Sports Commentators - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

[Woofles The Wonder Dog]

A great commentator enhances the match experience bringing insight to the televisual experience. Or they clatter on enough to turn the sound off!

The key to greatness is, for me, what Richie Benaud did. After retiring he paid to go on a commentary course run by the BBC. I can’t remember the exact words, but they were told that it’s not radio, it’s TV and the audience can see for themselves what’s happening, and your job is to add something they can’t see.

In addition, I prefer a commentary where the speaker acts as though he/she is having a conversation with you. Not shouting, or delivering a monotone blather.

Cricket Greats:

Richie Benaud
Brian Johnston
Jonathan Agnew
John Arlott
Michael Holding

Bubbling Under:

Michael Atherton (speak up sonny!)

Football Greats:

Kenneth Wollstenhome
Brian Moore

Bubbling Under:

Gary Neville (They’re walking! They’re walking!)

Baseball:

Tim McCarver

Golf:

Henry Longhurst
Peter Alliss

Snooker:


Ted Lowe

Tennis:


Dan Maskell

[Fred Crump]

Not everyone will remember him obviously, but the late great Don Mosey deserves a cricket spot too, I think, as well as Tony Cosier from the West Indies.

[Weedy]

After an Open Golf championship, the PGA president (or someone equivalent) was giving a speech while presenting the Jug and droning on and on and on.
After a while Peter Alliss piped up:

"We don't normally broadcast these speeches. Now you know why."

[Rory]

My favourite two are/were definitely Benaud and Holding. Insightful, articulate, balanced, passionate about cricket, personable and down-to-earth, each having a no-bullshit integrity and a good sense of humour without the need to force 'bantz' on the listener/viewer.

Cricket is blessed with lots of excellent commentators. One of my emerging favourites is Isa Guha, who I think is fantastic.

[dave.woodhall]

Boxing - Harry Carpenter.

[Fred Crump]

Totally agree Rory, Isa Guha is an emerging star.
Mikey was on Desert Island Discs this morning and I don’t mind admitting I had tears in my eyes listening. What a man.

[paul_e]

Cricket has loads, I think it being a technical and slightly slower game encourages good commentators, I like Alison Mitchell as well.

In the rugby I like Martin Bayfield and Alastair Eykyn and I think Ben Kay and Ugo Monye (who is also a genuinely fantastic bloke who has been brilliant with my club in the last couple of years) are great as pundits.

I can't think of a currently football commentator I like, the lack of quality was shown very clearly by them all being upstaged by Emma Hayes in the euros.

I thought a few of them in olympics were very good without anyone really standing out.

[Dante Lavelli]

I like Flats and Brian Moore.  It’s a front row thing.
No idea whether they are technically or tactically astute but they often make me laugh and aren’t afraid to say it’s shit when its shit.

[PaulWinch again]

My favourite two are/were definitely Benaud and Holding. Insightful, articulate, balanced, passionate about cricket, personable and down-to-earth, each having a no-bullshit integrity and a good sense of humour without the need to force 'bantz' on the listener/viewer.

Cricket is blessed with lots of excellent commentators. One of my emerging favourites is Isa Guha, who I think is fantastic.

One of the things I used to love about Holding was after a fairly dry period of the game when someone hit a scoring shot there would be a delay as it raced to the boundary, and Mikey in his deep voice would just say, “runs”.

[Woofles The Wonder Dog]

Boxing - Harry Carpenter.

Ah yes.

[dave.woodhall]

I also forgot Peter Jones.

[paul_e]

I like Flats and Brian Moore.  It’s a front row thing.
No idea whether they are technically or tactically astute but they often make me laugh and aren’t afraid to say it’s shit when its shit.

Flats is good, Moore doesn't really understand the modern game, I don't dislike him but he should probably have retired by now.

[260475]

TV Football
I always liked Hugh Johns as well as Brian Moore. Hugh did the ITV wc'66 final in the recently released colour version of the old b&w tape, and of course he was almost always on Star Soccer on ATV on a Sunday. Preferred David Coleman to B Davies and Motty on the BBC, and his athletics research and knowledge was faultless. Also liked Tony Gubba who could describe what was shaping up off the ball some times.

