# Neknominate Neknominate, also known as Neck and Nominate, was a viral drinking game where participants filmed themselves chugging alcohol in extreme ways and then called out friends to top them within 24 hours. The chain-nomination format traces back to British university slang around 2008, got a homegrown Australian rewrite in the early 2010s, and exploded across Facebook in January 2014. Within weeks it turned deadly, spawned kindness-based parodies, and burned out just as fast as it started. ## Origin The phrase 'neck and nominate' had been kicking around Cambridge University drinking circles since about 2008[8]. The first known filmed version arrived on November 29, 2012, when British YouTuber Will Green uploaded a clip called 'Neck and Nominate' showing a young man downing a beer outside a townhouse door before calling out the next player[5]. The modern chain-video format, though, came from Australia. According to Jay Anthony, who later ran the movement's biggest Facebook hub, the current game was invented at Scotch College in Western Australia, where one student chugged a beer and told a mate 'you're next'[3]. The pattern caught on locally, moved through Australian and New Zealand student circles, and then jumped to Facebook the following year. - **Platform:** YouTube / Facebook (viral spread) - **Creator:** Unknown - **Date:** 2013 ## Overview The format is simple: film yourself downing an alcoholic drink in one go, then name two friends who have 24 hours to top your performance with something more disgusting or dangerous[7]. Escalation is the point. Early clips showed guys chugging beers in cold weather or unusual outfits, but within weeks the challenge morphed into people drinking from toilet bowls, ski boots, and mixing spirits with milk, salt, sugar and cinnamon[1]. The tone sits between frat-house dare and gross-out contest. The Facebook rules page for the game described the concept as 'Neck your drink. Nominate another. Don't break the chain, don't be a d**k. The social drinking game for social media! #neknominate. Drink Responsibly'[2]. That 'don't break the chain' pressure drove the escalation, since refusing a nomination in front of your friend network looked soft. Videos usually ended with the drinker pointing at the camera and shouting two names, passing the 24-hour clock to the next players[7]. ## How It Spread Momentum built through early 2013. On January 24 of that year, YouTuber Tom Jeffery posted 'TJ Neck & Nominate,' in which a man in swim briefs stood inside a hole in the ground, poured milk over his head, chugged a beer and challenged someone named 'Spartacus'[6]. The Independent later reported the hashtag first started trending in the UK that same month[2]. The real explosion came in January 2014. A Facebook page called 'Neknominate' launched on January 2 and pulled 19,000 likes in its first month[8]. A rival page, 'The Best Neknominate Videos,' went live on January 7 and hit close to 175,000 followers by early February[3]. Vice tracked down that page's Australian creator, Jay Anthony, who said the game had moved through Australia and New Zealand and was 'even gaining traction in Europe'[3]. Coverage went mainstream fast. The Independent reported on a Melbourne case in which a 21-year-old was filmed climbing out of a car boot to neck a beer as the vehicle drove through traffic, prompting a Victoria Police investigation[2]. The Daily Mail ran photos of a shirtless drinker being lowered upside down into a toilet bowl by his ankles, and another of an Australian man pouring alcohol into a ski boot to skoll it[1]. Australian outlets covered it as a public safety issue as videos got wilder, with tricks like being pelted with objects, having firecrackers thrown, and having pants set on fire while chugging[2]. ## How to Use To play, film yourself drinking an alcoholic beverage or mixture in one go, then name two friends at the end of the clip. Those nominees typically have 24 hours to top your effort before nominating the next round of players[7]. Common escalation moves include using strange containers like toilets or ski boots, mixing spirits with non-alcoholic ingredients like milk, salt, sugar, cinnamon or raw eggs, and doing the whole thing in an unusual location or costume[1]. ## Cultural Impact The game turned fatal within a month of going viral. In February 2014, 29-year-old Stephen Brookes died after downing a pint of vodka as part of a Neknominate challenge[4]. British lawyers publicly warned that people issuing a challenge that ended in death could face manslaughter charges if the outcome was foreseeable[4]. Alcohol education charity Drinkaware also raised concerns about 'cybershame,' pointing out that 47 percent of 18-to-24 year olds had admitted un-tagging drunk photos of themselves online[2]. Coverage of Brookes' death and several other fatalities across the UK and Ireland effectively killed the trend by mid-2014. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Neknominate? Neknominate, also called Neck and Nominate, was a viral drinking game where players filmed themselves chugging alcohol and then challenged two friends to outdo them within 24 hours[2]. ### Where did Neknominate come from? The phrase started at Cambridge University around 2008[8], but the chain-video format was invented by students at Scotch College in Western Australia and hit Facebook in January 2014[3]. ### What does Neknominate mean? It's a mash-up of 'neck,' British slang for chugging a drink, and 'nominate,' meaning to tag the next person who has to do it[2]. ### How do you play Neknominate? You film yourself downing an alcoholic drink in one go, name two friends, and post the video. Those friends then have 24 hours to top your video and pass the chain along[7]. ### Is Neknominate still popular? No. The trend died by mid-2014 after several fatalities, including the death of 29-year-old Stephen Brookes[4]. ### Who invented Neknominate? Jay Anthony, who ran the biggest Neknominate Facebook page, told Vice the chain-video format was started by students at Scotch College in Western Australia[3]. ### When did Neknominate go viral? January 2014, when a Facebook page called 'Neknominate' launched on January 2 and 'The Best Neknominate Videos' page went up on January 7[8][3]. ### Did anyone die from Neknominate? Yes. British man Stephen Brookes, 29, died after downing a pint of vodka as part of a Neknominate challenge in early 2014[4]. ### What was the biggest Neknominate hub? The 'Best Neknominate Videos' Facebook page run by Australian Jay Anthony, which hit around 175,000 followers within a month of launching[3]. ### What Neknominate parodies were made? RAKnomination (kindness spinoff by Andy Media on January 27, 2014), NipNominate (a breast cancer awareness cleavage-selfie campaign), and Nicnominate (a Nicolas Cage Twitter parody)[8]. ### Was Neknominate British or Australian? Both. The 'neck and nominate' phrase came from British students, but the chain-video format that went viral was invented in Australia[8][3]. ## References 1. [https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2539028/Neknominating-outrageous-new-drinking-game-trending-social-media.html]() 2. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/weird-news/neknominate-australias-extreme-facebook-drinking-game-goes-viral-9060598.html]() 3. [https://www.vice.com/en_uk/read/neknominate-is-a-fun-new-social-media-game-for-perpetually-drunk-australians]() 4. [https://metro.co.uk/2014/02/17/neknomination-drinkers-daring-friends-to-take-lethal-challenges-could-face-manslaughter-charges-4306899/]() 5. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSW3hLdb0Cs]() 6. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms1IbjwcyEQ]() 7. [https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Neknominate]() 8. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/neknominate]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/neknominate Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library