And so to the end of the Top 100 countdown of things that have made the last ten years better – from foods to eat, to songs that sound brilliant, to amazing people, to nice shoes to pop on your feet. Remember, this in not a chart, it’s just a gargantuan list of excellent things. Big thanks to all of the Interestment Family for their wonderful contributions to what must be one of the most magnificent lists of all time. 

1-20

21-40

41-60

61-80

81. Beyonce

In the 1960s there was Aretha and Tina. Then the 70s saw the likes of Gladys Knight, Patti Labelle and Chaka Khan. The 80s were marked by Anita Baker, Sade, and, of course, Whitney Houston. The 90s belonged to modern soul singers like Mary J Blige and Lauryn Hill. And the 2000s have been dominated by just one woman – Beyonce. An absolute marvel, definitely up there with the greats.

(Josh)

82. Xbox 360

The beginning of the Millennium saw the Playstation 2 dominating lounges all over the world, but these days, it all looks a bit twee and rubbish. It’s all about Xbox 360s now, baby. They are super-realistic, and there are now so many games that allow embittered office workers to sit at home shooting up innocent bystanders that murder rates have presumably gone down.

(Josh)

83. Thai Food

Thai cuisine was once only available to arch morons called Ed who decided to bookend their university experience with costly trips to South East Asia, where they could get off their tiny tits at Full Moon Parties and return home with a single dreadlock to remind them of the time that they were truly free. Now we can all enjoy a plate of sticky rice/pad thai, because there are Thai restaurants all over the place. Put that in your hash pipe, Ed!

(Josh)

84. The Credit Crunch

Periods of financial devastation are not fun, and this particular recession has directly affected more than one member of the Interestment Family. It’s been a humbling experience to say the least, only slightly improved by the fact that – for a time anyway – the strutting peacocks oozing through “the city” finally had their arses bitten by the unforgiving jaws of Karma. That made it marginally worthwhile.

(Josh)

85. Andre 3000

In the same way that George Clinton transformed the face of Funk in the 1970s, making it all rather swishy and glamourous, Andre 3000 somehow managed to take the ball-grabbing machismo of hip hop and make it into something all the more intriguing and bizarre. Plus, he made the greatest party tune of the decade while he was at it (above).

(Josh)

86. Tea with TWO tea bags

A great idea that came to me in the last two years of the decade: if you’re stuck in the house on a cold winter morning, play ‘Pimp my Ride’, but with a cup of tea. Hence the name: Pimp my Tea. Why not double bag? Double bagging sounds rude, but it’s actually a very sensible approach to consider. Like an itch you just have to scratch, it gives you that hit you’ve craved for so long. It opens your doors of perception with a loud “Fuck you, credit crunch, I’m my own man/woman/other!” When pimped, your cup of tea will bring new confidence. It will reignite your passion for life and remind you of who you are and where you are going. Probably.

(Richard)

87. Sky +

Hands up who remembers the days when there were only four channels to choose from, and remote controls were just straightened coat hangers used to prod buttons on the telly from about three feet away. Sweet Baby Jane those were hard times. It’s all so different now though, as anyone with a zany Sky + set up will attest to. Just poke a soft sponge-like thumb onto a few nifty buttons, and you need never watch boring news programmes again.

(Josh)

88. Oyster Cards

Nothing stuck in the collective craw quite like standing behind a mob of Spanish students all desperately attempting to decipher how to correctly insert a tube ticket into a small ticket-sized hole at an Underground gate. Hence, once the Oyster Card sprung into action, the day-to-day Londoners could glide in liquid motion through the barriers, all problems evaporated. Yes, the clueless Spaniards are still there, but now we get to laugh at them over our shoulders as we calmly stroll through the next-door gate. Result.

(Josh)

89. Lindsay Lohan

Every generation demands a celebrity maniac, and the past ten years have been hotly contested between teen queens gone bonkers. Britney went loco and started getting married all over the place, Charlotte Church went from cutesy operatic infant to looking like the kind of woman who would shout the C-word across a pub. But it’s Lindsay Lohan who has truly embraced going completely berserk. She now oscillates between casual drug abuse, getting her knockers out, and enjoying whatever it is that lesbians do when the curtains are closed with other women. You go girl!

(Josh)

90. Online Dating

Impossible as it is to recall, but there was a time when men and women actually had to make an effort to meet one another. You might spot a beautiful young thing across a packed snooker hall at 1am, but rather than clicking a thumbs up button to let him/her know that you quite fancy a snog, you’d have to rely on your sparkling off-the-cuff wit to manufacture a sloppy meeting of tongues, followed, hopefully, by a proposal. Now you simply log in, peruse a gallery of potential partners, then immediately discard the ones who don’t look beautiful enough for your immaculate brand of cyber-flirting, and you’re off! One day, our children’s children will actually reproduce online.

(Josh)

91. Shell Toe Adidas

The Rolls Royce of sneakers, these were popularised by RUN DMC, and have remained “a la mode” throughout the last ten years – particularly amongst angry Grime loving urban youths. Rumour has it they’re called Shell Toes due to early b-boys eating vast quantities of oysters at breakdance festivals – the discarded shells of which would damage the toes of less sturdy sneakers. Or perhaps I just made that up.

(Hip Hop Sam)

92. Curb Your Enthusiasm

It’s been a good decade for sitcoms, with the likes of Eastbound and Down, and Entourage certainly floating the Interestment onions. But nothing quite makes us so gleeful as half an hour with Larry David. Certainly one of the greatest shows of all time, it was with very excitedly wet underpants that we watched the pretend Seinfeld reunion shows in late 2009. Brilliant.

(Josh)

93. Youtube

Put simply, anyone can be famous now, thanks to Youtube. Like Google and Facebook, it’s impossible to imagine that a world actually ever existed without this. You can watch bits of TV, home made nonsense, music videos, funny stuff. And above is one of our favourite Youtube shows.

(Josh)

94. Melissa Theuriau

Those lucky cheese-eating surrender monkeys over The Channel have never had it so good. Just imagine the French newsreader Melissa Theuriau telling you that the world was about to end in fifteen minutes. You probably wouldn’t even hear her say it. You’d be too busy jumping on the next Eurostar to woo her with a crispy pain au chocolat and a bottle of shiny Orangina. Vive la difference, mes amis!

