Tag Archives: Boxing

On The Right Tracks

May 13, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been pretty busy with some fun stuff happening. Did you watch the big fight from Wembley Stadium the other week? There were ninety thousand people there to see Anthony Joshua fight Wladimir Klitschko. Having worked there previously I know how much work and effort goes in to the logistics of turning a football pitch in to a Boxing Ring and back again within forty-eight hours. It is very impressive.

In fact online there’s a time lapse video that shows you how it is all done. I did not get to see the fight in person, sadly. But I was actually travelling past the Stadium on the train about an hour or so before the main event. And even from the outside with the Arch lit and the spotlights shooting up into the air, it felt exciting

I got home just in time to listen to the fight on Five Live. I could not quite justify buying the fight in for me to watch alone, I felt. Plus I do like hearing the boxing on the radio, it sounds brilliant. You do really get a feel of what is happening and you can absorb the atmosphere more I think. It was an amazing bout, obviously I was rooting for our man Anthony Joshua. Who at one point looked like he was struggling but then came back stronger to win.

The sign of a true champion, that. It is not over till it is over. And it does prove the old metaphor when you get knocked down just get back up again and keep going. Well done to both fighters for the way it was all conducted. They showed a lot of respect for each other. It was all done in a very gentlemanly way.

Anyone managed to watch that memory stick yet? Which Klitschko had sewn in to his dressing gown with a video recording of how he predicted the fight was going to go. If he got that one completely right. I think that he could well be Ukraine’s answer to Derren Brown. As well as great boxer’s they are two brilliant role models for people to try to aspire to be and look up to. Which is something that is getting harder and harder to find nowadays.

At the fight they had the legendary boxing announcer Michael Buffer. I was working at Wembley during the Carl Froch versus George Groves fight. At the press conference a few days before I got into a lift with the aforementioned Mr Buffer and he asked my what floor he needed for a certain room in his unmistakable voice. Just for a second I did think about asking him to do a quick “Let’s Get Ready To Rumble” for me. But I thought better of it and remained cool.

During the day the train service between where I live in Princes Risborough and Aylesbury is provided by a small single carriage old style diesel. I have used this service a few times in the past and thought nothing of it. However a friend of mine called George Thomas is really in to his trains. He volunteers on a steam railway in Somerset and will go out and see train’s when they make unusual or special journey’s, if he can.

He informed me that this train on my local service was about to be retired soon. And as it was one of the last one’s in the country still running. He wanted to come and take a trip on it. So as he mentioned combining it with having a couple of pints of beer. I said I would go with him.

When I met him at the station I very quickly got the impression that he was not the only one keen to witness this relic in action before it is put out to graze. Previously when I have made this journey there were only about five people on the train. This time it was nearly full and two thirds of the passengers had cameras and notebooks. And before boarding the train they were all taking plenty of pictures. It was actually quiet nice taking this trip. I enjoyed the enthusiasm and excitement of the new commuters, even if I have to admit that some of the conversations they were having about our mode of transport went right over my head.

When we got to Aylesbury we went and had a few drinks in the Kings Head. Which is a lovely old and very traditional pub right in the centre of town. In fact I believe it to be the oldest drinking venue there. It is claimed that Oliver Cromwell stayed there around the time of the Civil War. Which if you know your history means it must have been there for a while. I am a big supporter of local brewery’s. So while we were there I enjoyed a couple of award winning pints of ale from The Chiltern Brewery. Which tasted great and were very refreshing, for the record.

We then got the same train back. George took some more pictures and tried to explain to me how it worked. As at one point we got held up at a station as the brakes stuck on, so the driver was revving the engine in neutral to try to charge them up to release them, apparently. This did work eventually and we did get back to Risborough in the end.

Having one more pint of local produce this time a pint from the Rebellion Brewery in Marlow in The Bird In Hand. That is the nearest pub to the station as George had to get back there and hop on a much newer train to get home. It was a fun couple of hours seeing a trip I have made quite a lot over the years through someone else’s eyes and from a different perspective.

