. After defeating Costa Rica 1–0 in the semi-final and securing a post at the Olympics, During the final against the United States, Quinn was a starting midfielder. Canada lost 3–0.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: After the Olympics were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Quinn was named to the 18–player roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in June 2021 by head coach Bev Priestman. Quinn played 72 minutes of the team's first group stage match against hosts Japan which resulted in a 1–1 draw and became the first openly transgender as well as first non-binary athlete to compete at the tournament. Of the historic moment, they said, "I feel proud seeing 'Quinn' up on the lineup and on my accreditation. I feel sad knowing there were Olympians before me unable to live their truth because of this world. I feel optimistic for change. Change in legislature, Changes in rules, structures, and mindsets." Quinn played 29 minutes of Canada's second group stage match against Chile helping the team win 2–1. After tying Great Britain 1–1 with Quinn playing as a starting midfielder, Canada finished second in Group E and advanced to the quarterfinals. Quinn was a starting midfielder in the match against Brazil. After neither team scored after 120 minutes of play, Canada won on penalty kicks 4–3. Quinn was a starting midfielder for the semi-final against the United States and played 60 minutes of Canada's 1–0 win. The win marked the first time Canada had defeated the United States in over 20 years. Quinn was a starting midfielder in the final against Sweden and played the entire first half. Canada won their first Olympic gold medal after defeating Sweden in penalty kicks after a 1–1 draw. With the win, Quinn became the first out, transgender, and non-binary gold medalist in Olympic history.


title: Quinn (soccer)

text: In 2020, Quinn came out as non-binary and transgender (using gender-neutral pronouns) and changed their name by adopting their prior surname as a mononym. They were permitted to continue playing professional women's soccer on the basis of their sex assigned at birth, rather than gender identity. They have expressed disappointment with media using their birth name when they came out, stating "it's crucial to write about trans people using their name & pronouns." In July 2021, Quinn became the first out non-binary transgender athlete to compete and become an Olympic Champion at an Olympic Games.


title: Villu (film)

text: Villu () is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film written by AC Mugil and directed by Prabhu Deva. The film stars Vijay in a dual role while Nayanthara, Ranjitha, Prakash Raj, and Vadivelu play other prominent roles. Manoj K. Jayan, Devaraj, Adithya, Anandaraj, Sriman and Geetha play supporting roles whilst Prabhu Deva, Mumaith Khan, Zabyn Khan, and Khushbu appear in item numbers. The film is produced and distributed by Ayngaran International and composed by Devi Sri Prasad. Cinematography was done by Ravi Varman, while editing was handled by Kola Bhaskar. The film received negative reviews from critics and became an average at the box-office.


title: Villu (film)

text: The film was released on 12 January 2009. The film acquired #221 spot in 2009 at the United Kingdom box office. "Villu" settled to a domestic profit of 50 lakhs. The story revolves around an assassin who infiltrates and destroys a criminal gang to avenge his father's death. The film's title Villu (bow) indicates a man Pugazh, who avenges for his father (arrow) fired at his enemies to destroy them. The satellite rights of the film was owned by Kalaignar TV. "Rediff" pointed out that, Vadivelu and Vijay were applauded for their style of slap-stick comedy in the film.


title: Villu (film)

text: Media outlets reported that, the film "Villu" became an average domestic venture as Vijay and Vadivelu comic-timing was the only saving grace of the film.


title: Villu (film)

text: Pugazh is an IITian and Oxford alumnus with a master's degree in chemical engineering. With the help of his relative Inspector Joseph, he succeeds in tracking down a wanted criminal named Raaka and trapping him to Joseph. The scene then shifts to a village, where Pugazh is attending the wedding of a Tahsildar's daughter. He meets Janavi, a friend of the bride, and instantly falls in love with her. After persistent wooing, he succeeds in winning her heart.


title: Villu (film)

text: Janavi takes Pugazh to Munich (Germany) to introduce him to her father J. D., a wealthy businessman and covert arms smuggler. During his stay in Bern, he encounters J. D.'s gang, consisting of Shaan, a hotel pimp named Max, and another henchman. After initial confrontations with the three of them, he starts eliminating them one after another, and then J. D. becomes his remaining target. Janavi soon finds out that Pugazh is plotting to kill her father and warns Pugazh's mother about her son. On the contrary, Pugazh's mother not only knows and supports what Pugazh is doing, she also reveals that she is not his real "mother" and tells her why Pugazh is after her father.


title: Villu (film)

text: Pugazh's father was Major Saravanan, a patriotic Indian Army officer. During a peacekeeping mission, he noticed J. D., Shaan, Raaka, and their two henchmen, who were then army officers working in his team, accepting money from terrorists in exchange for allowing them to carry out their activities. When he confronted them, they killed him and fabricated a story claiming that since he accepted money from terrorists to help them, they killed him considering the safety of the other soldiers and themselves. He was stripped posthumously of his titles, honours, and badges. During his funeral, his family, consisting of his widow and a young Pugazh, were humiliated as the military withdrew his honors. the villagers banished them from their village. The villagers also barred Pugazh from performing his father's last rites and threw the dead body into a sand pit, where it got lost in sand storm. The villagers also brandish the forehead of Pugazh's mother with the title "wife of a traitor". She sends her son away with Shaan's estranged wife (the adopted "mother") as she did not want him to grow up carrying the stigma of being the son of a disgraced army officer.


title: Villu (film)

text: In the present day, J. D. takes Pugazh to India to retrieve a Blu-ray containing J. D.'s secret information, which Pugazh had earlier received from Shaan and given to Joseph. Pugazh soon finds out that Raaka has escaped. Pugazh manages to flee from J. D.'s and Raaka's clutches, and after a thrilling chase, he reaches an abandoned temple outside his village where he reunites with his mother, who had been living there since being banished from the village. J. D., Raaka, and their henchmen arrive there. They kill Joseph and injure Pugazh. Pugazh kills Raaka and fights with J. D., weakening him. With all of the villagers assembled around the abandoned temple, Pugazh forces J. D. to reveal the truth about his father to them. After his confession, Pugazh kills him in revenge for his father's death. With the truth about Saravanan finally revealed, the army reinstates his titles, honours, and badges and also returns his army badge and uniform to his widow.


title: Villu (film)

text: Prabhu Deva along with announcing his venture in Bollywood titled "Wanted Dead and Alive", which was the remake of "Pokkiri", he launched his next Tamil venture in December 2007. Ayngaran International was to produce the film as well. The film was initially titled as "Pugazh". Prabhu Deva later announced the titled to be "Singam". However, a copyright issue was brought up concerning the title "Singam", which was already announced as the title for a film by director Hari. Prabhu Deva then changed the titled to "Vill", meaning "bow" in Tamil, a more formal spelling of "Villu". The team later found out that S. J. Suryah was to use the title "Vill" for a Telugu film. Suryah, with the negotiation of Vijay, later changed his film's title. The title "Villu" subsequently became the film's official name.


title: Villu (film)

text: Director Prabhu Deva started shooting for "Villu" with the team's first location being Palani, Tamil Nadu. The team's second location was set to be in Karaikudi. Prabhu Deva had reportedly planned two song sequences to be shot in European countries. Another song sequence was shot in Bangkok, Thailand. Later, reports claimed that the film's script and story would deal with a majority of the film taking place in Italy. Prabhu Deva had reportedly planned two song sequences to be shot in European countries. In an interview with Prabhu Deva, a month prior to the film's release, Prabhu Deva stated the film will be a "Tamil version of a James Bond film." It was reported that Prakash Raj was missing from shooting when the crew was shooting the climax.


title: Villu (film)

text: The story was already made as a movie in Tamil during 1989 titled Thaai Naadu starring Sathyaraj in dual roles. Then this film was remade in Dhallywood as Jamin Nai by Syed Harun starring Shabnur, Shakti Kapoor & Miju Ahmed in lead roles in 2000 and Tamil as Villu By Prabhu Deva starring Vijay & Nayanthara in lead roles in 2009. Bobby Deol Starrer Soldier in 1998 has a similar story line.


title: Villu (film)

text: Devi Sri Prasad, Kola Bhaskar and Ravi Varman were confirmed the film's composer, editor, and cinematographer respectively while FEFSI Vijayan was chosen as the stunt coordinator.


title: Villu (film)

text: Vijay was Prabhu Deva's initial choice for the lead role. Prabhu Deva trusted the actor, due to their widely known friendship, after their success with "Pokkiri" the previous year. However, several critics and media had dubious thoughts on the choice of Vijay as the lead role actor for the film. Some websites wondered if "Villu" would promote his career, or give him another average response, like his previous films "Azhagiya Tamil Magan" and "Kuruvi", which proved to be average grossers at the box-office due to their weak storyline and screenplay. Nayantara was confirmed the film's lead actress upon the film's launch. Vadivelu was also confirmed for a supporting role. Earlier reports claimed that Biju Menon or Napoleon were to be given a supporting role, but later the role went to Manoj K. Jayan. Vaiyapuri, Khushbu, and Kovai Sarala were also said to be given roles in the film. However, Khushbu was later confirmed an item number appearance while Sarala was to sing a song in the film.


title: Villu (film)

text: The soundtrack for this film was composed by Devi Sri Prasad. Three of the songs, "Jalsa Jalsa", "Dheemthanakka Thillana", and "Daddy Mummy" had their beats reused from three Telugu songs DSP had previously composed: the eponymous song from "Jalsa" ,"Om Namaste Bolo" from "Ready," and "Akalesthey" from "Shankar Dada Zindabad" respectively.


title: Villu (film)

text: The satellite rights of the film were sold to Kalaignar TV. "Villu" had a limited Blu-ray DVD release in United Kingdom and Japan.


