Luke 'the Nuke' Littler - 16yo darts prodigy

[redcogs]

Littler is on GMB this morning but not the world champion who played some of the best darts of all time - says it all.

Agreed Numbers. It is almost as though the media (all varieties) have been desperate to focus attention upon the Darwinian rise of a young man to the very top in order to draw attention away from all the insecurities and accelerating social collapse that we are all faced with all of the time, presumably to show that success is possible, despite the accumulating evidence that the neo liberal fiasco is totally fucked and that for many, if not most people, most of the time all there is is deep hopelessness.. i feel sorry now for Humphries the champ, has been totally eclipsed. Good on the youngster, and great for the champ. But we are still in the darkest of times. Sorry to be so downbeat, it is just how i feel.

 

[Petcha]

Agreed Numbers. It is almost as though the media (all varieties) have been desperate to focus attention upon the Darwinian rise of a young man to the very top in order to draw attention away from all the insecurities and accelerating social collapse that we are all faced with all of the time, presumably to show that success is possible, despite the accumulating evidence that the neo liberal fiasco is totally fucked and that for many, if not most people, most of the time all there is is deep hopelessness.. i feel sorry now for Humphries the champ, has been totally eclipsed. Good on the youngster, and great for the champ. But we are still in the darkest of times. Sorry to be so downbeat, it is just how i feel.

Well no, BBC Breakfast has over twice the viewing numbers of GMB so he's getting much more exposure there

 

[A380]

Agreed Numbers. It is almost as though the media (all varieties) have been desperate to focus attention upon the Darwinian rise of a young man to the very top in order to draw attention away from all the insecurities and accelerating social collapse that we are all faced with all of the time, presumably to show that success is possible, despite the accumulating evidence that the neo liberal fiasco is totally fucked and that for many, if not most people, most of the time all there is is deep hopelessness.. i feel sorry now for Humphries the champ, has been totally eclipsed. Good on the youngster, and great for the champ. But we are still in the darkest of times. Sorry to be so downbeat, it is just how i feel.

Sometimes a teenager playing darts is just a teenager playing darts.

 

[redcogs]

Sometimes a teenager playing darts is just a teenager playing darts.

i did not wish to detract from Luke L's extraordinary ability in any way. And i loved the way the 'public imagination' (and my own) was captured. i probably need to get out more

 

[The39thStep]

Waiting for Starmer to come out with stories of his father playing darts for the factory team

 

[tommers]

Waiting for Starmer to come out with stories of his father playing darts for the factory team

"I used to love the smell of manure and hot dogs on my way down to "the Olde Red Lion" for a few games of the arrows, along with a lovely normal pint of mild in a pub like a normal bloke, which is what I am."

 

[Elpenor]

Waiting for Starmer to come out with stories of his father playing darts for the factory team

“My father was a dartmaker”

 

[Yossarian]

Well done Littler, sometime in the future I might pay attention to a professional darts match for the second time in my life

 

[A380]

Waiting for Starmer to come out with stories of his father playing darts for the factory team

And Rat boy to describe how he is a long time darts fan and his favourite players are Hurricane Higgins and Giant Haystacks.

 

[Karl Masks]

This fella doesn't look 16. Is this what hanging around in darts venues - pubs, if you will - do to you?

 

[A380]

 

[PR1Berske]

 

[Petcha]

He's 16. Can't remember if I paid tax at that age?

 

[Puddy_Tat]

He's 16. Can't remember if I paid tax at that age?

I'm pretty sure that I paid income tax and national insurance when i started work (i was 16 when i started work)

i'm not sure how it works for under 16s that work - with a tiny number of exceptions, they would be under the earnings threshold to pay income tax

 

[PR1Berske]

He's 16. Can't remember if I paid tax at that age?

You pay tax on income, and he's just had quite the payday, and I imagine he's not yet got the regime many sportspeople have to move their winnings around various accounts.

He soon will.

(By the by, the USA always taxes lottery and game show winnings, on the same basis)

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I'm pretty sure that I paid income tax and national insurance when i started work (i was 16 when i started work)

i'm not sure how it works for under 16s that work - with a tiny number of exceptions, they would be under the earnings threshold to pay income tax

I think with child actors (not sure who else there could be), the earnings are managed by their guardians. So still taxed.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

You pay tax on income, and he's just had quite the payday, and I imagine he's not yet got the regime many sportspeople have to move their winnings around various accounts.

He soon will.

Amazing how many fuck that up, though. Snooker player Mark Allen declared himself bankrupt over an unpaid £600,000 tax bill.

Anyhow, even without that he can claim a bunch of expenses and even spread these winnings over more than one tax year. He won't pay as much as Sky say he will. Sky are just being dicks.