(Olly)

95. The smoking ban

Again, this splits the consensus right down the middle, especially with about 40 per cent of the Interestment Family still partaking in a few drags of the smoky stuff from time to time. Some say that pubs aren’t the same without the dense fog of B&H smoke greeting you on arrival. Others love that your clothes no longer smell like they’ve been dry-cleaned by Dot Cotton. On balance, this seems to have worked.

(Josh)

96. Barack Obama

Having visited a small town in Alabama for a travel feature a few years back, and witnessed first hand the sight of old men in Grand Wizard KKK outfits line dancing (seriously!), the very notion of America ever willingly embracing a black president seemed ludicrous. A miracle. A big, brilliant miracle.

(Josh)

97. Jane Lynch

You’ve seen Jane Lynch before, definitely. She’s been in loads of TV shows, including hard hitting corpse and blood epics like CSI Wotsisface. But, don’t be fooled by that single piece of evidence, the woman is a comic genius. Her turns in Arrested Development, and a few of the movies by the Spinal Tap people have been inspired. As was her small role as a reformed coke head in Role Models – one of the underrated comedies of the decade. A funny, statuesque lady.

(Josh)

98. American Idol

In every single way this is an exaggerated version of X Factor. The maniacs are even more barmy – in some cases, totally alarming – while the good singers can be absolutely phenomenal. Plus, unlike on the British version, the best singers tend to win. Apart from the gentleman above. He actually lost.

(Josh)

99. Gnarls Barkley

When rapper Cee-Lo decided to have a go at singing, his group, Gnarls Barkley, released an album – St Elsewhere - which was excellent. Unfortunately the lead single Crazy was so popular, it went to number one for what felt like the entire decade. Gnarls Barkley had to delete the song, so people wouldn’t get sick of it. Above is another song from their album, Smiley Faces, because we don’t ever want to listen to Crazy again.

(Hip Hop Sam)

100. Interestment

A glorious forum for the sublime and the ridiculous, showcasing the best writers in the world. FACT.

(Debs)

Back in the heady days of November 2009, it was put to the various Interestment contributors to throw together a small list of things that have really made the last decade excellent for them. These “things” could be anything at all – things to put in your mouth, things to look at, things to listen to, things to make you really want to high five other people about because they’re so bloody brilliant. The list that came back was enormous, hence after much whittling down, it’s been compacted into a Top 100 – in no particular order. Here’s numbers 61-80, to sit prettily alongside 1-20, 21-40, and 41-60…

61. Judd Apatow

Not really the new Woody Allen, Apatow isn’t quite cerebral enough, but he has dipped his finger into many pies over the years. First he played his part in The Larry Sanders Show, then he finished the last millennium with a flourish when he created the brilliant Freaks and Geeks (above). And now he’s introduced the world to the concept of “bromance”. For that, we doff a cap.

(Josh)

62. Ana Ivanovic

Since winning the French Open a while ago, Ana has managed pretty much sod all. Still, no matter, because Ana has been blessed with legs even longer than ostrich trousers, and when she’s not patting a ball back and forth to another woman, she likes to do brainy things – like read books. What a gal.

(Josh)

63. The OC

Closely run by the new version of 90210, The OC had it all – a rough kid attempting to mix with posh teenagers despite his streetwise fighting urges constantly gnawing on his mind, a geeky nerdoid attempting to finger a princess, sexy mothers, drug problems, startlingly liberal parents, schoolboys arranging cocktail parties. Television at its best.

(Josh)

64. American Apparel

The brand with filthy and slightly porny advertising, a rather grabby Chief Exec, and the best place in the world to buy t-shirts, hotpants, leggings, knickers, and socks of every colour under the sun. This brand got boys back into red y-fronts, and girls into looking just the right side of slutty chav. Long may it continue…

(Olly)

65. The iPod

Here in the vast Interestment offices, the emergence of the iPod really splits the consensus. On the one hand, it’s great to have so much wonderful music just a few clicks away. On the other, it means no more glorious hours rooting around stacks of vinyl in po-faced record shops, and – even worse – these things have rendered magnificent record collections almost completely pointless. We say almost, because at least 25 per cent of the Interestment Family still only operates in vinyl. We’re old fashioned like that.

(Josh)

66. Geeks

Geeks – aka Nerds, or Geekatrons, or Brainiacs – used to be the eternal virgins getting sand kicked in their faces, and punches delivered to their cocks by chest-thumping beefcakes. Not any more. These days, they tend to be the guys buying the rounds, making tongue sandwiches with all of the hottest girls, and wearing a pair of glasses not because they want to appear clever, but because they are clever. Jesus, they have indeed inherited the earth. You were right.

(Josh)

67. Anthony Bourdain

Seriously, you can stick your Gordon Ramsey and Jamie Oliver, because there isn’t a celebrity chef on the planet quite as tremendously cool as Anthony Bourdain. He writes excellent books about kitchen life, he throws together lovely dinners, he struts around former war zones in a Ramones t-shirt, never without a cigarette, demanding that the locals surprise him with delicacies – most of which are rather penis-looking items.  So yeah, and he probably eats penises too.

(Josh)

68. Charlie Brooker

If you hate something so hard that words elude you, let Brooker – vitriolic Guardian columnist – say it really really cleverly for you. His forte is social commentary via a masterful balance of cynicism, mockery and keenness, whipping up exactly the sort of damning put down you wish you’d created yourself. Also manages to get away with the sort of language manipulation that any lesser wordsmith would be tossed out of class for being a smart arse over.  Makes broadsheets not boring.

(Debs)

69. Arrested Development

While Seinfeld managed to last for around ten years, this only scraped two and a half. Critics loved it, but it was never popular enough with the viewers. Which is a massive shame. Still, on the upside, it has left behind three excellent seasons, as well as introducing the world to some of the funniest actors around (above). We find it so hard to name our favourite character that we now totally get why Meryl Streep was so bloody upset in Sophie’s Choice.

(Josh)

70. The White Stripes

Emerged as part of the garage rock legions but immediately marked themselves out as staying for the duration via eccentric combo of co-ordinating outfits, trimmed-back experimentalism and questionable love relationship to one another. The jury’s still out as to whether Meg’s drumming is refreshingly minimalist or just sounds like a one-man-band walking from one side of the room to the other but what is a consistent is that they are forever eccentric in a fabulously noisy way.