title: Villu (film)

text: This film was released on 12 January 2009, on the same day as Prabhu Deva and Vijay's 2007 film "Pokkiri". It received negative reviews from fans and critics. Behindwoods.com gave 1.5 on 5 and said "With tacky production values, shabby cinematography and amateurish direction Villu comes across as a more than two-hour long." while another website stated "On the whole, Vijay's Villu is an action-packed mass masala film for his ardent fans but with loose ends." "Rediff" reviewed the film "Leave your brains behind and prepare to enjoy the adventures of a Tamil James Bond." and rated 2.5/5. "Ananda Vikatan" rated the film 37 out of 100.


title: All models are wrong

text: All models are wrong is a common aphorism in statistics; it is often expanded as "All models are wrong, but some are useful". The aphorism acknowledges that statistical models always fall short of the complexities of reality but can still be useful nonetheless. The aphorism originally referred just to statistical models, but it is now sometimes used for scientific models in general.


title: All models are wrong

text: The aphorism is generally attributed to the statistician George Box. The underlying concept, though, predates Box's writings.


title: All models are wrong

text: The first record of Box saying "all models are wrong" is in a 1976 paper published in the "Journal of the American Statistical Association". The 1976 paper contains the aphorism twice. The two sections of the paper that contain the aphorism are copied below.


title: All models are wrong

text: Box repeated the aphorism in a paper that was published in the proceedings of a 1978 statistics workshop. The paper contains a section entitled "All models are wrong but some are useful". The section is copied below.


title: All models are wrong

text: Box repeated the aphorism twice more in his 1987 book, "Empirical Model-Building and Response Surfaces" (which was co-authored with Norman Draper). The first repetition is on p. 74: "Remember that all models are wrong; the practical question is how wrong do they have to be to not be useful." The second repetition is on p. 424, which is excerpted below.


title: All models are wrong

text: A second edition of the book was published in 2007, under the title "Response Surfaces, Mixtures, and Ridge Analyses". The second edition also repeats the aphorism twice, in contexts identical with those of the first edition (on p. 63 and p. 414).


title: All models are wrong

text: Box repeated the aphorism two more times in his 1997 book, "Statistical Control: By Monitoring and Feedback Adjustment" (which was co-authored with Alberto Luceño). The first repetition is on p. 6, which is excerpted below.


title: All models are wrong

text: The second repetition is on p. 9: "So since all models are wrong, it is very important to know what to worry about;


title: All models are wrong

text: or, to put it in another way, what models are likely to produce procedures that work in practice (where exact assumptions are never true)".


title: All models are wrong

text: A second edition of the book was published in 2009, under the title "Statistical Control By Monitoring and Adjustment" (co-authored with Alberto Luceño and Maria del Carmen Paniagua-Quiñones). The second edition also repeats the aphorism two times. The first repetition is on p. 61, which is excerpted below.


title: All models are wrong

text: The second repetition is on p. 63; its context is essentially the same as that of the second repetition in the first edition.


title: All models are wrong

text: Box's widely cited book "Statistics for Experimenters" (co-authored with William Hunter) does not include the aphorism in its first edition (published in 1978). The second edition (published in 2005; co-authored with William Hunter and J. Stuart Hunter) includes the aphorism three times: on p. 208, p. 384, and p. 440. On p. 440, the relevant sentence is this: "The most that can be expected from any model is that it can supply a useful approximation to reality: All models are wrong; some models are useful".


title: All models are wrong

text: In addition to stating the aphorism verbatim, Box sometimes stated the essence of the aphorism with different words. One example is from 1978, while Box was President of the American Statistical Association. At the annual meeting of the Association, Box delivered his Presidential Address, wherein he stated this: "Models, of course, are never true, but fortunately it is only necessary that they be useful".


title: All models are wrong

text: There have been varied discussions about the aphorism. A selection from those discussions is presented below.


title: All models are wrong

text: In 1983, the statisticians Peter McCullagh and John Nelder published their much-cited book on generalized linear models. The book includes a brief discussion of the aphorism (though without citing Box). A second edition of the book, published in 1989, contains a very similar discussion of the aphorism. The discussion from the first edition is as follows.


title: All models are wrong

text: In 1996, an Applied Statistician's Creed was proposed by M.R.Nester. The Creed includes, in its core part, the aphorism.


title: All models are wrong

text: In 2002, K. P. Burnham and D. R. Anderson published their much-cited book on statistical model selection. The book states the following.


title: All models are wrong

text: In 2013, the philosopher of science Peter Truran published an essay related to the aphorism. The essay notes, in particular, the following.


title: All models are wrong

text: Truran's essay further notes that Newton's theory of gravitation has been supplanted by Einstein's theory of relativity and yet Newton's theory remains generally "empirically adequate". Indeed, Newton's theory generally has excellent predictive power. Yet Newton's theory is not an approximation of Einstein's theory. For illustration, consider an apple falling down from a tree. Under Newton's theory, the apple falls because Earth exerts a force on the apple—what is called "the force of gravity". Under Einstein's theory, Earth does not exert "any" force on the apple. Hence, Newton's theory might be regarded as being, in some sense, "completely" wrong but extremely useful. (The usefulness of Newton's theory comes partly from being vastly simpler, both mathematically and computationally, than Einstein's theory.)


title: All models are wrong

text: In 2016, P. J. Bickel and K. A. Doksum published the second volume of their book on mathematical statistics. The volume includes the quote from Box's Presidential Address, given above. It states that the quote is the best formulation of the "guiding principle of modern statistics".


title: All models are wrong

text: Additionally, in 2011, a workshop on model selection was held in The Netherlands. The name of the workshop was "All models are wrong...".


title: All models are wrong

text: Although the aphorism seems to have originated with George Box, the underlying concept goes back decades, perhaps centuries. Some exemplifications of that are given below.


title: All models are wrong

text: In 1947, the mathematician John von Neumann said that "truth ... is much too complicated to allow anything but approximations".


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: The mean corpuscular volume, or mean cell volume (MCV), is a measure of the average volume of a red blood corpuscle (or red blood cell). The measure is obtained by multiplying a volume of blood by the proportion of blood that is cellular (the hematocrit), and dividing that product by the number of erythrocytes (red blood cells) in that volume. The mean corpuscular volume is a part of a standard complete blood count.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: In patients with anemia, it is the MCV measurement that allows classification as either a microcytic anemia (MCV below normal range), normocytic anemia (MCV within normal range) or macrocytic anemia (MCV above normal range). Normocytic anemia is usually deemed so because the bone marrow has not yet responded with a change in cell volume. It occurs occasionally in acute conditions, namely blood loss and hemolysis.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: If the MCV was determined by automated equipment, the result can be compared to RBC morphology on a peripheral blood smear, where a normal RBC is about the size of a normal lymphocyte nucleus. Any deviation would usually be indicative of either faulty equipment or technician error, although there are some conditions that present with high MCV without megaloblastic cells.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: For further specification, it can be used to calculate red blood cell distribution width (RDW). The RDW is a statistical calculation made by automated analyzers that reflects the variability in size and shape of the RBCs.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: Normally, MCV is expressed in femtoliters (fL, or 10 L), and [RBC] in millions per microliter (10 / μL). The normal range for MCV is 80–100 fL.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: If the hematocrit is expressed as a percentage, the red blood cell concentration as millions per microliter, and the MCV in femtoliters, the formula becomes


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: The MCV can be determined in a number of ways by automatic analyzers. In volume-sensitive automated blood cell counters, such as the Coulter counter, the red cells pass one-by-one through a small aperture and generate a signal directly proportional to their volume.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: Other automated counters measure red blood cell volume by means of techniques that measure refracted, diffracted, or scattered light.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: In pernicious anemia (macrocytic), MCV can range up to 150 femtolitres. (as are an elevated GGT and an AST/ALT ratio of 2:1). Vitamin B12 and/or folic acid deficiency has also been associated with macrocytic anemia (high MCV numbers).


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: The most common causes of microcytic anemia are iron deficiency (due to inadequate dietary intake, gastrointestinal blood loss, or menstrual blood loss), thalassemia, sideroblastic anemia or chronic disease. In iron deficiency anemia (microcytic anemia), it can be as low as 60 to 70 femtolitres. In some cases of thalassemia, the MCV may be low even though the patient is not iron deficient.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: The MCV can be conceptualized as the total volume of a group of cells divided by the number of cells. For a real world sized example, imagine you had 10 small jellybeans with a combined volume of 10 µL. The mean volume of a jellybean in this group would be 10 µL / 10 jellybeans = 1 µL / jellybean. A similar calculation works for MCV.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: 2. The 1 µL is only made of a proportion of red cells (e.g. 40%) with the rest of the volume composed of plasma. Multiply by the hematocrit (a unitless quantity) to take this into account.


title: Mean corpuscular volume

text: 3. Finally, convert the units of µL to fL by multiplying by formula_8. The result would look like this:


title: Koxinga

text: Zheng Chenggong, Prince of Yanping (; 27 August 1624 – 23 June 1662), better known internationally as Koxinga (), was a Ming loyalist general who resisted the Qing conquest of China in the 17th century, fighting them on China's southeastern coast.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1661, Koxinga defeated the Dutch outposts on Taiwan and established a dynasty, the House of Koxinga, which ruled part of the island as the Kingdom of Tungning from 1661 to 1683.


