I just think the current lot of contestants are a bit dull- we need a few Pat Ms, Morris's, real characters- I mean I like them but I really ended up loving those contestants and I shall never forget them?

Agree/disagree?

Stevie's a character, but they don't show enough of her.

I think it might be the editing, rather than the people themselves, but there aren't really any personalities coming through at the moment. All I could tell you about any of them is that Stevie has reds and Buzz had blues...other than that I don't really have any idea! Whereas back in March, for example, there were loads of different characters like Lucy, Nancy, Jim, Sarah, Aaron, Dave Cheeseman etc. all at the same time. Hopefully they'll start showing more of the other contestants and get back to those days soon!

(I've just realised that I always refer to Dave Cheeseman by his full name. How odd.)

Yea, I agree with you, they are a bit dull. Usually there is at least a good 10 you can think of at the top of your head but at the moment the only contestants I know are Buzz and Stevie.

Well I guess it's because there have been lots of Daves, and he had an unusual and quite memorable surname!

This topic again. I'm sure they're all nice people but as has been said, I don't think Endemol have been kind to them in terms of editing when they've been opening boxes. I mean, Fran today came off as a really bubbly character yet we saw nothing of her on the wings. Same with Simone. Even Stevie is only really classed as a "character" because of the contents of her boxes.

I think having Noel chatting to a few of them more each show, asking them for advice etc would really give us a window into seeing what the players are like as personalities.

And Dave Cheeseman is a legend. Bring back The Cheeseman, I say.

I have to agree with you, February and March have had some great characters!

There was never a time when all 22 contestants were memorable characters, there's just not enough show time to make that happen! Look down the list of players for February/March, or any other month, and there were lots of names there who weren't that memorable in the wings.

However, they have usually had a few noticeable characters at a time, which maybe isn't the case at the moment. But I think it's largely the fault of the editing - Mark, Simone and Fran all came across well in the chair after we saw little of them before their game.

This is a tough one. One of the problems for the contestants who followed us folk that played back in the days when folk were discovering the show - is that it is hard for them to do anything that hasnt been done before.

I have had folk PM me saying that they have never seen anyone who was as into the game as me but when I watch the game I see folk who are bouncing around and suffering just as much as I ever did.

I guess I think that the contestants are kinda the same - its maybe us viewers that have changed.

In my heart I know that there will be just as many hugs and tears in the hotel in Bristol - I hope that makes some sense.

Geordie Feb 1 show