i dont know what made me think about penning this thread which ive decided to open up for your delectation and deliberation other than the brief recollection at some point during this morning about the Cambridge/Oxford boat race of all things.. and therein the conjuring up of the faded/distant memory of one of the finest Radio broadcasters ever to permeate the airwaves -FACT. and one who's voice i swear, to this day i can fondly recall, such was its clarity and authority in many fields particularly when covering Liverpool matches: that of Peter Jones.
Sports Commentators
Jones himself died at the age of 60 soon after commentating on the 1990 boat race and in those days id previously watched the event on the BBC. that year i decided for no explicable reason to listen to it on the wireless......his last ever commentary.
but its his narrative of Liverpool's European cup final triumphs(77/78/81 and 84) that had a profound effect on me. ill always remember him exclaiming the words "Dalglish!!...or, "Saved by Grobelaar!!... and later "Rush......Goal" time after time in league games on the radio throughout the eighties in his own unique inimitable dulcet Welsh tones. in light of this post ive done a little research on him and unearthed this poignant article from Wikipedia:
"Almost unrivalled for his ability to paint word pictures and capture the excitement of a great occasion, Jones was still regarded as a great broadcaster in the late 1980s, despite the rise of younger, brasher commentators who did not share his Received Pronunciation accent. He was deeply affected and saddened by the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, which he witnessed from the commentary box, and gave an emotional description of the memorial service for the victims of the disaster, reciting the words of "You'll Never Walk Alone". He continued to broadcast regularly, but it has been claimed that he never fully recovered emotionally and personally from the experience of witnessing the Hillsborough disaster, and on April 1st 1990 he collapsed on the BBC launch during his commentary on the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. He was hospitalised at the end of the race, but died the following day. He was universally mourned as a great broadcaster and, perhaps, the last of a line, for soon after his death sports broadcasting in the UK underwent a revolution with the arrival of Sky TV and of BBC Radio 5 (later Five Live), taking a more informal and, arguably, more populist and less eloquent style."
a true Radio great.
but what about the current crop of presenters that drivel their way through the motions on the TV and Radio nowadays.
a lot of them are ex-journalist/local radio presenters etc.. who have risen through their ranks to take their place week in week out for the entertainment of the masses on primetime transmissions. and what a poorer place the world is because of some of their input. my own impressions of whether i like someone or not, usually stems from their actual 'voice' as opposed to giving second thought to their appearance. and notable distinctive articulation more often than not catches both my ears and my imagination when it is done well. the following list of recent Sports Commentators/Presenters is not based on any allegiance or bias toward anything other than the simple fact that these are some of the current/recent crop of custodians our eyes and ears are in the company of while watching and listening to Sport in 2006. pick your own particular poison:
Alan Hansen Andy Gray Brough Scott Christopher Martin Jenkins David Gower Elton Welsby Gaby Yorath Logan Gary Lineker David Vine Julian Ryder Sue Barker Henry Blofeld Rob Palmer Clive Everton Bill McLaren Ian Botham Dennis Taylor Alan Green Jim Rosenthal Jim Watt Claire Tomlinson Mark Lawrenson Suzi Perry Clive Tyldesley John Inverdale John Motson Mike 'Stevo' Stephenson Ian Darke Gerry Armstrong Ian Bolton Richard Keys Toby Moody Steve Rider Sid Wadell David Coleman Tony Gubba Virginia Wade Peter Drury Trevor Brooking Mike Ingham Barry Davies Ray French Johnathan Pearce John McCririck Hazel Irvine Andrew Castle Kevin Keatings Ray Stubbs Claire Balding Alan Smith Eddie Hemmings Johnathan Davies Willie Thorne John McEnroe Trevor Francis David Pleat John Virgo John Champion etc etc.. im struggling to think of anymore and i apologise for not completely presenting an exhaustive list! maybe someone else could contribute their own suggestions either living or deceased. on a personal note, out of those that i have remembered i actually like the commentating style of very few of them, partly because of their condescending 'airs and graces' and little spoken of any significance other than the superfluous. there's no need for me to highlight the obvious exceptions either and this thread is less about slating anyone, more a nod towards their plus points, if any of merit ... but of the ones i consider worthy of note: i think Kevin Keatings is one i dont mind listening to on 'La Liga' he and Armstrong. The two fellas on Eurosports MotoGP coverage are worth a listen- if a little irritating after ninety minutes- but the noise of the bikes, more than compensates for that! and i love Dennis Taylors quips alongside Clive Everton on the snooker.. (again,these are based solely on their Vocal expression and mannerisms that i like in truth). as for the Premiership, i reckon Tyler can be reasonably Informative on occasion...beyond that, you tell me. (apologies for another 'Uber-thread' about basically nothing of any relevance other than that inspired by my bizarre meandering thoughts!- i didnt intend it to be this long)