title: Koxinga

text: Zheng Sen was born in 1624 in Hirado, Hizen Province, Japan, to Zheng Zhilong, a Chinese merchant and a Japanese woman, known only by her surname "Tagawa" or probably Tagawa Matsu. He was raised there until the age of seven with the Japanese name Fukumatsu (福松) and then moved to Fujian province of Ming dynasty China.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1638, Zheng became a "successful candidate" in the imperial examination and became one of the twelve "Linshansheng" () of Nan'an. In 1641, Koxinga married the niece of Dong Yangxian, an official who was a "Jinshi" from Hui'an. In 1644, Koxinga studied at the Guozijian (Imperial University), where he met the scholar Qian Qianyi and became his student.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1644, following the fall of Beijing to rebels led by Li Zicheng, the Chongzhen Emperor hanged himself on a tree in modern-day Jingshan Park in Beijing. Manchu armies aided by Wu Sangui's forces defeated the rebels and took the city. The Ming remnant forces retreated to Nanjing where they put Prince Fu on the throne as the Hongguang Emperor in an attempt to continue the Ming dynasty in the south. The next year, the Manchu armies led by Dodo advanced south and conquered Yangzhou and Nanjing while the Ming leader defending Yangzhou, Shi Kefa, was killed and the Hongguang emperor was captured and executed.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1645, Prince of Tang was installed on the throne of the Southern Ming as the Longwu Emperor with support from Zheng Zhilong and his family. The Longwu Emperor established his court in Fuzhou, which was controlled by the Zhengs. In the later part of the year, another Ming Prince Lu proclaimed himself as Regent () in Shaoxing and established his own court there. Although Prince Lu and Longwu's regimes stemmed from the same dynasty, each pursued different goals.


title: Koxinga

text: Owing to the natural defenses of Fujian and the military resources of the Zheng family, the emperor was able to remain safe for some time. The Longwu Emperor granted Zheng Zhilong's son, Zheng Sen, a new given name, "Chenggong" (), and the title of "Koxinga" ("Lord of the Imperial Surname"). One of his cousins also had it.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1646, Koxinga first led the Ming armies to resist the Manchu invaders and won the favor of the Longwu Emperor. The Longwu Emperor's reign in Fuzhou was brief, as Zheng Zhilong refused to support his plans for a counteroffensive against the rapidly expanding forces of the newly established Qing dynasty by the Manchus. Zheng Zhilong ordered the defending general of Xianxia Pass (), Shi Fu (a.k.a. Shi Tianfu, a relative of Shi Lang), to retreat to Fuzhou even when Qing armies approached Fujian. For this reason, the Qing army faced little resistance when it conquered the north of the pass. In September 1646, Qing armies broke through the inadequately defended mountain passes and entered Fujian. Zheng Zhilong retreated to his coastal fortress and the Longwu Emperor faced the Qing armies alone. Longwu's forces were destroyed; he was captured and was executed in October 1646.


title: Koxinga

text: The Qing forces sent envoys to meet Zheng Zhilong secretly and offered to appoint him as the governor of both Fujian and Guangdong provinces if he would surrender to the Qing. Zheng Zhilong agreed and ignored the objections of his family, surrendering himself to the Qing forces in Fuzhou on 21 November 1646. Koxinga and his uncles were left as the successors to the leadership of Zheng Zhilong's military forces. Koxinga operated outside Xiamen and recruited many to join his cause in a few months. He used the superiority of his naval forces to launch amphibious raids on Manchu-occupied territory in Fujian and he managed to take Tong'an in Quanzhou prefecture in early 1647. However, Koxinga's forces lacked the ability to defend the newly occupied territory.


title: Koxinga

text: Following the fall of Tong'an to Zheng, the Manchus launched a counterattack in the spring of 1647, during which they stormed the Zheng family's hometown of Anping. Koxinga's mother, Lady Tagawa, had come from Japan in 1645 to join her family in Fujian (Koxinga's younger brother, Tagawa Shichizaemon, remained in Japan). She did not follow her husband to surrender to the Qing dynasty. She was caught by Manchu forces in Anping and committed suicide after refusal to submit to the enemy, according to traditional accounts.


title: Koxinga

text: By 1650, Koxinga was strong enough to establish himself as the head of the Zheng family. He pledged allegiance to the Yongli Emperor of Southern Ming. The Yongli Emperor was fleeing from the Manchus with a motley court and hastily assembled army. Despite one fruitless attempt, Koxinga was unable to do anything to aid the last Ming emperor. Instead, he decided to concentrate on securing his own position on the southeast coast.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga had a series of military successes in 1651 and 1652 that increased the Qing government's anxiety over the threat he posed. Zheng Zhilong wrote a letter to his son from Beijing, presumably at the request of the Shunzhi Emperor and the Qing government, urging his son to negotiate with the Manchurians. The long series of negotiations between Koxinga and the Qing dynasty lasted until November 1654. The negotiations ultimately failed. The Qing government then appointed Prince Jidu (son of Jirgalang) to lead an attack on Koxinga's territory after this failure.


title: Koxinga

text: On 9 May 1656, Jidu's armies attacked Kinmen (Quemoy), an island near Xiamen that Koxinga had been using to train his troops. Partly as a result of a major storm, the Manchus were defeated, and they lost most of their fleet in the battle. Koxinga had sent one of his naval commanders to capture Zhoushan island prior to Jidu's attack, and now that the Manchus were temporarily without an effective naval force in the Fujian area, Koxinga was free to send a huge army to Zhoushan, which he intended to use as a base to capture Nanjing.


title: Koxinga

text: Despite capturing many counties in his initial attack due to surprise and having the initiative, Koxinga announced the final battle in Nanjing ahead of time giving plenty of time for the Qing to prepare because he wanted a decisive, single grand showdown like his father successfully did against the Dutch at the Battle of Liaoluo Bay, throwing away the surprise and initiative which led to its failure. Koxinga's attack on Qing held Nanjing which would interrupt the supply route of the Grand Canal leading to possible starvation in Beijing caused such fear that the Manchus considered returning to Manchuria and abandoning China according to a 1671 account by a French missionary. The commoners and officials in Beijing and Nanjing were waiting to support whichever side won. An official from Qing Beijing sent letters to family and another official in Nanjing, telling them all communication and news from Nanjing to Beijing had been cut off, that the Qing were considering abandoning Beijing and moving their capital far away to a remote location for safety since Koxinga's iron troops were rumored to be invincible. The letter said it reflected the grim situation being felt in Qing Beijing. The official told his children in Nanjing to prepare to defect to Koxinga which he himself was preparing to do. Koxinga's forces intercepted these letters and after reading them Koxinga may have started to regret his deliberate delays allowing the Qing to prepare for a final massive battle instead of swiftly attacking Nanjing.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga's Ming loyalists fought against a majority Han Chinese Bannermen Qing army when attacking Nanjing. The siege lasted almost three weeks, beginning on 24 August. Koxinga's forces were unable to maintain a complete encirclement, which enabled the city to obtain supplies and even reinforcements — though cavalry attacks by the city's forces were successful even before reinforcements arrived. Koxinga's forces were defeated and slipped back to the ships which had brought them.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1661, Koxinga led his troops on a landing at "Lakjemuyse" to attack the Dutch colonists in Dutch Formosa. Koxinga said to the Dutch "Hitherto this island had always belonged to China, and the Dutch had doubtless been permitted to live there, seeing that the Chinese did not require it for themselves; but requiring it now, it was only fair that Dutch strangers, who came from far regions, should give way to the masters of the island."


title: Koxinga

text: The Taiwanese Aboriginal tribes who were previously allied with the Dutch against the Chinese during the Guo Huaiyi Rebellion in 1652 turned against the Dutch during the Siege of Fort Zeelandia and defected to Koxinga's Chinese forces. The Aboriginals (Formosans) of Sincan defected to Koxinga after he offered them amnesty, and proceeded to work for the Chinese, beheading Dutch people. The frontier aboriginals in the mountains and plains also surrendered and defected to the Chinese on 17 May 1661, celebrating their freedom from compulsory education under Dutch rule by hunting down Dutch people and beheading them, and by destroying their Protestant school textbooks. On 1 February 1662, the Dutch Governor of Formosa, Frederick Coyett, surrendered Fort Zeelandia to Koxinga. According to Frederick Coyett's own self-justifying account written after the siege, Koxinga's life was saved at the end of the siege by a certain Hans Jurgen Radis of Stockaert, a Dutch defector who strongly advized him against visiting the ramparts of the fort after he had taken it, which Radis knew would be blown up by the retreating Dutch forces. This claim of a Dutch defector only appears in Coyett's account and Chinese records make no mention of any defector. In the peace treaty, Koxinga was styled "Lord Teibingh Tsiante Teysiancon Koxin" (). This effectively ended 38 years of Dutch rule on Taiwan. Koxinga then devoted himself to transforming Taiwan into a military base for loyalists who wanted to restore the Ming dynasty.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga formulated a plan to give oxen and farming tools and teach farming techniques to the Taiwan Aboriginals, giving them Ming gowns and caps, and gifting tobacco to Aboriginals who were gathering in crowds to meet and welcome him as he visited their villages after he defeated the Dutch.


title: Koxinga

text: In 1662, Koxinga's forces raided several towns in the Philippines. Koxinga's chief advisor was an Italian friar named Vittorio Riccio, whom he sent to Manila to demand tribute from the colonial government of the Spanish East Indies, threatening to expel the Spaniards if his demands were not met. The Spanish refused to pay the tribute and reinforced the garrisons around Manila, but the planned attack never took place due to Koxinga's sudden death in that year after expelling the Dutch from Taiwan.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga's threat to invade the islands and expel the Spanish was an important factor in the Spanish failure to conquer the Muslim Moro people in Mindanao. The threat of Chinese invasion forced the Spanish to withdraw their forces to Manila, leaving some troops in Jolo and by Lake Lanao to engage the Moro in protracted conflict, while their fort on Zamboanga in Mindanao was immediately evacuated following Koxinga's threats. The Spanish were also forced to permanently abandon their colony in the Maluku Islands (Moluccas) and withdraw their soldiers from there to Manila.