 

[Elpenor]

He wouldn’t have to pay NI if he was under 16, but as he’s over 16 he will.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

He wouldn’t have to pay NI if he was under 16, but as he’s over 16 he will.

Cool. Building up his entitlement to the state pension in 51 years' time.

 

[scifisam]

I think with child actors (not sure who else there could be), the earnings are managed by their guardians. So still taxed.

No - it's their own income (legally they have to have their own bank account into which their earnings are paid), and it's treated the same way as adults' income with the main exception being that they don't have to pay NI. They usually don't earn over the income tax threshhold, but if they do, they pay tax.

At 16 it's exactly the same as being an adult.

 

[GarveyLives]

The Sky commentator just compared him to Usain Bolt

You can certainly see why:

(Image: GQ/ALISDAIR MCLELLAN)

(Source: as stated in image)​

Meanwhile:

Rebranding darts as serious enterprise is stroke of genius but it is still not real sport

 

[Steel Icarus]

Veering dangerously close to judging people on their looks and not their talent here. Plus a Telegraph link? Really?

 

[Raheem]

View attachment 407055

He won't pay 83k in tax. That's what he'll be liable to pay if his accountant doesn't know how to set up an umbrella company*.

* Specialised meaning, nothing to do with actual umbrellas.

 

[PR1Berske]

He won't pay 83k in tax. That's what he'll be liable to pay if his accountant doesn't know how to set up an umbrella company.

At which point he stops being "the teenager who could" and becomes "dirty tax avoiding scum", of course.

 

[Petcha]

At which point he stops being "the teenager who could" and becomes "dirty tax avoiding scum", of course.

Seriously? Every freelancer - graphic designers, IT people etc etc use umbrellas. It's very much standard practice. You don't save that much by using them but it's a bit.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Agreed Numbers. It is almost as though the media (all varieties) have been desperate to focus attention upon the Darwinian rise of a young man to the very top in order to draw attention away from all the insecurities and accelerating social collapse that we are all faced with all of the time, presumably to show that success is possible, despite the accumulating evidence that the neo liberal fiasco is totally fucked and that for many, if not most people, most of the time all there is is deep hopelessness.. i feel sorry now for Humphries the champ, has been totally eclipsed. Good on the youngster, and great for the champ. But we are still in the darkest of times. Sorry to be so downbeat, it is just how i feel.

Could just be that normally nobody gives a fuck about darts because it's a pub game, not a sport.

 

[Silas Loom]

Petcha Raheem I don’t see why an umbrella would make any sense for Littler. Umbrellas are for contractors who have predictable earnings for a fixed period and want a hassle-free system for accessing taxed income as rapidly as possible.

Freelancers who have outgrown sole trader status, with less predictable earnings and detailed costs, would normally just manage their own limited company and pay themselves, taking dividends periodically under advice from their accountant.

Littler has extremely unpredictable earnings, is at high risk of HMRC scrutiny, and needs specialised tax planning advice. An umbrella would be useless. He needs an accountant with experience of working with high profile sportspeople or entertainers, and one who is independent from Littler’s management and sponsorship team, as their interests in revenue recognition and cost control may diverge from his. At least he has an advantage over other young sportspeople in being demonstrably numerate.

 

[klang]

Veering dangerously close to judging people on their looks and not their talent here. Plus a Telegraph link? Really?

Also note that the Bolt one is a pro studio pic, perfectly arranged with pro lights etc, whilst the other one is a snap shot in action.

 

[Petcha]

Petcha Raheem I don’t see why an umbrella would make any sense for Littler. Umbrellas are for contractors who have predictable earnings for a fixed period and want a hassle-free system for accessing taxed income as rapidly as possible.

Freelancers who have outgrown sole trader status, with less predictable earnings and detailed costs, would normally just manage their own limited company and pay themselves, taking dividends periodically under advice from their accountant.

Littler has extremely unpredictable earnings, is at high risk of HMRC scrutiny, and needs specialised tax planning advice. An umbrella would be useless. He needs an accountant with experience of working with high profile sportspeople or entertainers, and one who is independent from Littler’s management and sponsorship team, as their interests in revenue recognition and cost control may diverge from his. At least he has an advantage over other young sportspeople in being demonstrably numerate.

I wasnt the one who raised the possibility of him using an umbrella. Like footballers I'm sure there are far more 'sophisticated' options available to him than tapping in his hours into a website once a week like I do.

 

[Silas Loom]

Seriously? Every freelancer - graphic designers, IT people etc etc use umbrellas. It's very much standard practice. You don't save that much by using them but it's a bit.

I still disagree with you on the above, though.

I wasnt the one who raised the possibility of him using an umbrella. Like footballers I'm sure there are far more 'sophisticated' options available to him than tapping in his hours into a website once a week like I do.

Fair enough!