(Debs)

71. Roger Federer

By the year 2000, Roger Federer had yet to progress past the First Round of a Grand Slam. Even in 2001, his breakthrough year at SW19 (when he knocked out Pete Sampras,) he then had to cope with losing to Tim Henman in the next round. Yet fifteen Grand Slams later, it looks like he’s managed to handle that particular shame. Federer is the sportsman of the decade, and will be the man you tell your grandchildren you were lucky enough to watch.

(Eliot)

72. The George Foreman Grill

The two time World Heavyweight Champion was a good boxer, but even better at marketing a slanted indoor grilling machine. So much so that over 80 million have been sold so far making him an estimated $150 million. A lot more than he ever made punching people repeatedly in the face until they passed out. He’s also very good at making children and has ten of the things. Each of his five sons are named George: George Jr., George III, George IV, George V and George VI. That is a shitload of Georges.

(Olly)

73. There Will Be Blood

There have been rather too few notable performances from actors in the last ten years, but Daniel Day Lewis can lay claim to at least two of them. He was petrifying and amazing in Gangs of New York, and then he went one better in There Will Be Blood, producing not just the single best performance of the decade, but probably one of the best ever. He’s a startlingly good actor, that Daniel Day Lewis.

(Josh)

74. Lemon Fanta

When you’re really sweaty, and your mouth is drier than a sandpaper cocktail consumed through a vacuum cleaner, no other drink can precisely navigate to the high point of your thirst more excellently than this, Lemon Fanta. It’s like Fanta – only, like, really citric and shit – and drunk from an icy glass on a sweltering summer afternoon, this is as close to the flowing beaches of Heaven as you will ever know. On the downside, it doesn’t suit any other season.

(Josh)

75. X Factor

The long tanned legs, the fashion, the glamour, the back-combing, the lights, Dermott, Cheryl’s dimples, Louis’ grey hair and…what’s missing? Nope. I can’t think of anything else. That must be it.

(Hannah I)

76. Easyjet

True: the planes have less leg-room than a coffin and people have been known to die of old age in the queues. BUT in Stelios’ defence, people have also forgotten that once upon a time you would have to mortgage your granny to get to the States or waste quality hours sitting opposite a boring person called Peter on a train if you wanted to explore Europe.  Remembering that you get what you pay for– namely: being able to bugger off on holiday for less than the cost of three paperback books – is the key to really seeing the revolution that EasyJet was.

(Debs)

77. Scarlett Johansson

She isn’t the best actress in the world, and aside from Ghost World, she hasn’t starred in any particularly good films. Lost in Translation is another subject of great debate in the Interestment building, with some declaring it one of the finest movies of the last ten years, whilst others find it sticking rather in their craw, calling it things like “pretentious” and “a bit boring”. Someone even deemed it a little bit racist in regards to our Japanese brothers and sisters. Either way, Johansson is just a couple of decent decisions away from becoming an icon. She’s certainly got the looks bit in the bag.

(Josh)

78. Daniel Craig

Had always hovered at the peripheries of A-listdom which – fortunately – not only made him the perfect Bond choice but also made him  a ‘well-known-unknown’ face that we didn’t all get sick of the sight of in six months (like Keira Knightly). Also responsible for  dragging the Bond franchise away from ‘Camp Brit Smoothie’ by re-spinning the characteristic English lack of emotion into ‘Sexy Ultra-Bastard‘.  Plus, he boosted sales of swimming trunks via a scene so hot it had even staunch heteros rethinking the vagina thing.

(Debs)

79. The Coral

Rock folk-skiffley oddness from the Wirral won everyone over by unself-consciously sounding like British eclectic eccentricity and not sounding like anyone else.  An accordion here, a ghostly wee-oooh organ riff effect there – they were never predictable (even in the space of one song.) Unlike so many new bands they weren’t trying to fit in but certainly managed to release crowd pleasing style like Pass It On – even then without compromising. Excellent.

(Debs)

80. Gay Weddings

We have long been fans of our homosexual brothers and sisters, so were delighted to find them allowed to marry one another and declare their beautiful gayness to the world without pesky lawmakers buggering the whole thing up. A wonderful, historic, and significant step forward for humanity. At the last count, between them, the Interestment Family has enjoyed around four gay weddings, and counting…

(Josh)

Click to see Top 100 things Part 3 (81-100)

Back in the mists of November, it was put to the startling Interestment Family to compile some of their favourite discoveries from the last ten years. These could literally be anything, from people and places, to forgotten treats, and beautiful delights. Coming directly after numbers 1-20, and 21-40, here are the next twenty. Remember, this is not a chart, it’s just a bloody massive list…

41. Weeds

I have only seen the first and second seasons, and it’s one of the best box sets money can buy. It’s about an attractive widower in America who sells weed to support her family. It features one of my favourite actresses, Elizabeth Perkins, and it’s easy viewing but leaves you on a cliff-hanger at the end of each season, so it’s not for the faint hearted.

(Hannah I)

42. On Chesil Beach

Without wanting to get too hoity toity about it – with all books and that – the last ten years have been good ones for reading. Cormac McCarthy has proved very engaging, Zadie Smith started very well. But this 166-page gem is the one that really tightened the Interestment Sunday afternoon pantaloons. One of Ian McEwan’s best, it’s a study of young love that left us weeping like children with Astroturf grazes stepping into a hot bath. Tissues essential.

(Josh)

43. Gaviscon

In these days of hard drinking, thoughtless eating, and occasional heavy smoking, every once in a while, your insides are going to creak and bemoan your antics. Cue that horrible burning acid that lurks in the throat making it damn near impossible to relax. Unless, of course, you have a bottle of this stuff handy. A miracle cure, and as important to the modern go-getter as penicillin was back in the olden days.

(Josh)

44. RA the Rugged Man

In the glamorous world of hip hop – which revolves around diamond encrusted jewellery, expensive champagne and, of course, massive-buttocked women – it’s highly unorthodox for an “ugly white dude with a big gut and shoulder hair” to be any good at rapping. RA The Rugged Man, however, is brilliant. A disgusting man, with incredible MC skills and a fascinating life story, his 2004 debut album Die Rugged Man Die is an underrated masterpiece.