title: Koxinga

text: Tonio Andrade judged that Koxinga would most likely have been able to defeat the Spanish if the threatened invasion had taken place.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga died of malaria in June 1662, only a few months after defeating the Dutch in Taiwan, at the age of 37. There were speculations that he died in a sudden fit of madness when his officers refused to carry out his orders to execute his son Zheng Jing. Zheng Jing had had an affair with his wet nurse and conceived a child with her. Zheng Jing succeeded his father as the King of Tungning.


title: Koxinga

text: As he descended into death, Koxinga relented and agreed to let his son Zheng Jing succeed him. Koxinga died as he passed into delirium and madness and expressed his regrets to his family and father.


title: Koxinga

text: Zheng Chenggong’s short but eventful career was characterized by family tension and conflicting loyalties. The title of Koxinga ("Lord of the Imperial Surname") was one that Zheng himself used during his lifetime to emphasize his status as an adopted son of the deposed imperial house, so it was also a declaration of ongoing support to the Ming dynasty. Despite his deliberate self-identification as the noble, loyal vassal of a vanquished master, Koxinga’s actual relationship with the Longwu Emperor lasted only twelve months or so, beginning in September 1645 and ending with the Emperor's death the following year. Although many secondary sources claim that the two men shared a "close bond of affection", there is an absence of any reliable contemporary evidence on Koxinga’s relationship with the Longwu Emperor.


title: Koxinga

text: In contrast, Koxinga's father Zheng Zhilong left his Japanese wife not long after the birth of his son; Koxinga was a boy of seven when he finally joined his father on the Fujianese coast. It seems that Zheng Zhilong recognized his son’s talent and encouraged him in his studies and the pursuit of a career as a scholar-official, which would legitimize the power the Zheng family had acquired, using sometimes questionable means. Zheng Zhilong’s defection to the Qing must have seemed opportunistic and in stark contrast to Koxinga’s continued loyalty to the Ming. But it is difficult to deny that in refusing to submit to the Qing, Koxinga was risking the life of his father, and that the subsequent death of Zheng Zhilong could only be justified by claiming loyalty to the Ming. It has even been suggested that Koxinga’s fury at the incestuous relationship between his son, Zheng Jing, and a younger son’s wet nurse was due to the fact that strict Confucian morality had played such a crucial role in justifying his lack of filial behaviour.


title: Koxinga

text: The one possible exception to this may have been his relationship with his mother, which has generally been described as being extremely affectionate, particularly in Chinese and Japanese sources. Their time together, however, was apparently very short – despite frequent entreaties from Zheng Zhilong for her to join him in China, Koxinga’s mother was only reunited with her son some time in 1645, and a year later she was killed when the Qing took Xiamen.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga's descendants live in both mainland China and Taiwan and descendants of his brother Shichizaemon live in Japan. His descendants through his grandson Zheng Keshuang served as Bannermen in Beijing until 1911 when the Xinhai revolution broke out and the Qing dynasty fell, after which they moved back to Anhai and Nan'an in southern Fujian. They still live there to this day. His descendants through one of his sons Zheng Kuan live in Taiwan.


title: Koxinga

text: One of Koxinga's descendants on mainland China, Zheng Xiaoxuan 鄭曉嵐, fought against the Japanese invaders in the Second Sino-Japanese War. His son was born in Shandong in mainland China and called himself a "child of the resistance" against Japan and he became a refugee during the war, moving from place to place across China to avoid the Japanese. He moved to Taiwan in 1949 and focuses his poetry work on building stronger ties between Taiwan and mainland China. Zheng Chouyu identified as Chinese. He felt alienated after he was forced to move to Taiwan in 1949 which was previously under Japanese rule and felt strange and foreign to him. Chouyu is Koxinga's 11th generation descendant and his original name is Zheng Wenji.


title: Koxinga

text: During the Siege of Fort Zeelandia, Koxinga executed Dutch missionary Antonius Hambroek and took his teenage daughter as a concubine. Other Dutch women were sold to Chinese soldiers to become their "wives". In 1684 some of these Dutch wives were still captives of the Chinese.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga, importantly, was mentally unstable, known to have a vicious temper and tendency towards ordering executions. While this might be explained by the trauma of his family being killed by the Qing army and his mother's reported suicide (in order to prevent capture by the Qing), it was also speculated that he suffered from syphilis, a suspicion held by a Dutch doctor, Christian Beyer, who treated him.


title: Koxinga

text: Vittorio Riccio, a Dominican missionary who knew Koxinga, noted that Koxinga held samurai ideals on bravery, used "feigned and hearty laughter" to show anger, and adhered to bushido because of his samurai training and his Japanese upbringing. One Spanish missionary proffered a personal opinion that his bad temper and reported propensity for violence was due to Japanese heritage; however, this same missionary's account of the number of executions attributed to Koxinga was greatly exaggerated.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga's legacy is treated similarly on each side of the Taiwan Strait. Koxinga is worshiped as a god in coastal China, especially Fujian, by overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia and in Taiwan. There is a temple dedicated to Koxinga and his mother in Tainan City, Taiwan. The National Cheng Kung University in Tainan, one of the most prestigious universities in Taiwan, is named after him.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga's army also brought the Qinxi fraternal brotherhood into Taiwan, of which some of his army were members of the organization. In the present day, the Qinxi currently exists in Taiwan. The Hongmen are associated with them.


title: Koxinga

text: Tokugawa Japan imported books from Qing China including works on the Zheng family. The Qing built a shrine to commemorate Koxinga to counteract the Japanese and French in Taiwan in the 19th century. Zheng Juzhong's books Zheng Chenggong zhuan was imported to Japan and reprinted in 1771.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga has received renewed attention since rumors began circulating that the People’s Liberation Army Navy were planning to name their newly acquired aircraft carrier, the ex-Soviet Varyag, the "Shi Lang". Admiral Shi Lang famously defeated Koxinga’s descendants in the 1683 Battle of Penghu, thus bringing Taiwan under Qing rule. However, the Chinese government denied all allegations that the vessel would be dedicated to the decorated Qing dynasty admiral.


title: Koxinga

text: Koxinga is regarded as a hero in the People's Republic of China, Taiwan, and Japan, but historical narratives regarding Koxinga frequently differ in explaining his motives and affiliation. Japan treats him as a native son and emphasized his maternal link to Japan in propaganda during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan. The People's Republic of China considers Koxinga a national hero for driving the imperialist Dutch away from Taiwan and establishing ethnic Chinese rule over the island. On mainland China, Koxinga is honoured as the "Conqueror of Taiwan, Great Rebel-Quelling General" a military hero who brought Taiwan back within the Han Chinese sphere of influence through expanded economic, trade and cultural exchanges. In China, Koxinga is honoured without the religious overtones found in Taiwan.


title: Koxinga

text: The Republic of China, which withdrew to Taiwan after losing the Chinese Civil War, regards Koxinga as a patriot who also retreated to Taiwan and used it as a base to launch counterattacks against the Qing dynasty of mainland China. In Taiwan, Koxinga is honored as the island’s most respected saint for expelling the Dutch and seen as the original ancestor of a free Taiwan, and is known as Kaishan Shengwang, or "the Sage King who Opened up Taiwan" and as "The Yanping Prince", referring to the Kingdom of Tungning, which he established in modern-day Tainan.


title: Koxinga

text: In Taiwan, Koxinga is remembered and revered as a divine national hero with hundreds of temples, schools, tertiary educations, and other public centers named in his honor. Koxinga is accredited with replacing Dutch colonial rule with a more modern political system. Furthermore, Koxinga transformed Taiwan into an agrarian society through the introduction of new agricultural methods such as the proliferation of iron farming tools and new farming methods with cattle. For these reasons, Koxinga is often associated with "hints of [a] consciousness of Taiwanese independence," although Koxinga himself wanted Taiwan unified with the rest of China. Great care was taken to symbolize support for the Ming legitimacy, an example being the use of the term "guan" instead of "bu" to name departments, since the latter is reserved for central government, whereas Taiwan was to be a regional office of the rightful Ming rule of China.


title: Koxinga

text: However, not all Taiwanese accept the popularized interpretation of the Koxinga legacy. Supporters of Taiwanese independence are skeptical about embracing the Koxinga legacy. Koxinga's mixed Japanese heritage (the Japanese were an occupying force for 50 years between 1895 and 1945) and the positive connotations in mainland China have all made acceptance by Taiwan independence supporters problematic.


title: Koxinga

text: In mainland China, Koxinga is considered a positive historical but human figure (not deified as he often is in Taiwan). Koxinga’s retreat to Taiwan is seen largely as an inspirational story of Chinese nationalists seeking refuge against hostile forces. Koxinga's aspirations to see Taiwan united with the mainland is often accentuated. Furthermore, Koxinga facilitated the settlement of a large number of Han Chinese to Taiwan who brought with them their Han cultures, traditions, and languages. As a direct result, Han Chinese make up approximately 98% of the Taiwanese population today.


title: Koxinga

text: The play "The Battles of Coxinga" was written by Chikamatsu Monzaemon in Japan in the 18th century, first performed in Kyoto. A 2001 film titled "The Sino-Dutch War 1661" starred Vincent Zhao as Koxinga. The film was renamed "Kokusenya Kassen" after the aforementioned play and released in Japan in 2002.


title: Koxinga

text: The historical novel "Lord of Formosa" by Dutch author Joyce Bergvelt uses Koxinga as the main character.


title: Elis James

text: Owain Elis James (born 3 November 1980) is a Welsh comedian, broadcaster and actor originally from Haverfordwest. He grew up in Carmarthen and later lived in Cardiff. He is now based in South London. He is bilingual in Welsh and English and has performed stand-up in both languages.


title: Elis James

text: James was born in Haverfordwest and grew up in Carmarthen, Wales. He has two younger sisters, Carys and Nia. James's mother worked with the father of Welsh comedian Rhod Gilbert and the mother of Welsh musician Euros Childs.


