Me1 vs Me2 Snooker with Richard Herring
Me1 vs Me2 Snooker with Richard Herring is the world's longest running snooker podcast presented by stand-up comedian Richard Herring. First published in December 2011 it peaked at number one in the iTunes charts of the same month. In each podcast Richard Herring performs against himself in a game of snooker. It is not only notable for being the only audio podcast which actually incorporates the game of snooker within it but for the subtext of a man satirising mental health issues and "fighting against a tide of mediocrity and repetition, struggling to create a brave, new and original vision." As of March 2017 eighty-one frames have been played.
Origins
Richard Herring had found success with other podcasts such as the award-winning Collings and Herrin which had made a successful transition to BBC Radio 6 Music in 2010. His move into snooker podcasting originated through tweeting a live commentary of a game of snooker he played against himself backstage at a comedy club, what started as a joke became something more serious. Herring stated "I attempt to antagonise and lose listeners by commentating on myself playing snooker against myself in my basement. Most people are baffled, confused, even angry about it. But 5,000 people around the world tune in to find out which me will win this week's frame."Filmed and live performances
Filmed versions of the snooker podcast act as main features for Herring's stand-up DVDs What Is Love Anyway and Talking Cock both feature special cup performances. August 2013 saw the first ever frame of Me1 vs Me2 Snooker to be played in front of a live paying audience at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. On 4 December 2019 a live performance was given in front of an audience for the "2019 Chris Evans Trophy" at the Cockpit Theatre in London.Media coverage
In July 2013 the Huffington Post described the podcast as being "representative of the diversity of podcasting."Time Out Magazine pre-emptively described the event as one of the top ten Edinburgh Fringe comedy highlights of 2013 stating that listeners "will either have to giggle away at the ridiculous concept, or become deeply irritated." In April 2014 Helen Zaltzman and Olly Mann interviewed Herring about the podcast on BBC Radio 4, which premiered clips of self-playing snooker on the radio of the first time. In the same month The Telegraph included Me1 vs Me2 Snooker in its list of top podcasts describing it as a "wonderfully oddball, regularly hilarious series - in which Herring splits into two versions of himself... other over a long drawn-out game of snooker".Statistics
In the first 46 frames there were 43 frames between Me1 and Me2 of which Me1 won 22 and Me2 won 21. Me1 and Me3 played two games with Me3 winning both and Me2 and Me3 played one game which Me2 won.Frame 5 had the highest margin of victory - 69 points difference between the victor Me1 and the loser Me2. Frame 36 had the smallest margin of victory with Me2 winning by 2 points.
| Player | Wins | Losses | Highest Margin of Victory | Lowest Margin of Victory |
| Me1 | 22 | 23 | 69 - Frame 5 | 4 - Frames 3 & 28 |
| Me2 | 22 | 22 | 56 - Frame 7 | 2 - Frame 36 |
| Me3 | 2 | 1 | 13 - Frame 22 | 11 - Frame 23 |
2020 Tournaments
In March 2020, the top 16 Mes compete in a tournament broadcast on Richard Herring's twitch channel..In April–June 2020, the top 32 Mes compete in a second tournament on Richard Herring's twitch channel.