(Hip Hop Sam)

45. Beach Boys Reissues/Remasters

What a fine decade for new sounds from the The Beach Boys. Bonkers Brian finally unleashed Smile on the world, which was absolutely great/weird, and then Dennis got in on the act from beyond the grave with a remastered version of Pacific Ocean Blue, which has been a regular visitor to the Interestment record player over the last year or so. Wonderful stuff.

(Josh)

46. Piaf

I saw this play at the Donmar Warehouse, and let me tell you, folks, it was incredible. In-cred-ible! I was expecting a comedy – thanks mainly to the Specsavers advert with the song Non, Je ne regrette rien in it - but what I got was a really depressing/uplifting play about Edith Piaf. And now I know a bit more French, so that’s helpful. Or, as the French might say – c’est ‘elpful.

(Hannah I)

47. Pork Pie Hats

It’s been a great year or so for hats, which have evolved from kids in baseball ones, or Winter beanies, into an all-year-round affair for anyone who fancies it. Here at Interestment, we’ve always been huge fans of iconic hats – like, for ages, yeah? Before it was fashionable and that… ahem – and have long carried a torch from a decent Pork Pie. Now a staple in all of the most popular high street stores. In honesty, we’re not entirely sure how we feel about that. But we’ll keep wearing ours, because nothing completes a strong “look” like a well positioned hat atop your head.

(Josh)

48. Christina Hendricks

Mad Men is a show about ad execs who smoke fags in their offices, get drunk at meetings, then cheat on their wives. This flame-haired goddess, meanwhile, prowls around the office tightening everyone’s trousers, berating secretaries for not being sexy enough, and explaining to the boss that they have run out of staples – only in the manner of the Cadbury’s Caramel Bunny describing a pair of soft round boobs. The new Monroe.

(Josh)

49. Dyson Airblade

The Rolls Royce of hand dryers. No touching required, just lower your hands into the scary looking gap and roughly 2.5 seconds later they’re as dry and happy as a camel with a erection. But be warned, this machine could chop an anorexic’s arms in two should they be foolish enough to lower their shrivelled, malnourished limbs into it. A beast from the man who reinvented those vacuum hoover cleaner things.

(Olly)

50. Cristiano Ronaldo

In the olden days, striker scored goals, midfielders did a bit of tackling and wingers, well wingers pranced up and down the touchline in jewellery, playing the odd good game but generally frustrating. Until Ronaldo came on the scene that is. In 2007-08, CR scored an astonishing 42 goals, and perhaps led the way in the tactical evolution of the now ubiquitous one up front / 4-3-3 formation. Because if your wingers are scoring 40+ a season, you only need one striker. Unless that one is Emille Heskey of course. (WARNING: Clip contains weird music)

(Eliot)

51. Salma Hayek

As she accelerates towards middle age, Hayek is getting better and better. She still has the kind of taut, aggressive body that gives anxious people the jelly-legs, and her hair is darker than a raven’s overcoat. Like the famous Cleopatra, age cannot wither her. She’s like a fine wine etc…

(Josh)

52. Wasabi Peas

Just like every other delicious modern cuisine, the bar snack is forever evolving, and the latest trend to hit these shores is a dainty bowl of Wasabi Peas. They look almost exactly like traditional everyday peas, but they contain a taste explosion that will literally blow your mind. Not to be ordered with a glass of fruity white if the football’s on and you’re with the lads.

(Josh)

53. Metrosexuals

Moniker describing (straight, gay and bi) gentlemen who liked having ‘nice‘ hair, sometimes rejected pints for a half and knew that Prada wasn’t a discount supermarket chain. As the 90’s waned, male need to constantly demonstrate robust masculinity declined and by the Noughties stealing your girlfriend’s moisturiser and taking longer than her to get ready for a night out was a given. Females rejoiced at the fact that their hairy, smelly other half was now aspiring to look like (Metrosexual King) David Beckham and asking her gay friends for style tips. Although she still drew the line at handing over her Immac for him to wax his nuts.

(Debs)

54. Chicken Jalfrezi

Curries have had a wonderful ten years, and are now a staple in most modern, forward-thinking households. And while we’re not usually prone to massive sweeping statements, this one is by far the best of a great bunch. It packs a little bit of a punch, because it’s made using small handfuls of tasty green chillies, which work wonderfully well with a tomato-based sauce and gentle sprinkle of coriander as a garnish. Washed down with a conveyor belt of Carlsbergs, this would be our Death Row meal.

(Josh)

55. Honda “Impossible Dream” Advert

Selling motors isn’t an easy job. Car-makers are shutting down faster than a Porsche being driven by Iron Legs McGinty. But, their advertising has spawned some classics – from Paula Hamilton in a VW Golf, to that amazing Peugeot 405 ad with blazing fields and a wicked soundtrack. But the clear winner is Honda, whose Impossible Dream film is just plain blooming amazing. Not sure it makes me want to buy a car, but I really want to grow a moustache and ride in a speedboat. Peowww.

(Olly)

56. Tom Stade

We don’t know a great deal about Tom Stade, aside from that whenever we’ve seen him perform, our insides have very nearly been laughed out of our mouths. He’s that bloody funny. What we do know is that he’s a Canadian gentleman who now lives over here in beautiful England, and apparently he once braved the violent world of Afghanistan just to give the troops something to laugh at. Courageous and hysterical, then.

(Josh)

57. Chicken Soup

The greatest of the soups, this has been known to cure common colds, flu like symptoms, and crippling bouts of heartbreak. It’s that potent, and we were schooled on how to make a really decent version of the thing during the cold months of early 2007. It’s basically a clear broth made from boiling chicken bones, which you can then accessorise to suit the level of rumblings in your bulbous, angry stomach. The Interestment way would be to include actual bits of chicken, noodles, and some dumplings called kreplach, which we came across thanks to our Jewish brothers and sisters. Wonderful.

(Josh)

58. The Word Magazine

Top-hole journalism married epic music-geeking and the only intelligent magazine left in the Universe was born. Entertainment is its business (without the typical elitist sneering) from Girls Aloud to Prog to Tom Waits. Very often in the same issue. Loved by those who ask for more from their magazines than an unfunny caption underneath another full-bleed picture of Katie Price coming out of Tescos.