title: Elis James

text: Prior to becoming a professional comedian, James engaged in various forms of employment, including temp work, charity work and part-time work at a café.


title: Elis James

text: James began his comedy career in 2005, though he had previously won the Maes B comedy award at the 1999 national eisteddfod. He made the transition to full-time comedy work in 2008. Prior to moving full-time to comedy, James was guitarist with the Cardiff-based indie/punk band Heck, fronted by Jemma Roper. The band recorded an EP and received airplay on BBC 6 Music, BBC Radio Wales and BBC Introducing's Wales show, then broadcast on Radio 1. They also performed on new bands nights organised by the "NME".


title: Elis James

text: James commenced his role as Rex Jones, an old caretaker who is a post-Marxist with a health-and-safety obsession, in the live show "Chris Corcoran's Committee Meeting" in 2009. The show, conceived by Welsh comedian Chris Corcoran, was held for three years at the Muni Arts Centre. Corcoran explained in 2014: "We would write each show from scratch in the space of five days and the first time we'd perform it would be in front of the audience."


title: Elis James

text: James supported Gilbert on his national UK tour, "Rhod Gilbert and the Award-Winning Mince Pie", in 2010. Supporting Gilbert, James experienced performances before audiences of over 1,500 people and he later said that he felt like a "pop star" when he walked on stage during the tour. James performed the "Daytripper" show at the 2010 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.


title: Elis James

text: James and Corcoran later performed in a "best of" show based on the "Chris Corcoran's Committee Meeting" shows, including the "Social Club FM" spin-off radio show, at the 2012 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The show received the "Guardian" Pick of the Fringe accolade and led to the production of "The Committee Meeting" television pilot after the Tiger Aspect production company expressed interest.


title: Elis James

text: In 2012, in response to a question about whether there is a difference between English and Welsh comedy, James replied:


title: Elis James

text: There are differences, however slight, and the references are obviously different. But not so different that Welsh comics can't be successful in England, and vice versa. There are plenty of regional differences in English humour. I would tailor my material differently if I was in Aberystwyth as opposed to Manchester, but not radically.


title: Elis James

text: James was the MC of the Machynlleth Comedy Festival Gala performance at the May 2014 Hay Festival. James performed alongside partner Isy Suttie, as well as comedians Henry Paker and Mike Wozniak. At the 2015 Machynlleth Comedy Festival, James performed a new Work in Progress show as well as a set in Welsh.


title: Elis James

text: In late 2015, James recorded a stand-up special in Welsh titled "Rhacs Jibiders". It was broadcast on S4C and was also available (as with many of the channel's shows) on the BBC iPlayer. His next Welsh-language show, "Haleliw", was first broadcast on Christmas Day 2019.


title: Elis James

text: In 2020 James began co-hosting The Socially Distant Sports Bar podcast with sports journalist Steff Garrero and comedian Mike Bubbins, based on their love of sport but lack of live sport due to the COVID-19 pandemic.


title: Elis James

text: James played Rex Jones in the radio spin-off of "Chris Corcoran's Committee Meeting", "Social Club FM", which was initially broadcast in August 2011 for BBC Radio Wales and ran for two years.


title: Elis James

text: Following a pilot show, on 16 February 2014 James started broadcasting the "Elis James and John Robins" show on XFM (now Radio X), co-hosting with fellow comedian John Robins. The show was broadcast on Saturday afternoons and released a popular podcast. The show had its final broadcast on 30 March 2019.


title: Elis James

text: On 2 April 2019, it was announced that James and Robins will be hosting a new Friday afternoon radio show on BBC 5 Live starting 31 May.


title: Elis James

text: James has hosted "Elis James's Pantheon of Heroes" on BBC Radio Wales since 2012. In the show, which also features Nadia Kamil and Ben Partridge, various figures from Welsh history are comically compared to each other in an attempt to identify the most heroic. Four series have been broadcast so far. Since 2014, James has also co-written and co-starred in the BBC Radio Wales sketch show "Here Be Dragons". The show won the 2014 Sony Award - Bronze for Best Comedy.


title: Elis James

text: On Welsh-language radio, he hosted "Dwy Iaith, Un Ymennydd" for BBC Radio Cymru. In this series he interviewed personalities such as Prys Morgan, Sioned Wiliam and Dafydd Iwan.


title: Elis James

text: A pilot episode of "Ankle Tag" aired on BBC Radio 2 in 2015 in which James played the lead alongside Steve Speirs and Katy Wix. The show has run for three series on BBC Radio 4 from 2017 to 2020.


title: Elis James

text: In 2016, James hosted "Elis in Euroland" for BBC Radio Wales, a series reporting on the 2016 Euros campaign by the Wales national football team, of which he's been a lifelong fan. The team reached the tournament's semi-finals.


title: Elis James

text: James has also been hosting the BBC podcast "Elis James' Feast of Football" since August 2017, along with former Welsh Internationals Iwan Roberts and Danny Gabbidon, discussing the fortunes of the Welsh National Team and Welsh clubs Cardiff, Swansea, Newport and Wrexham.


title: Elis James

text: In 2020 James became the Champion of Champions in BBC Radio 5 Live's "Fighting Talk", defeating one of the big beasts of the show, Steve Bunce.


title: Elis James

text: James also makes occasional appearances on The Guardian’s Football Weekly podcast, usually to talk about the performances of the Welsh National Football Team.


title: Elis James

text: James presented early episodes of the S4C music television programme "Bandit" and has appeared in segments of "Hwb", S4C's Welsh-learners program.


title: Elis James

text: In 2013 "The Committee Meeting" was part of BBC Three's "Comedy Feeds", a series of comedy television pilots available exclusively via the BBC iPlayer. The pilot starred James and Corcoran, and featured guest Colin Baker. It was screened on BBC One Wales in August 2014.


title: Elis James

text: In 2014 James appeared as Nigel in series 2 episode 3 of "Crackanory" on the Dave channel, and as Owen in the BBC Three "Comedy Feed" pilot "Josh", starring Josh Widdicombe. "Josh" was commissioned and ran for three series on BBC Three from 2015 to 2017. He also starred in the BBC prison sitcom "Crims". which aired on BBC Three in early 2015.


title: Elis James

text: In 2015 he appeared on "The Really Welsh Christmas Quiz" on BBC One Wales, alongside fellow comedians Chris Corcoran, Miles Jupp and Omar Hamdi.


title: Elis James

text: In October 2017, James starred in "James and Jupp", a four part travel series on BBC Two in which James showed Miles Jupp around Wales.


title: Elis James

text: In October 2018, James appeared in the Welsh episode of HISTORY's TV series "Al Murray: Why Does Everyone Hate The English" alongside host Al Murray.


title: Elis James

text: From 2018 he has appeared as Nez in the semi-improvised mockumentary "Tourist Trap" on BBC One Wales. The show has run for two series and two specials.


title: Elis James

text: He is the narrator of the BBC Four documentary "The Secret Life of Farm Animals", first broadcast in March 2022.


title: Elis James

text: In March 2017 James won Chortle's Best Radio Show award with co-host John Robins, for their weekly show on Radio X.


title: Elis James

text: James is a supporter of Swansea City and Wales, and has an extensive collection of retro shirts of both teams. He explained in 2010 that the worst thing about being a comedian is when the timing of Swansea City games clash with his live show commitments.


title: Elis James

text: He is engaged to actress, comedian and musician Isy Suttie. The couple met in 2009 and began dating in 2010. They now live in Crystal Palace, South London and have a daughter, Beti Mair (born 2014), and a son, Steffan (born 2019).


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Cheek to Cheek is the first collaborative album by American singers Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, released on September 19, 2014, by Columbia and Interscope Records. It is Bennett's fifty-eighth studio album, and Gaga's fourth. The two first met at the Robin Hood Foundation gala in New York City in 2011, and later recorded a rendition of "The Lady Is a Tramp" together, after which they began discussing plans of working on a jazz project. "Cheek to Cheek" consists of jazz standards by popular composers such as George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, and Irving Berlin. It was inspired by Bennett and Gaga's desire to introduce the songs to a younger generation, since they believed these tracks have a universal appeal.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In January 2013, the album was announced by both artists and started its recording process after Gaga recovered from a hip surgery. It was recorded in New York City, where Bennett and Gaga were accompanied by a live band and jazz musicians associated with both artists. Gaga deviated from her previous contemporary pop albums as she wanted instead to create a jazz record. The release date of the album was delayed multiple times, and the final date was announced by Bennett and Gaga on "The Today Show". The full-length track listing and cover artwork was released thereafter, including the track lists for many alternate editions. The artists promoted "Cheek to Cheek" through multiple performances in and around New York, a behind-the-scenes program detailing the recording of the album on the Home Shopping Network (HSN), and a televised concert titled "", which aired on PBS in October 2014. The album was preceded by the release of two singles: "Anything Goes" and "I Can't Give You Anything but Love", which both reached number one on "Billboard"s Jazz Digital Songs Chart in the United States.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: "Cheek to Cheek" received generally positive reviews upon release, with critics praising the vocal chemistry between Bennett and Gaga. At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, the album won Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. "Cheek to Cheek" debuted at number one on the US "Billboard" 200, with 131,000 copies sold in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan, and has since sold 773,000 copies in the United States. The album became Bennett's second number-one album and Gaga's third consecutive number-one in the US; Gaga became the first female artist in the country to have three number-one albums in the 2010s decade, while Bennett extended his record as the oldest artist to achieve a number-one album on the chart. The album also reached the top ten in Australia, Canada, Greece, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom. The duo's second collaborative album, "Love for Sale", was released on September 30, 2021.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In 2011, Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga first met after she had performed a rendition of Nat King Cole's "Orange Colored Sky" at the Robin Hood Foundation gala in New York City. Bennett then asked Gaga to sing a duet with him on his album "Duets II", and the pair recorded "The Lady Is a Tramp" for the album. In September 2012, Bennett confirmed to "Rolling Stone" that Gaga wanted to record a jazz album with him and there was a well-known composer associated with the project, and although not on a par with songwriters like George Gershwin or Cole Porter, he had had several hits to his name. Swing band and composer Marion Evans was also under consideration for collaborating on the album; Bennett confirmed recording sessions would start soon after.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In January 2013, Evans confirmed that he would have a fairly significant part in the making of the album, stating "I don't know at this point exactly how many songs will be on the CD, but I'm sure we'll have about four or five different-sized orchestras or bands. It'll turn into a giant panic, I can assure you. That's just how this business is." Later that month, Gaga, after her performance with Bennett at the final inaugural ball of President Obama's second inauguration, announced the album formally through her Twitter. "And here's me and my handsome date, I simply cannot wait for our album together, he's my darling!" she wrote as a caption for a photo tweeted of the pair, along with revealing the title of the album as "Cheek to Cheek".


