England’s glorious day in the sun lifted the BBC pundits but there was still caution amid the commotionComplain about the licence fee if you must but the bottom line is the BBC’s comprehensive World Cup coverage offers something for everyone. Toddlers across the land, for example, have been cavorting joyously to the simple pleasure of the Kicky Kicky Kick Kick song from the Hey Duggee cartoon. Meanwhile on Radio 5 Live there is the Robbie Savage breakfast show, for those who have not yet graduated to CBeebies.It is a broad church. But the actual match coverage must please everyone at once, no mean feat. England’s support can be roughly split into two categories – the blindly optimistic and the morbidly fatalistic – and...
The BBC presenter’s suggestion to relaunch the old flagship after 10 years in mothballs and make minority sports its stars makes solid senseStrange things happen at night on Twitter. Sadly for the world, that includes executive announcements by the commander-in-chief of the United States. But there are outcomes which are unexpectedly positive, and one such was Gabby Logan’s call for the return of Grandstand.Logan may have made her suggestion after reading an Observer article on the long-departed Saturday TV staple but put that to one side and there is an interesting proposal worth discussing. Related: In praise of David Coleman, Grandstand and a slower, more peaceful age | Rob Smyth Continue reading...
The BBC Saturday afternoon sports programme ran for nearly 50 years and showed England winning the World Cup, Red Rum’s Grand National triumphs and the 1981 Ashes but fell victim to shorter attention spans and the modern worldThe past is a foreign country, and boy do we all need some escapism right now. From T2 Trainspotting to Twin Peaks, the 20th century is the place to be. This time it feels like more than just the usual nostalgia – more of a safe house, with a subtle infusion of melancholy, from the outright misery of contemporary society.Sports fans of a certain age and disposition have never needed much excuse to do some mental time travel. The phrase “in my day”,...