(Debs)

59. Alec Baldwin in 30 Rock

Alec Baldwin, were we to be forced by a group of angry film critics to list our favourite ever actors, would probably creep into the top ten. He’s really excellent, and always completely watchable – a trait which is hugely important in an actor. His finest moment will forever be his cameo in Glengarry Glen Ross from 1992, but this decade has seen him score massive points in The Departed, as well as enter the pantheon of sitcom greats as Jack Donaghy in 30 Rock. Put simply, he’s perfect in it. Innit.

(Josh)

60. Alice Russell

While the likes of Joss Stone and Duffy get all the plaudits, and the Dusty Springfield comparisons, this girl is the real blue eyed soul sensation of the moment. Her voice is startlingly good, she’s worked with the excellent Quantic Soul Orchestra, and above is a fantastic rendition of a White Stripes song that she sang with Nostalgia 77. Better than Leona, Winehouse and the rest. Fact.

(Josh)

Click to see Top 100 things Part 3 (61-80)

A few weeks ago, it was put to the Interestment Family to list their own personal discoveries from the last ten years – whether they be people, inventions, pop groups, films, or even things that have been around for ages, but never truly appreciated. The list was whittled down to the 100 best things, and from now until New Year, we shall be listing them all, just for you. Today, here’s another twenty…

21. Fake Fur Coats

I have always wanted one, and 2009 felt like the right time to buy one and wear it with confidence. And you know what? There are millions to chose from, so take your time, try on about a hundred and then go for the one that makes you feel really good inside. Or just choose one that makes you look like a character from Trading Places. Either way, you’ll look instantly fashionable and totally sexy.

(Hannah I)

22. Kate Garraway

If Jessica Rabbit was your best mate’s mum, she’d look a bit like Kate Garraway. With a body carved entirely out of good things, and a brain and sense of humour to boot, the woman is a pretty much perfect. Plus she can drink. Kate doing a ‘yard of ale’ on Gordon Ramsey’s ‘The F Word’ is quite possibly the greatest thing to ever happen anywhere, ever. A phenomenal women.

(Steve)

23. Justin Timberlake

Most people have forgotten that he was even in a boy band which is testament indeed to how Timbers emerged as one of the best pop-performers of this decade. Even the poo-pooers had to agree that Like I Love You was a suitably robust, non-mincey primary release for an ex Nsync-er.  Hooking up with the Neptunes and Timbaland didn’t hurt either, and JT also scored points for doing Urban as a white boy without making you want to punch his wooftery face in.  Is also considered ‘hot’ by the vagina-toting masses.

(Debs)

24. Lager Tops

I re-discovered this delicious and refreshing alcoholic drink in 2008, and I am so happy I did. It’s cheaper than wine and you don’t end up crying at the end of the night. Result.

(Hannah I)

25. Sarah Silverman

Silverman specialises in edgy comedy delivered innocently, which is a bit like if a nun started flirting with you… in a way. Anyway, we would literally be totally in love with her had she not infuriated an entire audience at the Hammersmith Apollo a year or so ago with a very lazy performance. She was a big disappointment that night, but, when it comes to current female stand ups, she still takes some beating.

(Josh)

26. Chavs

The Burberry-clad, micro-class elevated to cult status in the early noughties provided the media with an effective way of pigeon-holing people who appeared to spend all their money on looking cheap. Defined by Wikipedia (somewhat harshly) as ‘an aggressive teenager, typically unemployed or of working-class back ground who repeatedly engages in anti-social behaviour such as street drinking and rowdiness.’ Ironically, the people who invented this label in order to distance themselves from it, did a far better job of exposing a very typically English-class snobbery.  Best not mention Goldie lookin Chain.

(Debs)

27. The New Mini

The original Mini was and remains a work of design brilliance. Scribbled on the back of napkin, it was a faultless piece of machinery. Well apart from being totally tiny. So, when BMW launched the new Mini in 2001 there was an almost impossible level of expectation. “It’s not very mini for a Mini!” we cried. But it was everything else it possibly could be. Sleek, sexy, and with a Cooper version that goes like the clappers, it has provided a sequel of Empire Strikes Back proportions.

(Steve)

28. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Imagine Cheers run by total maniacs, and you’re somewhere close to this brilliant US sitcom, that has flown slightly beneath the radar on these shores. Themes include: racism, abortion, underage drinking, cancer and guns. And that’s literally just the first five episodes. It’s edgy.

(Josh)

29. Spotify

Swedish peer-to-peer streaming music service providing an endless cornucopia of oddities and rarities, out-stripping Last.fm and Deezer in its range of back-catalogueness. It’s main distinguishing features of joy are: it’s speed, it’s free-ness, it’s idiot-proof usability, the fact it’s legal and that it hasn’t gone under yet.  Even the polite ads that one is asked to endure if you haven’t upgraded to ‘Spotify Premium’ are neither as prolific or irritiating as you would expect  from online radio offering pretty much every song ever  for  presicely squat. Plus there’s no Chris Moyles.

(Debs)

30. Filet-O-Fish

For years, the Filet-O-Fish was only notable for kids running around playgrounds hysterically yelling “and a Filet-O-Fish for my wiiiife” in an array of foreign accents. But, as it turns out, they’re totally delicious. Interestment was the victim of a cheeseburger/filet mix up a during 2008, but rather than turning on a sixpence and barging back into Mackey D’s to scream at demoralised counter attendants, we reluctantly gave it a go. And guess what? It tasted of fish, cheese, and tartar sauce – like a really excellent fish finger sandwich. Originally drafted onto the McDonalds menu so that greedy Catholics could still wolf down fast food on fish-only Fridays, it’s now on the Interestment menu every day. Well… some days anyway.

(Josh)

31. Zany Post-It Notes

Like note-paper on LSD, excitingly-shaped Post-Its transformed a naggy ‘buy more milk’ reminder into an artistically infused, transcendental moment. Office-party liaisons in the stationary cupboard were no longer for illicit trysts, but for sneakily stocking up your home stash. Including speech-bubbles (for one word insults on a colleague’s desk), neon (for disco-related reminders) and hearts (to soften the blow when reminding the recipient it’s their turn to empty the litter tray). So fun, bosses have to really try hard not to sack people via gun-shaped ones stuck to their computer monitor.

(Debs)

32. Kevin Pietersen

We’ll front up. Interestment were going with Tiger Woods in this slot up until the last two weeks. But his behaviour has gone too far – we simply can’t condone any man who “indefinitely retires” from a sport just because his wife is a bit angry at him. So we’d like to thank Pietersen for standing in at the last minute. Quick review of his decade  – Ashes, hitting Lee for six, that haircut, slog sweeping Murali at Lords, captaincy blah blah. Just keep your nuts in their packet please KP.