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In September 2013, Bennett explained that for the album, they recorded "all great standards, quality songs; George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, songs like that. With a big swingin' band and great, great, jazz artists playing." He told "Chicago Tribune" that his main intention of recording the album with Gaga was to introduce the jazz standards to a younger audience, believing that the tracks had a "universal appeal" and "timeless quality" about them. Gaga told "The Daily Telegraph" that with her earlier releases like "The Fame" (2008), "The Fame Monster" (2009), and "Born This Way" (2011), she felt unable to achieve her full vocal potential. She described "Cheek to Cheek" as a "rebellious" and "liberating" album for her because she was able to sing without worrying about record producers engineering it for radio.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Bennett said that Gaga had written an original song for the album titled "Paradise". It also contained solo performances along with the duets; Gaga later clarified that the album contained only standards. The songs were handpicked by Bennett and Gaga; they selected tracks from the Great American Songbook including "Anything Goes", a Porter song, "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" and "Sophisticated Lady" by Duke Ellington, "Lush Life" by Billy Strayhorn, and the title track by Berlin.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Although the project was in development and discussions were taking place as early as September 2012, the recording did not start until the Spring of 2013, being delayed by Gaga's hip surgery and cancellation of her Born This Way Ball tour. The recording took place over a year in New York City, and featured jazz musicians associated with both artists. Bennett's quartet was present, including Mike Renzi, Gray Sargent, Harold Jones and Marshall Wood as well as pianist Tom Lanier. Along with Evans, jazz trumpeter Brian Newman, a longtime friend and colleague of Gaga, played on the album with his New York City based jazz quintet. Tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano and flautist Paul Horn were also enlisted as musicians.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: According to Gaga, Bennett wanted her to sing different songs and was impressed by her vocals during "Lush Life", referring to the Billy Strayhorn–written standard that has been recorded by everyone from Nancy Wilson and Sarah Vaughan to Donna Summer and Linda Ronstadt. Gaga explained that she was nervous about recording with Bennett. "I just wanted him to hear I have an authentic jazz voice and that I studied that... If he can hear that, I'm okay. If he can't hear it, I'm not an authentic jazz voice", she added. Inspiration for singing came from jazz singer Amy Winehouse, who died in July 2011; Gaga added, "I thought of her almost every day in the studio. I wish she was still here. She was jazz to her core". The songs were recorded live with the band, and during the recording process Gaga asked for carpets to be placed on the studio floor, so that it looked like a film set and it could be photographed.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In "Cheek to Cheek", Gaga sings solo on "Lush Life", "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" and "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye", while Bennett's solo includes "Don't Wait Too Long" and "Sophisticated Lady". According to Gaga, "Lush Life" and "Sophisticated Lady" complemented each other; for Bennett, the complement came from the fact that Duke Ellington wrote "Sophisticated Lady" and later collaborated with Strayhorn for "Lush Life". Gaga sang "Lush Life" in her school choir, but it was only later she understood the lyrical interpretation of the track, about failure and heartache. While recording "Cheek to Cheek" she was emotionally upset about her professional and personal conflicts encountered during the "Artpop" era; Bennett had to support and guide her through the process. Newman recalled that "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" was recorded during the taping of the duo's show at Lincoln Center. Gaga had informed the musicians about performing the song, and piano player Alex Smith made the necessary musical arrangements the night before the concert. They did not rehearse it, and recorded it live when Gaga performed the song in front of the audience.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: The first song, "Anything Goes", was recorded by Bennett for his 1959 collaboration with Count Basie and his Orchestra, "Strike Up the Band", and Gaga first came to know about it when she was 13 years old. Gaga thought that "Anything Goes" was a funny track with a "real sexy, powerful vibe to it, and it's just because we're having fun singing it." The version on "Cheek to Cheek" finds Bennett and Gaga swapping the lyrics between themselves, and was described by Bobby Olivier, from "The Star-Ledger", as "smooth as silk". The syllables are pronounced strongly by Gaga in syncopation while her vibrato complemented Bennett's characteristic jazz vocals and swing. Olivier added, "Gaga's voice, when stripped of its bells and whistles, showcases a timelessness that lends itself well to the genre." "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" was written in 1928 by Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields for the Broadway revue "Blackbirds of 1928". The version on "Cheek to Cheek" opens with the sound of high-hat and an electronic organ. Gaga alters the lyrics to sing "Gee, I'd like to say you're looking swell, Tony", who later rejoins with the line "Diamond bracelets Woolworth doesn't sell, Gaga". "Nature Boy" was first released as a single in 1948 by Cole, and it became a commercial success for him. Written by eccentric songwriter eden ahbez, the song about a "strange enchanted boy" features instrumentation from flutes and drums, and has an orchestral arrangement. A loungier version, Gaga sings in a Liza Minnelli inspired voice with a breathy range, followed by Bennett complimenting her with the story of meeting the titular character.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: On December 12, 2013, Bennett revealed to CNN that the album's release was delayed and the final release date was confirmed as March 18, 2014. Edna Gunderson from "USA Today" reported that the album had been delayed and was expected to be released in late 2014. Later in April 2014, during the Museum of the Moving Image's salute to Kevin Spacey, Bennett told a reporter that the album would be released during September. On July 29, 2014, Bennett and Gaga appeared on "The Today Show" to formally announce their collaboration and confirmed the final release date in the US as September 23, 2014. The album was first released in Australia and Germany on September 19, 2014. Bennett told "Billboard" that they were also inspired by Porter's 1936 musical, "Red, Hot and Blue", for a possible sequel to "Cheek to Cheek". He wanted to see how "Cheek to Cheek" fared after its release, but Gaga wanted to start working on the collaboration "right away". Bennett added: "we're gonna do two albums in a row with her. We'll have to try and do that as soon as possible, just as a follow-up for a second album."


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Photographer Steven Klein shot the album covers, and was responsible for the artistic ideas behind the packaging of the release. He also developed the cover art for "Anything Goes". On August 18, 2014, Gaga released the official cover art for the album, which showed the singer with Bennett, sitting and holding hands. The singer explained that she and Bennett were sitting and talking when Klein had suddenly photographed them. For the standard edition, Bennett and Gaga are shown in a New York newspaper with the album name atop the image, while the deluxe edition just features the same image. Gaga's look with her massive black curls in the image was compared by Kirthana Ramisetti from "New York Daily News" to singer Cher's character in the 1987 American romantic comedy "Moonstruck".


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: The complete track list for the album was also revealed alongside the cover arts. The standard edition consists of 11 tracks while the deluxe edition has 15 songs listed. Along with the standard and deluxe editions in digital and CD formats, there were exclusive releases to Home Shopping Network (HSN) and Target. A vinyl edition of the album was also released to Amazon.com. The album was sold at Starbucks stores with unique cover artwork. In October 2014, Gaga announced a Collector's Box Set to be released in December 2014. It would include limited edition items, like personal snapshots, "Cheek to Cheek" sheet music autographed by Bennett, 8×10 art prints housed in a vellum envelope and others.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In June 2014, Gaga began promoting the album through a series of public appearances with and without Bennett, the first of them being at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in New York City. At the school, which was founded by Bennett and his wife Susan Crow, the pair performed as a duo and individually, and fielded questions from the audience. They concluded their engagement by watching a performance from the school's choir. Gaga also performed with Bennett at the Montreal International Jazz Festival, and starred in a holiday commercial for retail company H&M, directed by Johan Renck and featuring "It Don't Mean a Thing (If I Ain't Got That Swing)". The artists announced the news on Instagram. At the 2014 New York Fashion Week party, Gaga performed "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye", dedicating it to her then boyfriend, actor Taylor Kinney.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: On September 13 and 14, 2014, the Home Shopping Network (HSN) broadcast a special titled "Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek". The music special gave fans an exclusive look behind-the-scenes at the making of the album, as well as never-before-seen footage of the two artists collaborating in the recording studio. It also showcased their song selection process from the Great American Songbook. Before the announcement of the release, a short concert was held at the Rose Theater of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City on July 28. Titled "", the concert aired on the American television network PBS as part of their "Great Performances" series on October 24, 2014. It was watched by an audience consisting of invited guests and students from New York schools. Set and lighting was created by Robert Wilson, while David Horn directed it. Bennett and Gaga were joined onstage by a 39-piece orchestra conducted by Jorge Calandrelli, soloists Chris Botti on trumpet and David Mann on tenor sax, and jazz musicians associated with both artists. On January 20, 2015, the concert DVD was released.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Three songs from the album were used by ESPN during the advertisements for the 2014 Tennis US Open. The channel's vice president Jamie Reynolds explained that their decision to incorporate the "classic swing vibe of New York" led them to use the "Cheek to Cheek" songs. Universal Music provided the videos for the songs, which were then mixed with tennis shots and used in the ads. It also used original content like Bennett in his Manhattan apartment, and Gaga on tour in Australia with . On September 13, 2014, Bennett joined Gaga onstage at the ArtRave tour in Tel Aviv, Israel to sing selected tracks from the album. Gaga's vocals on "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" drew praise for her range and control. On September 22, Bennett and Gaga performed a short set list of songs from "Cheek to Cheek" at the Grand-Place of Brussels, Belgium. Their performance received positive reviews, with "The Daily Telegraph"s Anne Bilson giving it four out of five stars, complimenting their vocals, saying "Bennett had the lungs to compensate, and Gaga had the moves." Promotional videos were released for "Anything Goes" (from Brussels performance) and "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (from the PBS special) on September 27, 2014.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: While touring with ArtRave in the United Kingdom, Gaga appeared with Bennett on the twelfth season of British television show, "Strictly Come Dancing", performing two songs from the album, "Anything Goes" and "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)". Following the tour's completion the duo performed the title track on talk shows "The View" and "The Colbert Report". For the Christmas Tree lighting at Rockefeller Center, Bennett and Gaga performed a rendition of "Winter Wonderland". A few days later on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon", they performed "Cheek to Cheek" and "It Don't Mean a Thing (If I Ain't Got That Swing)" and Gaga singing solo on "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye".