It has been a really good season for my football team Tottenham Hotspur. Slightly disappointingly the other Friday we had the chance to cut Chelsea’s lead at the top of the Premier League to one point but we got beaten away by West Ham United. Even if we had won that game it would have been an impossible task overtaking them. And they have now won the league.

The amount of rubbish talked about Spurs during and after that game was unbelievable. That was the first game we had lost in ten, we had won all of our previous nine games in a row our best run since 1965. We have the best goal difference in the league and we have conceded the fewest goals. We have been without all our major players for spells during this season. We are going to qualify for the Champions League for the second year in a row. We will finish above Arsenal for the first time in over twenty years.

We were out fought by West Ham, they got a bit of luck with their goal and deserved to win. We lost a game. No team can win every game. So to clear a couple of things up for all those people criticising us. We are a top team already with great players. The way we have played and the points we have earned proves this. A good winning run coming to an end does not make us bottlers, by any stretch of anyone’s imagination.

Not only that but tomorrow we say an emotional farewell to White Hart Lane. As we head to Wembley Stadium for a year. Before we return home to our amazing new stadium. Which is right next door to the old one. It is an exciting time to be a fan of this club.This is just the start of things, I think, not the end. Which is a ridiculous conclusion to draw from seeing a decent team just lose a London Derby away.

Last night I finally got round to seeing the current David Baddiel Stand Up Show “My Family not the Sitcom”. I had been hearing great things about it for ages. It is on at the Playhouse Theatre in London for the next three weeks. I have followed his career from The Mary Whitehouse Experience through to Fantasy Football League with Frank Skinner and beyond. But this was the first time that I had seen him live.

The show and him were both brilliant. It is very personal and most importantly very funny. He is an excellent performer and creates a great atmosphere within the room. I had a great seat in the fourth row, so got to watch him work from very close quarters.

As you would expect from a clever and intelligent man it is brilliantly thought out. It very subtly and nicely links the modern day with the past and shows how generations of the same family can be very different and yet very alike. It starts and ends with good use of Twitter. I have recently started following him on there and needless to say, he is hilarious.

He tackles some sensitive issues in it but always with dignity and humour. I sometimes think that laughter is an under rated tool, which can actually help us deal with so many difficult and unpleasant situations in life. I spent the entire ninety minute show laughing out loud. Another worthwhile night in a theatre being entertained by a great comic.

I am still really enjoying working and spending a lot of time in Central London. You never know who you are going to see. I missed seeing Theresa May at the BBC a couple of weeks ago. I walked past her waiting car and police escort that was parked just outside the entrance as I was heading in to work. I did see Boris Johnson’s sister Rachel walk past, she must have left just before the current Leader of the Conservative Party.

I also bumped in to Clive Anderson in reception a few days later. Then on a train home from London I found myself sitting a couple of seats along from the Strictly Come Dancing star Brendan Cole. Although I do see him around quite often, as he lives near me. I have been working with the fantastic Kathy Clugston recently. As well as being a brilliant news reader. She was also the Posh Radio 4 Lady on the Scott Mills show on Radio One.

So I said after my Birthday party last December that I enjoyed doing a little bit of comedy at it and wanted to return to stand up comedy again. Well I am going to make this happen over the summer. I have signed up to appear at a fantastic event, which will feature a lot of top quality comedians.

It is going to be so much fun and I really can’t wait for it to happen. I will be returning to where my comedy career started and working with a lot of very funny and familiar faces. I will let you know all the details and tell you where you can buy tickets soon. It is going to be brilliant!

Tonight I am heading up to London to help celebrate my mate’s brother’s thirtieth birthday. I am not saying me and my friend have known each other for a long time but I think I first met his brother when he was around eight. He was a lot shorter then than he is now. He towers above me.

It is going to be a cool night, we are going to a classy bar near London Bridge. I am just hoping that I am not the oldest there. I will let you know how I got on next time we speak.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil.