(Eliot)

33. Bon Iver

Gentle, intense, arm-hair-raising guitar business offering a rare, quiet port in the surrounding fun storm emitting from Dizzee Rascal, Girls Aloud and anyone wielding a vocoder. Justin Vernon made his majestic, twinkly album of haunting, pared-down loveliness to get over his ex-girlfriend whilst living on his tod in a cabin in the woods. Any ‘best of chart’ for the last decade will contain For Emma Forever Ago. We bet you a whole pound on it.

(Debs)

34. Chicken Livers

I hate Liver. I never have liked the powdery, organ-flavoured lump of “meat”. But I have to say, I tried Chicken Livers finely sliced with mince in Spaghetti Bolognaise (“when in Rome…”) and it was deeeelicious. Honest! Try it. It’s the food discovery of the 21^st century so far… sort of.

(Hannah I)

35. Masterchef

The only cookery show likely to make you weep, it’s like the X Factor, but without the mentally ill people getting cackled at by a table of judges all nudging one another and laughing because someone brain damaged thinks that they can match Mariah Carey for popstar fizz. In this case, none of them can ever quite handle the professional kitchen, and to win Greg over, you’ve just got to bake a great big cake.

(Josh)

36. 24

If there was ever a series guaranteed to bring on a coronary, here it be.  It was like Mission Impossible on smack – but even better than that, was the revolutionary premise that we, the humble audiece got to watch Whispering Jack Bauer of the CTU rescue his kidnapped family  and save the world IN REAL TIME (they even had a digital clock counting down throughout to really over stimulate the old adrenals).  Watching a complete season i.e. twenty four episodes of an hour each in the space of a real day spawed the practice of boxset bingeing.

(Debs)

37. GellieMan, Aicha

The last few years have been marked by the smudge of a million internet heroes. A personal favourite is a moving love song by a beautiful young man (above).

(Josh)

38. Desert Boots

A big hit from the people of Clarks, and the perfect Winter/Autumn shoe. These first came to the fore in 1950, when a man called Nathan Clark modeled a zany new ankle high “boot” on the footwear ordered by British Army officers working out in the deserts of Cairo. Since then, they’ve been very popular in Jamaica, particularly amongst Reggae bands. And now they’re back! Big time!

(Josh)

39. Facebook

Call it what you will, “a web 2.0 revelation” or “the biggest thing on the Internet since Al Gore”, Facebook is basically what MySpace was in 2003, but without all the shit bands. Many amazing things have been done with Facebook, including lots of incredible targeted marketing and getting an X-Factor cover of a famous protest song to Christmas Number One this year (we think it was by Bob Dylan originally, not sure). Facebook currently has 9 billion subscribers, which is more than the population of planet Earth.

(Spencer)

40. Moleskin Notebooks

Owning one, you immediately join the artiste ranks that include Ernest Hemmingway and Matisse (even if you are using it to write your shopping list rather than plotting a novel whamped on Absinthe). Distinctive elements include: external elastic band, ribbon bookmark, a sewn spine, posh, cream paper with rounded corners and a mini pocket inside the back cover. Owned by stationary geeks who insist on using a fountain pen for everything. The iPods of the diary world.

(Debs)

Click to see Top 100 things Part 3 (41-60)

There have been many many wonderful inventions, movies, bands, personal discoveries, fashion statements, sportsmen, sportswomen, sex symbols, forgotten food stuffs etc… in the last ten years, hence it was put to the wonderful Interestment Family to detail their personal favourites. The list is not a chart – that would be crazy – it’s just a list. A beautiful beautiful list. Here are numbers 1-20, with the other eighty to follow very soon behind…

1. MacBooks

Made by Apple, MacBooks are laptops laser cut out of a solid block of shiny, expensive aluminium. In short, it makes them super strong and light, a bit like a solid block of gold. Yes, gold. They also run Apple’s OS X which is known to be very stable, fast and, well, quite trendy if you like that sort of thing.

(Spencer)

2. Boxset binges

Why wait a week for the next installment of your favourite tv show when you can buy the whole series and avoid the cliff hanger? The price? Feeling slightly disgusted with yourself after sitting in the same armchair for seventeen hours straight and weeing in an empty Coke can so transfixed are you by the televisual feast. Spawns unhealthy activities like watching 24 in ‘real time’ and a ruined social life. May result in muscular atrophy/sores.

(Debs)

3. Wayne Rooney

From earning opprobrium for showing up to Sports Personality of the Year chewing gum, to stamping on a man’s knackers in a World Cup quarter final, to bringing granny-humping back into fashion (did it ever go away – Ed), it’s been a busy decade for Wayne Mark Rooney. But we don’t just love the Roon for being great tabloid fodder – we love him for giving England fans hope. For the first time since Gazza, an England team head to the World Cup able to look the opposition’s best in the eye, and know they have a player every bit the equal.

(Eliot)

4. Cardigans

Jumpers that don’t mess up your hair. The celebrity golfer’s cockle warmer. The poor man’s coat. Whatever: there always seems to be a used tissue in one pocket.  Its role in the off-duty Metrosexual uniform of skinny jeans, white tee and collegiate scarf made it’s return inevitable. Plus, girls saw their chance at getting chaps out of nasty clothes and into smart knitwear. Celebrity cardiganers include: David Beckham, Daniel Craig and a variety of musically-faced effete scruffbags.

(Debs)

5. Becks Vier

Finally, a posh beer that can be sloshed back all day long, all night strong. Thousands of grown men/women were almost instantly relieved that the shame of calling a barman in close and whispering into his ear for a pint of Castlemaine XXXX – and please, seriously, don’t say anything – suddenly became a thing of the past. Now we can all enjoy weak brewskis together without a class divide! Fantasticos!

(Josh)

6. Come Dine with Me

Take five of the most irritating, self-obsessed, twits ever born. Now ask them to cook a three-course meal and get the other four to slag it off. This in short, is the premise of one of the most addictive TV shows ever to issue forth from the sadomaschistic heart of an evil programme deviser. Add a sneering narrator regularly interjecting with insults and some really shit cooking and you have pure televisual gold.