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Bennett had confirmed that he and Gaga would tour jazz festivals in 2015, supporting "Cheek to Cheek". According to him, Gaga was tired from playing bigger venues, and wanted to have the tour visit smaller venues for at least three-four days, or for three-six weeks. Bennett also explained that he was accustomed to playing in acoustic music halls and outdoor theaters, so Gaga had been looking at such options. "I'm not interested in playing to 45,000 people a night, so [Gaga's] finding places where we could work for three or four days, or three or four weeks, in one place at a time. That's how she wants to work with me.", the singer concluded. On New Year's Eve 2014, the duo started the Cheek to Cheek Tour by performing at the Cosmopolitan Casino of Las Vegas, making it their first concert in US following the album's release. They also performed at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards and its scheduled a post-Grammy concert on February 8, 2015, at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles, just after the conclusion of the ceremony. More shows were scheduled in 2015, including Hollywood Bowl on May 30; the Royal Albert Hall in London on June 8; and Radio City Music Hall in New York City on June 19. Jesse Lawrence from "Forbes" reported that there was high demand for the tickets, leading to additional dates being added to the itinerary. He also noted that the concerts had a much higher ticket price than the average, especially in the secondary markets.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: "Anything Goes" was released as the first single from the album on July 29, 2014, to digital retailers, followed by the release of its music video to Gaga's YouTube and Vevo accounts. The video showed Bennett and Gaga recording "Anything Goes" as well as other songs from "Cheek to Cheek". In the United Kingdom, "Anything Goes" debuted at number 174 on the UK Singles Chart for the week ending August 9, 2014. It also charted at number 132 on the sales chart of the Official Charts Company. In Spain it debuted within the top-fifty of the PROMUSICAE singles chart at number 40. "Anything Goes" debuted outside the top 100 of the French Singles Chart, at number 178. On the "Billboard" Jazz Digital Songs chart, the track debuted at the top, becoming Gaga's second entry on that chart, following "The Lady is a Tramp". The song was Bennett's 15th entry on the Jazz Digital Songs chart, and his third number-one single. According to Nielsen SoundScan, "Anything Goes" sold 16,000 digital downloads in the US up to the week ending August 3, 2014. The song dropped to number three on Jazz Digital Songs chart the next week.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" was released as the second single from the album on August 19, 2014. Gaga announced the release on Twitter, accompanied by the single's cover art. An official music video for the song was released on August 26, 2014. The video was shot in the recording studio and the first half showed Gaga in numerous outfits and wigs, while recording the song and roaming around. Bennett joins the studio sessions later on, singing the song. The final chorus finds the two singers belting together, described as "join[ing] forces for a peculiar, yet potent blend of styles that transcends generations and genres". Jon Blistein from "Rolling Stone" complimented the video, saying that it "proves [Bennett and Gaga] exude a unique, adorable brand of musical chemistry". After its release, "I Can't Give You Anything but Love" debuted at number-one on the Jazz Digital Songs chart of "Billboard", on the week ending September 6, 2014, and the French Singles Chart at number 173.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Additionally, "Nature Boy" was released for streaming on Gaga's Vevo channel from September 16, 2014. Gaga had previously tweeted about the background of the song, as well as about the death of flautist Horn. The song debuted on the "Billboard" Trending 140 Chart at number five and quickly rose to number one. After "Cheek to Cheek"s release, "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" debuted at number one on the Jazz Digital Songs chart, which became Gaga's first entry as a solo artist.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from music critics, "Cheek to Cheek" received an average score of 64, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 12 reviews. MTV News's Gil Kaufman praised the album, calling Bennett and Gaga "a match made in heaven". He added that the singers were able to "flawlessly" merge their unique vocals, that was reflected in their in-studio rapport, and thus onto the songs on "Cheek to Cheek". Caroline Sullivan of "The Guardian" awarded the album with four out of five stars, claiming that "Gaga is a wonder". She also praised that "Cheek to Cheek reveals the considerable warmth and depth of her voice". "The Times" critic Will Hodgkinson praised the album giving it a rating of four out of five stars. He added that Gaga could have been a "habitué of Upper Manhattan piano bars and supper clubs.. as Stefani Germanotta, classy singer of standards". Jazz critic Marc Myers reviewed the album for "The Wall Street Journal", claiming that "the biggest surprise on the album is Gaga's solo vocal on 'Lush Life', a difficult song that has troubled even the most seasoned jazz-pop singers, including Frank Sinatra. Her lower register is warm and her phrasing is heartfelt." In his favorable review, "Chicago Tribune" critic Howard Reich wrote that ""Cheek to Cheek" serves up the real thing, start to finish... Both singers revel in swing rhythm, eager to buoy from one offbeat to the next and the next. They achieve considerable energy. But it's when things slow down that you can hear what these artists are capable of as interpreters, alone and together."


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: Jazz author Ted Gioia, who reviewed the album for "The Daily Beast", was surprised by Gaga's ability to sing jazz, saying that "in all fairness to Lady Gaga, any singer who matches up with Tony Bennett needs to get loud and assertive... Her voice projects an appealing innocence [on] 'But Beautiful' and 'Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye. Rating it four out of five stars, Lewis Corner from Digital Spy complimented the vocal mix on the album, adding that ""Cheek to Cheek" may not be the glittering spectacle we've come to expect from Lady Gaga, but with Tony Bennett's guidance the pair have delivered an authentic and solid jazz record that respects the genre's generous history. Jon Dolan from "Rolling Stone" gave the album three out of five stars and praised Gaga's vocals. Dolan felt the album "proves she can be a sophisticated lady". Charles J. Gan from Associated Press also praised Bennett and Gaga's singing, writing that "Had she been born in an earlier era, Gaga would have been right at home in an MGM musical". "Idolator"s Bianca Gracie described the album as "a refreshing listen that highlights the undeniable talent of both Bennett and Gaga and how well they work together". Writing for the "National Post", Mike Doherty observed that Gaga took "liberties with the beat, bends notes, purrs and whoops away" with the vocals, while Bennett was able to complement with his characteristic "dapper approach".