The Climb

September 27, 2014 Neil

Hello again, I hope all is well with you. And that you have had a very good couple of weeks.I have had yet again another busy fortnight. Last Saturday I managed to combine catching up with my mate, his wife and his son, with visiting a big charity car event in the town where I live. The Kop Hill Climb actually started as quite a serious motor racing event in 1910. When competitors would race up what was then a dirt track up the Chiltern Hills, to try to record the fastest time and become the winner. The event was then stopped in 1925. Before being revived in its current form in 2009. It is now a great family fun event that last year raised fifty thousand pounds for local charities.

There are static displays to enjoy from ancient classic cars right up to modern super cars, and everything in between. So there really is something for everyone. Then you still have the excitement of watching all these different vehicles try to race up the old hill. Plus there are lots of other attractions to enjoy like the beer tent, fairground rides and the frightening Wall of Death. Which is a motorcycle display show. That was both terrifying and amazing in equal measure. The people who perform it are crazy but if you get the chance it is well worth seeing. So I had a really nice time catching up with my friend and his family. While enjoying what was on offer from this fantastic local event. Now I am not a massive car fan but it did make me decide that if I ever win the lotto. I am going to buy an exact replica of the General Lee from The Dukes of Hazard to drive around in.

I am still doing quite a bit of work at Wembley Stadium, which is brilliant. One of the things I like about working there is the random people you can bump into at any time. The other week ahead of George Groves latest fight, which took place at the SSE Arena in Wembley. They held the weigh in for it at the Stadium. So there were lots of people in the building from the world of boxing. After the event had finished I found myself sharing a lift with the legend that is Michael Buffer. If you are not familiar with the name you would recognise his voice. He is the best and most sought after ring announcer in the business.

He basically coined the phrase “Let’s Get Ready Rumble” which is actually his registered trade mark in America. He is rumoured to be worth around $440 Million Dollars and judging by the stylish fitted suit he was wearing. I could certainly believe that. He has the greatest announcing voice and has graced so many great boxing occasion’s over the years. In fact even just having a very brief chat to him while we were in the lift I got to appreciate just how cool and unique his voice is. I can really see why it earns him the big bucks.

I do have a tendency to mess about and have a laugh whenever I get the chance. Specially when I am out and relaxing with my mates. I was out for a few drinks with a friend the other weekend. We had gone to a local pub to watch a covers band. At one point during the evening we were standing on the dance floor to get a better look at the group that were performing. At which point a group of girls came over and asked if I could take a picture of them. I deliberately pretended to misunderstand and acted like I thought they wanted to take a picture of me. They did correct me and I did take a couple of pictures for them. But my jokey actions must have convinced them at least a little bit. That if I thought they wanted a picture, may be I was someone of interest or someone who might be famous. That possibly they just did not recognise. So they did actually take a couple of pictures of me posing with them. They are probably going to be quite disappointed when they show them to their friends. And no-one recognises me. But as ever the important thing is it amused me and made me laugh.

Last Wednesday I went to the BBC Radio Theatre in London to see the first programme in a new series of the excellent Radio 4 Extra topical news show “Newsjack” being recorded. This is a show which I have had material on in the past. And that I have been to see before. I always enjoy going to the radio theatre because it is based at New Broadcasting House. So while you are waiting to go in to the theatre, you wait in the Media Cafe there. Which actually overlooks the main newsroom. So you can see all the journalists working hard on new stories. You can also clearly see the Weather studio. And you can see in to the back of the BBC News 24 Studio. You are basically looking through that bit of glass. That the Queen arrived behind during the live news show, that was on when she visited the building. If you have ever seen that clip you will know exactly where I mean.

The recording itself was great. It is the second series that Romesh Ranganathan has hosted. Since he has become the focal point they have tweaked the format of the show very slightly, to fit in with his style of comedy. But it all works really well and still gives them the same platform for some great topical jokes and sketches. It was a very funny show. As you will have heard if you caught it on the radio. The show goes out at 10:30pm every Thursday night for the next six weeks on Radio 4 Extra. I will once again be doing some writing for this series. So do listen out at the end of the show to see if my name is mentioned as one of the contributors to that episode. It really is a lot of fun to be involved with. And it was great to be there in the theatre to see the finished article produced in person.