(Debs)

7. Usain Bolt

They say records are there to be broken – they don’t mean it of course. Celebrity marriage vows are there to be broken, but some records are meant to last for posterity. Take Michael Johnson’s 19.32 over 200m in Atlanta, a run that saw Atto Boldon remark - “19.32? That’s not a time. It sounds more like my dad’s birthday.” Usain Bolt took more than 0.1 of a second off that time, and then did the same in the 100. As we head into the new decade, no man is currently more dominant in his sport than Bolt. And he’s only 23.

(Eliot)

8. Massive Televisions

Yeeessss – a TV so big that you have to sit in the kitchen to watch it! Televised concerts and sports events have that ‘fully-immersive’ quality.  Action films suck you in. X-Box driving games can turn you into an agorophobic unconsciously sitting for hours in their own filth. So popular is the wide-screen telly that anything smaller than a 12 inch with the resolution of a digital watch is like trying to watch midgets from half a mile away through a telescope. Plus, they’re perfect compliment to Blu-Ray which on any other telly would be like eating caviar off a discount range rich tea biscuit.

(Debs)

9. iPhones

Like a phone, but like an iPod too, and a newspaper, sat-nav, computer, Nintendo DS, train timetable, television, remote control, tube map, mobile 3G modem, audio broadcasting suite, and map. But definitely not like a camera. In circumstances as rare as an Attenborough sighting of a Snow Leopard (no Apple pun intended, they’re actually very rare), iPhones are used to make telephone calls.

(Spencer)

10. Big Brother

It has its share of po-faced critics. But once you filter out the shameless dross, and begin to appreciate the sight of grown ups essentially scrubbing their own genitals for fame, the basis of the show becomes absolutely fascinating. The most recent series proved that – handled correctly – it still has legs. Long beautiful legs – like the kind you might see on an actress, or a woman. Siavash to win! Oh, hang on…

(Josh)

11. Leggings

Returned, finally ending the  fashion fatwa issued on them in the 80s. More wearable than you’d think, fortunately for the fashion editors who panicked about how they would sell them to women who weren’t the same shape as a chopstick. A popular incarnation seen on many a celebrity pin was the ‘liquid legging’, slightly less forgiving than the classic ‘matt’ as had the potential to make a bad leg resemble a hastily stuffed sausage.  To be worn with a large teeshirt/blazer/pixie boots and lashings of confidence. Your reward? Warm legs and a fashion bravery rosette.

(Debs)

12. Lost

Revolutionary at the time, Lost works a bit like one of those roll-playing books from the 1980s, only without the need for books, dice, or your virginity. Riddles galore, everyone has been trying to figure this one out for years. Some might argue that they’ve squeezed all credibility from a show that started so promisingly by flogging the horse until it no longer looked like a horse – just a big pile of blood-dripping bone, and a weird Jimmy Hill-shaped skull. Those people might have a point.

(Josh)

13. Satnav

Forget wrestling with a road atlas as unwieldy as a deckchair – simply attach a little box to your dashboard and –voila! – your destination is reached without screaming rows with your loved one who has inadvertently guided you the wrong way up a one way street in a ghetto of Leicester.  Admittedly, some individuals have ended up in the middle of a lake when they actually wanted Greenwich town hall.  But if SatNav also serves to weed out the idiots among us, surely that’s just another plus.

(Debs)

14. Double Cheeseburgers

Hey mister bureaucrat, you can stick your weedy single cheeseburgers, it’s all about twos-up these days. Eaten at a 90 degree angle to the pavement as you stumble home singing softly to yourself in the small hours, drinking snacks don’t come much better than this. The perfect “main” following a starter of nuggs. Plus they’re only like a quid or something, which equals around 5p when you’re out of your mind on Becks Vier.

(Josh)

15. The Wire

There are no hyperbolic statements left in the world that haven’t already been fished out and heaped upon it’s 60 hours of close-up, long-winded observation of the drug and police institutions of Baltimore and the dazzling array of morals and flaws of the peoples therein. Enticingly detailed character portraits aside, every season contains more epic one-liners and historic hangovers than a party thrown by Oscar Wilde. Find a fellow watcher and bore the uninitiated into an immediate coma.

(Debs)

16. Silver Bensons

Which brand of cigarette a person smokes can tell an awful lot about their inner workings. For those not quite booming of voice and upturned of collar enough for Marlboro Lights, there came the Silver Benson. The humble cig for the simple man-on-the-street. Or, more honestly, Silk Cut for men.

(Josh)

17. Skype

Internet telecommunication application that ‘sticks it to the man!’ by allowing users to converse for the grand total of zero pence or contact non-skypers for super-cheap rates. Can cause a few issues when attempting to  explain it’s workings to penny-pinching, technophobic parental types, but the pay-off is being able to chat for hours to your mates in New Zealand without the bailiff turning up for your house contents halfway through. Makes a great noise when it launches as well.

(Debs)

18. King of Shaves razors

Originally introduced to the UK when given away for free by a text-in radio promotion in late 2008, the King of Shave Azor razor is an epic shaving apparatus. Sure, it has many of the same features as other big brand razors (4 blades, a bit of a bendy head, etc) but we here at Interestment are pretty sure the blades themselves are fashioned from unicorn horns for sharpness, but your skin remains incredibly soft as though treated by the tears of the afore-mentioned unicorn/horse in fancy dress. King of Shaves also have a range of excellent shaving gels (try the menthol one) and balms but, most importantly, a hilarious social network-based marketing programme.

(Spencer)

19. Zach Galifianakis

Podgy man + beard+ Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! = Best comedian for ages.

(Josh)

20. Blogging

The human being’s curtain-twitching obsession with the minutiae of others lives meant that on-line diarising became a behemouth of popular culture. That, and the innate human belief that everyone considers you to be as scintillatingly fascinating as you do.  Celebrities, work-loathing, what you like to do with air freshners in your spare time –  anything is fair blog-fodder, the more cynical, libelous and underground the better.  Has wanna-be writers everywhere detailing the contents of their car glove box for an avid online audience of five.

(Debs)

Click to see Top 100 things Part 2 (21-40)

Some may have noticed a rather less churny-churny outy-outy period for the site, and sadly, it’s because the demands for money and employment and things like that have brought this labour of love to a rather abrupt halt.