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: With three stars out of five, Kenneth Partridge from "Billboard" opined that Gaga justified Bennett's faith in her – but sometimes "too forcibly" – and that she needed him, more than he needed her, on the recording of the album. Partridge summarized that overall, they had a "blast together and both will benefit from this pairing". Another three and a half star rating came from Lydia Jenkin of "The New Zealand Herald", who declared the album as "seamless standard renditions". Jim Farber from "New York Daily News" awarded the album with four out of five stars, claiming that "Gaga has always been a power singer" and "She has a lot of Liza Minnelli in her". Bennett received great review from the site about the agility and pluck he is able to sing the songs. James Reed from "The Boston Globe" praised the album and felt that both singers "bring out the best in each other". Neil McCormick of "The Daily Telegraph" gave the album a rating of three stars out of five, writing "If you take this album in the spirit of throwaway fun in which it seems to have been concocted, it is harmlessly engaging". Giving "Cheek to Cheek" a rating of A−, Glenn Gamboa from "Newsday" declared the album as "straightforward jazz, gorgeous and well crafted". Adam Markovitz of "Entertainment Weekly" commented that Bennett and Gaga are "in–if not quite heaven, then at least a pretty swell piano bar" and gave the album B+.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In a mixed review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic declared that ""Cheek to Cheek" is a record where the music and even the songs take a backseat to the personalities". Alexa Camp from "Slant Magazine" gave the album a rating of two out of five stars. Camp criticized Bennett and Gaga's vocals in the album, adding that "If not for the session musicians' top-notch work... much of "Cheek to Cheek", which drags at an economical 45 minutes, would sound like glorified karaoke." "San Francisco Chronicle" writer Aidin Vaziri was disappointed with Bennett and Gaga not "highlight[ing] each other's wildly distinguishing features", adding that "the background music is far more exciting than the people singing over it". Mikael Wood from "Los Angeles Times" complimented Gaga's vocals in the album but panned her "cheap exploitation: of a bunch of important songs she brings nothing to; of an 88-year-old legend with whom she has zero chemistry; and, most disappointingly, of our eagerness to follow her down an unlikely creative path." At the 57th Annual Grammy Awards on February 8, 2015, "Cheek to Cheek" won a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. It also won Jazz Album of the Year at the 2015 Japan Gold Disc Awards.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: "Cheek to Cheek" debuted at number one on the "Billboard" 200 with 131,000 copies sold in its first week according to Nielsen SoundScan, earning Gaga her third consecutive number-one album and the second for Bennett. It also topped the Jazz Albums and Traditional Jazz Albums charts. Bennett beat his own record—previously achieved in 2011 with "Duets II"—as the oldest living act to earn a number one album in the US, giving him the "Guinness World Records" for "oldest person to reach No.1 on the US Album Chart with a newly recorded album", at the age of 88 years and 69 days. The debut also made Gaga the first female artist in the 2010 decade to have three number-one albums. Along with the "Billboard" 200 and Jazz Albums, "Cheek to Cheek" also entered at number four on the Top Digital Albums chart. As of February 2019, the album has sold more than 773,000 copies in the country, becoming Bennett's seventh half-million album since Nielsen began tracking data in 1991, and Gaga's fifth. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of over 500,000 copies. In July 2019, Billboard named "Cheek to Cheek" the fourth most successful collaborative album of all time in the United States, across all musical genres. "Cheek to Cheek" debuted at number three on the Canadian Albums Chart selling 10,000 copies per SoundScan. It was certified Platinum by the Music Canada (MC) for shipment of 80,000 copies of the album.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number ten on the UK Albums Chart with sales of 10,469 copies, making it Gaga's fifth top ten album and Bennett's third. "Cheek to Cheek" dropped to number 24 in its second week, selling 4,081 copies. Due to Bennett and Gaga's appearance on "Strictly Come Dancing" and Gaga's ArtRave tour, the album rebounded to number 12 on the chart in its fifth week, selling 6,257 copies. In November 2015, the album was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for selling over 60,000 copies. In Ireland the album debuted outside the top-ten of the Irish Albums Chart, at number 12, dropping to number 24 the next week. In its fifth week, "Cheek to Cheek" again climbed from number 50 to number 24 on the chart.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: In Australia, "Cheek to Cheek" debuted at number seven on the ARIA Albums Chart, becoming the second top-ten album for Tony in Australia out of 56 albums released and it was the fifth top-ten album for Gaga. It dropped to number ten the next week before moving to its peak again in the third week. The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) certified it Gold for shipment of 35,000 copies in the country. In New Zealand it debuted at number 13 on the albums chart, peaking at number three in its fourth week. In Japan, it debuted at number seven on the Oricon albums chart with sales of 11,397 copies, dropping one spot the next week with another 7,371 copies sold. "Cheek to Cheek" was Gaga's fourth top-ten album in France, where it debuted at number nine and has sold 40,000 copies according to the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP). On the Greek Albums Chart, the album reached a peak of number two on its third week.


title: Cheek to Cheek (album)

text: All songs produced by Dae Bennett, except "The Lady Is a Tramp", produced by Phil Ramone and Dae Bennett.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Common names include acerola cherry, Guarani cherry, Barbados cherry, West Indian cherry, and wild crepe myrtle.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola is native to Paraguay and Brazil in South America, Central America and southern Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Haiti, but is now also being grown as far north as Texas and in subtropical areas of Asia, such as India.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: "Malpighia emarginata" is originally from Yucatán, and can be found in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, South America as far south as Peru and Colombia, and the southeast region of Brazil, and in the southernmost parts of the contiguous United States (southern Florida and the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas). In Florida, it can be grown in protected locations as far north as Cape Canaveral. It is cultivated in the tropics and subtropics throughout the world, including the Canary Islands, Ghana, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Zanzibar, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, India, Java, Hawaii, and Australia.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Brazil is the largest producer of acerola worldwide. On 11,000 hectares, Brazil produces 32,990 tons of acerola per year. In order to preserve the genetic variability of acerola, the federal rural University of Pernambuco in Brazil established an "Acerola Active Germplasm Bank" in June 1998.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola can be propagated by seed, cutting, or other methods. It prefers dry, well-drained, sandy soil and full sun, and cannot endure temperatures lower than 30 °F/ -1 °C. Because of its shallow roots, it has very low tolerance to winds. Furthermore, a sufficient water supply is advantageous for good growth and maximum yields of large fruits. This is especially important during fruiting and flowering. The optimal growth conditions are reached at a mean temperature of 26°C and 1200–1600 mm of rainfall annually.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola is an evergreen shrub or small tree with spreading branches on a short trunk. It is usually 2–3 m (6.6–9.8 ft) tall, but sometimes reaches 6 m (20 ft) in height. The chromosome number is 2n = 40.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: The bark of young branches is green and sparsely covered with curly-haired trichomes, which fall off with age. The greyish to brownish bark is relatively smooth and covered with conspicuous cork pores when young. With age, it is thick and cracked.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: The leaves are simple, ovate to elliptic-lanceolate in outline, long, wide, with an entire or undulating margin. They are attached oppositely on the stem on short petioles. The leaves have small hairs, which can irritate skin.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: The flowering of the tree happens from April to November. Flowers are bisexual and in diameter. They have five pale to deep pink or red fringed petals, 10 stamens, and six to 10 glands on the calyx. The three to five flowers per inflorescence are sessile or short-peduncled axillary cymes.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Three years after planting, trees start producing fruits. 3-4 weeks after flowering, a number of bright red drupes 1–3 cm (0.39–1.18 in) in diameter with a mass of 3–5 g (0.11–0.18 oz) mature. The shell of the fruit is smooth and very thin. Its shelf life of 2-3 days at ambient temperature makes it highly perishable. Drupes are in pairs or groups of three, and each contains three triangular seeds. The drupes are juicy and high in vitamin C (300–4600 mg/100g)[12] and other nutrients. They are divided into three obscure lobes and are usually acidic to subacidic, giving them a sour taste, but may be sweet if grown well.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola flowers and fruits already in the first year after planting but increases its production in the following years, reaching up to 47kg/per plant in the sixth year. The fruiting season usually extends from April to November. The fruits should be picked frequently, as they are not stored on the tree. Ripe fruit should be handled carefully to avoid bruising and should be utilized as soon as possible or frozen for later use. Semi-ripe fruit will usually keep for several days in the refrigerator. Pollination by wild insects increases the fruit yield.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Plants can be set at any time of the year, but the best time is spring, just before the rainy season. Choose a location with good water drainage and in a sheltered spot.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Malpighia emarginata is a host plant for the caterpillars of the white-patched skipper (Chiomara asychis), Florida duskywing (Ephyriades brunneus), and brown-banded skipper (Timochares ruptifasciatus). Larvae of the acerola weevil (Anthonomus macromalus) feed on the fruits, while adults consume young leaves.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola fruit is 91% water, and 8% carbohydrates, and contains negligible protein and fat (table). The fruit also supplies manganese at 29% DV, while other micronutrients are uniformly low in content (table). In 100 grams (3.5 oz) reference amount, acerola fruit provides an exceptional content of vitamin C at some 20 times the Daily Value (DV) (table). Whereas the content of sugar, soluble solids and titratable acids increases, the vitamin C content decreases with the ripening process of the fruit. Therefore, the immature green fruit is harvested for industrial use of the vitamin C. Besides the high vitamin C content, acerola also contains phytonutrients like phenolic acids, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and carotenoids.


title: Malpighia emarginata

text: Acerola is a popular bonsai subject because of its small leaf and fruit, and fine ramification. It is also grown as an ornamental and for hedges. Because acerola also contains pigments like anthocyanins and carotenoids, it could also be used as a food colorant.


title: Aunty Donna

text: Aunty Donna is an Australian absurdist comedy group formed in Melbourne in 2011. The group consists of performers and writers Mark Bonanno, Broden Kelly, and Zachary Ruane; writer and director Sam Lingham; director Max Miller; and composer Thomas Zahariou. Their work includes many live shows, the "Aunty Donna Podcast", YouTube videos, the studio album "The Album", the Netflix series "Aunty Donna's Big Ol' House of Fun", and a picture book titled "Always Room for Christmas Pud".


title: Aunty Donna

text: Aunty Donna was formed in 2011 after its five original members (Mark Bonanno, Broden Kelly, Joe Kosky, Sam Lingham, and Zachary Ruane) met at University of Ballarat's Arts Academy. Trained as actors, the group saw a lack of demand for independent theatre and decided to attempt comedy instead, beginning as live performers. Their first live show, "Aunty Donna in Pantsuits", debuted in 2012 at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) and was nominated for a Golden Gibbo award, which pushed the group to continue making comedy.


title: Aunty Donna

text: Composer Thomas Zahariou and director Max Miller, who Kelly and Zahariou knew from high school, joined the group soon after its founding, while members Adrian Dean and Joe Kosky departed Aunty Donna to pursue other ventures, bringing the group to the current six members. Their second live show, "Aunty Donna and the Fax Machine Shop," debuted at the Melbourne Fringe Festival in 2012.


title: Aunty Donna

text: 2014 saw their third live show, "World's Greatest Showbag", at the MICF, as well as a "Best Of" live show that debuted the group internationally at both the SF Sketchfest and Edinburgh Festival Fringe.


title: Aunty Donna

text: In 2015, the group created a self-titled half-hour television pilot for the ABC and Screen Australia as part of the inaugural Fresh Blood Pilot Season comedy initiative, but the series was not picked up.


title: Aunty Donna

text: In 2016, the group released the web series "1999", based on the Y2K panic and funded by Screen Australia as part of their Skip Ahead talent development initiative. Their most famous video at the time was "Bikie Wars", featuring John Wood of "Blue Heelers" fame. The group began the weekly "Aunty Donna Podcast".


title: Aunty Donna

text: In 2017, the group announced a second half-hour pilot, "Chaperones", which was created with Australian online streaming service Stan. The pilot was again not continued into a full series. The group adopted the mantra "whatever's funniest," attempting to adapt their source material uniquely to different comedic formats such as their live shows and YouTube sketches. Their live show "Big Boys" was the group's first North American theater tour.