Radio footy
Couldn't stand Alan Green (is he still on?), had about four ways of pronouncing 'Hyppia' (Hoopya, Hippiya, Hoppiya, Herpya), and mostly cut short "the penalty area" to "Penalty Air.." Loved Jonathan Pierce as he escalated the tone as the ball quickened up or went into the box. (he did a bit of TV also). Jim Proudfoot does a good job on TS, as does Ian Danter (yes I know he is a 'nose but is balanced). The club (any club not just AV) commentators on closed channels (i.e. partisan to that club) are hopeless in comparison to the real pros.

Also loved Jonathan Pierce for Robot Wars!

Racing - Peter O'Sullivan

Darts - Sid Waddell, although mostly nonsense he built a picture and was quick to call the maths of the out shot, occasionally checking himself and sticking to his first call! I.e. he made mistakes but was entertaining.

Motorbike racing - Julian Ryder and Keith Huewen had a good dynamic, as did Murray walker and James Hunt in F1 - thought MW went on a tad too long but he was still a great. Ch4 Edwards/Jaques with D Coulthard also work well and as I don't pay for Sky not up to date on M Brundle but he was pretty ace on terrestial TV. A more obscure shout in Motor racing is Bob Constanduros who was mostly a print journalist, then a circuit PA commentator at GPs, WEC races etc. Seems there aren't many (any?) gaps in his knowledgebase.

Tour de France would have to be Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen, PS sadly now gone (Liggett was originally a Lance Armstrong doping denier, yet eventually changed his stance). Ned Boulting and David Millar have grown into it pretty well. In the studio, G Imlach, C Boardman, P Kennaugh ace it. I remember G Imlach debuting on Ch4 US Football coverage when no-one much new what it was about. (you could say no-one still does!)

Cricket TV - don't follow it much these days, but 6 day tests (i.e. Thurs- Tues with Sunday off) used to be on the BBC when you got home from school, and I always rated R Benaud before I knew what a career he'd had, and then when I did he went up another notch. Then there was Peter West who just stared straight at the fixed Studio camera, didn't add anything for me. Boycott is Boycott, and a bit marmite.

Cricket Radio - Tests if the timing was good could be listened to on R4 if there was limited TV coverage (esp away tests), the commentator who described it best for me was the Australian Alan McGilvray Retired 1985, d 1996.

Now Mark Nicholas who is/was a more recent commentator took a position on something or other on TV in the '06-07 Ashes series in Oz, that a group of my mates went to for 5 weeks. One of them took exception to this, and had it in his (Bluenose) memory bank when we went to Headingley in May'07 for Eng-WI. This was the coldest test ever played here, and struggled to get going ice/hail etc.!). At one of the enforced breaks Mark Nicholas was doing a Q&A or a small broadcast piece, and Bluenose mate made a fantastic job of heckling him objectively. Something got him going that day.

Rugby U - Nigel Starmer-Smith was good on Rugby Special, also of course the "mighty hoof" from Bill Mclaren, and Cliff Morgan's use of "brilliant" nine times (I think) on the famous Gareth edwards Barbarians 1973 Try vs the All Blacks. John Taylor did a great job for ITV in the RWC 1991, hadn't heard from him before then.

Rugby league - Well just have to mention Eddie Waring and his up and unders!

Tennis - J McEnroe doesn't shirk from saying what he thinks

[Rory]

Totally agree Rory, Isa Guha is an emerging star.
Mikey was on Desert Island Discs this morning and I don’t mind admitting I had tears in my eyes listening. What a man.

The BLM segment last year was one of the most powerful pieces of television I've ever seen.

[Rory]

My favourite two are/were definitely Benaud and Holding. Insightful, articulate, balanced, passionate about cricket, personable and down-to-earth, each having a no-bullshit integrity and a good sense of humour without the need to force 'bantz' on the listener/viewer.

Cricket is blessed with lots of excellent commentators. One of my emerging favourites is Isa Guha, who I think is fantastic.

One of the things I used to love about Holding was after a fairly dry period of the game when someone hit a scoring shot there would be a delay as it raced to the boundary, and Mikey in his deep voice would just say, “runs”.

Yes haha, like a not annoying version of Danny Morrison screaming "BOOM!" every time he hears bat on ball.