The good news is that we shall be running a 100 Best Things About the Decade piece over the coming days, that the monthly comedy night is here to stay, and that Interestment shall definitely return at some point in 2010. Most probably when the money and work runs out.

On a personal note, thanks to all of the Interestment readers, who have made the last year (over a year, actually!) a total pleasure. It’s been great fun, I’ve produced some of the work that I most cherish- and I’ve written for The Sun, damn it! But most of all, thanks to the beautiful Interestment Family who have made the site something to really be proud of. With no money, no business brains, and no financial incentive, I think we’ve created something pretty bloody good. Big hugs all round!

So, now, let’s go out with the song that featured on the first ever post. Take it away Glen Campbell!

After a Saturday night round of Jacko numbers, the votes were cast and Danyl of the Dead Eyes is out of the competition and back to amateur dramatics and PTA meetings with parents who are all now a tad more self-conscious in the knowledge that their child’s drama teacher is festive. The Cowell delivered a heartfelt eulogy at his departure intoning: “Danyl is a… graceful (gracious?) …[PREGNANT PAUSE]…loser.”

Brilliant.

 Olly top-button-fastened Murs was the first to be granted access to the finalists podium, despite resembling an extra from A Clockwork Orange that had mislaid his bowler hat. He did a lovely version of Can You Feel It and in round two did his special-needs dance with energetic aplomb. Doubtless The Cowell had gotten a whiff of its cute originality and issued the command: “do it to death” so that it was immediately rendered irritating.

Joe “get Lloyd-Webber on the phone” McElderry did two slow ones for the hell of it as clearly he’s going to win. His mentoress The Cole smiled on, delighted that she wouldn’t have to exhaust herself with fake enthusiasm for Lloyd this week.

Stacey “what’s a wedding singer?” Soloman’s performance of The Way You Make Me Feel was clapped at by Mentoress Joan Collins, but is losing favour with The Cowell.  ‘You have been given too much to do,’ he smarmed, rolling his eyes for the fiftieth time that night, in reference to the strenuous demand  that she move and sing simultaneously (which appears to be Stacey’s Achilles heel.)

The best bit was when they announced that she was through to the final, and she stared at Joan Collins as if she had been asked to translate The Aeneid from the original Greek.

Celebs shamelssly promoting themselves  performing this week included Janet Jackson wearing trainers four sizes too big and Lada Gaga in a bath.  Of course 

Having a lovely long woollen coat in winter is brilliant. It keeps you warm and protects you from Jack Frost and his slightly inappropriate, darting fingers. But there’s another problem with British weather in winter. It rains. A lot. In the last week alone, we’ve had the equivalent of eight years of rain across the UK… according to my nan.

Normally this wet stuff can be avoided by carrying an umbrella to stop you and your coat smelling like a soggy old hound, but venture out of the city, and countryside folk will throw baby goats and manure at you and your modern witchcraft rain deflector. So, what you need is a waterproof jacket. They’re great and do exactly what they say they will, by keeping you dry and allowing you to free up both hands for throwing sticks for your loyal and trusty labrador, wrestling farmers outside the pub at closing time, or stealing trout from the Laird of the Manor’s lochs.

These two are modern day classics (whatever the hell that means) of the waterproof variety.

Belstaff

Belstaff make amazing coats that lots of people on BBC’s Spooks wear. So they must be cool. You can run around pretending you’re a spy and avoid getting shot, blown up or deep fried like most of the cast, but always stay dry and toasty and keep you looking good.

Barbour

Barbour, on the other hand, are famous for making green waxy jackets with more pockets than a Dickensian street thief. But they also make dead nice modern looking jackets like the one above. It’s black, has a union jack on it, and most importantly it’ll keep you dry. The local ladies and gents in the Bleeding Duck tucked away in Old Wooten Bastad won’t be able to resist your charms in this sturdy number.

We love thrillers, they’re very underrated, and everyone’s too busy with their zany special effects, their shock horrors, or their romantic comedies these days. Of course, the undisputed heavyweight champion of thrillers was Hitchcock, our number one director. But we also like a lot of the nail biters that came out in the 1980s. You know, like Fatal Attraction, Blue Velvet, Jagged Edge. Plus the five wonderful movies below, which you should really think about watching at some point in your life…

1. Body Heat

We’re massive fans of Body Heat – primarily because it stars our favourite actress of all time, alongside two of our top four actors. Then you throw Ted Danson into the mix, and you’ve literally just blown our minds. It’s the tale of an arch seductress making William Hurt feel very cramped in the underpants, and it’s probably one of the finest film noir movies of all time. A must-see.

2. Silkwood

Fans of films about little people taking on big shady corporations will absolutely adore Silkwood. You’ve got Meryl Streep, radiation, a cliff hanger ending, Kurt Russell, very creepy men with serious faces, and Cher. What more could anyone ask for? 

3. Frantic

Harrison goes for a piss and a shave, then realises that his wife has gone missing. Cue lots of running around Paris, shouting at people, and dancing in sexy French clubs to Grace Jones. Alongside The Mosquito Coast, this is a hugely underrated Harrison Ford classic. We’d take it over any of the Indiana Jones films… except for Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

4. Dead Calm

The moral of this story is that you shouldn’t invite strangers onto your boat, no matter how sexy they are. It’s a good lesson to learn. It’s also a good film to watch, should your feelings for Nicole Kidman be slightly waning. Here, she’s still got those red corkscrew locks that Tom Cruise pretended to find attractive, and she acts the hell out of that damn boat. Billy Zane also produces the one decent performance of his life.

5. No Way Out

If you like films with twists in them, then you’ll love No Way Out – it’s got a big one. It also takes us back to a time before Kevin Costner morphed into an unbelievably preposterous twerp – ie. before Dances with Wolves. It also stars Gene Hackmen, which is always a good thing.

For those of you not really up on what’s hot and what’s not, Katherine Heigl is a Hollywood actress. She was in the film Knocked Up, and also the TV show about doctors and nurses that we’ve never seen. We’re not sure if she’s been in anything else. She probably has. Anyway, she’s very pretty, she’s 31 today, we thought we’d get her a gift, so we all took a handful of mushrooms that we’d bought from a teenager, and pretty soon it boiled down to a toss up between an umbrella for Mr Cornflakes, or a funny clip starring Michael Cera. In the end we got her both. Happy Birthday Katherine!