I was actually back at the BBC Radio Theatre the following night. This time to watch a recording of the brilliant The Now Show. The BBC Media Cafe is quickly becoming like my second home. They do have a few recognisable items and props placed in and around the room. For example there is a copy of the Tardis in one corner and a seemingly new addition of one of those spinning red chairs from the voice. I would like to believe it was the one that Kylie Minogue used. You can also get a nice cup of tea in there or something a little bit stronger, if you wish to. I didn’t spot anyone I recognised while I was in there this week but previously I have spotted Dan Snow having a coffee. While we were waiting for the recording to start the production crew came round with a form giving us chance to get involved. And write a comedy question that they might possibly use at the end of the show. Needless to say I made sure I submitted one myself.

The Now Show recording was absolutely brilliant. I have for many years been a huge fan of the comedy masters that are Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis. From when they used to write for and work with Jasper Carrot. Through to the Mary Whitehouse Experience and pretty much everything either of them have been involved with. I saw their touring stage show in Yeovil around eight years ago, and that was hilarious to. So as the main writers and performers of the programme from the second they walked out to warm up the audience. We instantly knew we were in safe hands and in for a very entertaining evening. They were joined for this episode by the ridiculously talented Pippa Evans who must have played at least twenty different parts, all with different accents. It also featured the regular team member that is the tiny Jon Holmes. The guest performers for this week’s offering were Sarah Pascoe and Grace Petrie, who provided the musical comedy element.

The joke writing and comedy performances were just sensational. This is a fast paced topical weekly show. So everything must be new, up to date and hit the mark with what is happening in the country and in the world. While still being hilariously funny. Which is something that they managed effortlessly for this week’s show. The cast were so good and right on top of their game. While somehow being at the same time so seemingly relaxed and chilled. They were all actually enjoying a beer during the recording. And to give you some idea of just how good and professional they were. At the end of a forty minute radio show recording. There were only three re-takes required. In my radio days sometimes it has taken me five minutes to record a one minute piece of speech. And to top off a great evening at the end of the show, they did read out the question that I had submitted. Which I have to admit did get a nice big laugh from the audience. The Now Show is on Radio 4 Friday’s at 6:30pm.

Do you remember a while ago now I told you about when me and my sister visited Crocodiles of the World the Crocodile Conversation and Education Centre in Oxfordshire. During our visit they were doing some filming there for a BBC documentary. Well it turns out that programme is called Great Animal Moves. And the series is currently being shown on BBC 2. In last week’s show one of the keepers was talking about some of the residents. When the camera pans around and clearly shows me and my sister looking into one of the enclosures. So we already have one nice little cameo under our belts. But while we were there we also witnessed a feeding demonstration. Which was again all filmed by the television crew. So I am wondering if that will make it in at some point. I hope it does because at the end of the display I asked a question. Which of course if it is included will give me some more screen time. Keep an eye out for it and why not see if you can spot me at any point. Think of it as a kind of TV version of Where’s Wally? Although I was not wearing a red and white striped jumper but with hindsight I now wish I had warn one on the day. That would have been a lot funnier.

Tomorrow I am going to be working behind the scenes at Wembley Stadium for the NFL International Series Match between the Miami Dolphins and the Oakland Raiders. I was at the first match they had there last year and it was fantastic. So it is going to be lots of fun. The whole razzamatazz of the occasion is sensational and spectacular from the build up, the pre game show right through to the action itself. The atmosphere is unreal. Last year I just happened to be standing in the tunnel area as the two teams ran out and the noise was deafening. So as you can imagine I am really looking forward to it.

This coming Tuesday I am looking forward to going to the Elstree Studios to watch an episode of Room 101 being recorded. The show is now hosted my Frank Skinner who is a comedy hero of mine. Who I have never seen live before so as you can imagine I am quite excited about that. Plus I love the show and they also have some really good and interesting guests on. I will tell you what it was like when we speak next.

Neil Quigley TV Radio & Live — Neil Quigley TV, Radio & Live

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil.

Neil Quigley Presenter