# Hugh Porter dismissed



## claver58 (4 Mar 2013)

Cycling fans were told he was leaving the Beeb to explore other paths.
In fact the Beeb gave him the push without any warning. Hugh has been the voice of cycling for 30 years or so. May not to be everyone's liking (I liked him though) but he knew the sport.
Thank you BBC for being your usual subtle organisation!


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## claver58 (4 Mar 2013)

Story is here
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ot...fuddled-Auntie-is-no-company-for-old-men.html


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## ColinJ (4 Mar 2013)

Hmm ... I had a feeling that it might be something like that - not a nice way of doing it! 

I think a similar thing probably happened with David Duffield on Eurosport. He just seemed to disappear. I know a lot of people got irritated by him but I thought he was a bit of a character and was a bit sad when we went.


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## mickle (4 Mar 2013)

I have a Los Angeles Olympics postcard signed by Porter. I wonder if its value has gone up or down after today's news.


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## albion (4 Mar 2013)

The Beeb really shoved him into the wrong commentary.

He really brought enthusiasm but needed a slower pace to keep up.
I hope he somehow keeps himself very busy so as to 'stay young'.


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## zizou (5 Mar 2013)

He was still pretty good for track racing but on the road he wasnt great and at times awful (mens road race in the olympics is the standout - which can partly be explained by them not having the race data needed - but he was also poor at the world champs too). Just alot of mistakes, not just in not spotting tactics or developments in the race but he seemed to be unable to identify riders apart from the Brits and a couple of big names like Contador.


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## srw (5 Mar 2013)

That's the usual Telegraph bash-the-beeb nonsense. The report is absolutely clear - it was handled professionally and with sensitivity by the BBC.

And it's not before time. Porter was hopeless.


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## rich p (5 Mar 2013)

Thank God they've dumped him. He was becoming an embarrassment. 2 employers going to his house to tell him seems pretty considerate to me.
Now we just need ITV (or whoever employs them) to dump Liggett and Sherwen.


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## dellzeqq (5 Mar 2013)

let's be clear. He was awful. Absolutely awful. Set aside the road race nonsense, he was way off the pace with track cycling. The great mystery is how he survived for so long.

Let's hope that this is the beginning of a clear-out. Jill Douglas is dreadful.


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## Crackle (5 Mar 2013)

I liked his enthusiasm and his voice but he quite often got it wrong, increasingly so. I don't like the way this was done though, he deserved much better.


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## albion (5 Mar 2013)

Boardman gets a heck of a lot wrong.

He is very rote.


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## deptfordmarmoset (5 Mar 2013)

albion said:


> Boardman gets a heck of a lot wrong.
> 
> He is very rote.


CB knows quite a lot about cycling and I'd keep him, if only for his reasoned advocacy of cycling amongst us mortals. I think Simon Brotherton was the new commentator on the BBC's coverage of the Minsk tracks. He did quite well for a first outing, I thought.


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## Noodley (5 Mar 2013)

Lots of capable new commentators/pundits out there. Porter must have seen it coming (although with his ability to miss things I may be wrong!), and he'll still make a good enough living I'm sure. I'm fairly sure he'll still be shouting utter bilge at the next Revolution series - the riders in the elimination race refuse to believe him when he shouts their number just because he's so dottery.


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## oldroadman (6 Mar 2013)

Perhaps we should be a bit more positive? HP has in the past done a good job, but recently the cliche count has been rising, and some of the work not at his former level. Simon Brotherton knows his stuff, was engaging during the Minsk championships, and it seemed to me got the best from Chris Boardman. Altogether a well delivered package. Whoever said get rid of Jill Douglas is plain wrong, she does a good job as she is asked in getting to riders with a light touch. I guess the last of HP has been heard on the Beeb, and I thought the Telegraph article a disgrace, if only for the veiled attack on Brotherton, who showed good knowledge and was able to spot riders well in the bunch races.
Time moves on, and if the newer comentators don't get opportunity, they may move on to other things, leaving the "anciens" spouting nonsense eventually - dear old David Duffield being a prize example. Eurosport is much improved by the Harmon/Kelly combination, and Kirby/Backstedt/Lloyd are pretty good too.


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## pawl (8 Mar 2013)

Sorry to hear the BBC have dropped Hugh.BBC being agiest again?.


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## snorri (8 Mar 2013)

Never heard of him , what have I missed?


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## Dayvo (8 Mar 2013)

Love 'im or hate 'im!


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gl1pZMP2tsM


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## TVC (8 Mar 2013)

No!!!! How can I play the Hugh Porter drinking game any more....

"The drone of the little Derny bike"
"Bit and Bit"
"The well of the track"
and of course the mangling of any Asian sounding name


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## Dayvo (8 Mar 2013)

And he wasn't just a commentator, either.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Porter


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## PpPete (8 Mar 2013)

His commentary on the track was OK, but he seemed to have feck-all idea of what was going on in the Olympic RR .


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## brodiej (8 Mar 2013)

pawl said:


> Sorry to hear the BBC have dropped Hugh.BBC being agiest again?.


 
Possibly - it depends who they replace him with.

I was never a great fan of his commentary but he was OK and at least knew his stuff.

I can't think of who they'll bring in - if it's someone articulate with a knowledge of cycling I won't mind.

I think they're really ageist when they front programmes with young beautiful people for no reason. Commentators are different as you can't see them and the younger ones are often closer to the current racing scene so may offer more up to date insights


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## laurence (8 Mar 2013)

PpPete said:


> His commentary on the track was OK, but he seemed to have feck-all idea of what was going on in the Olympic RR .


 
exactly... he was dreadful for road races. he was losing it for track too. not sorry to see him go.


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## Leaway2 (8 Mar 2013)

brodiej said:


> Possibly - it depends who they replace him with.


 

_"Porter_, 73, who has been the Beeb's “voice of cycling” for nearly 30 years, is to be replaced by Simon Brotherton, who is 43."


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## Noodley (8 Mar 2013)

Oh look, a thread started on Monday in Track Cycling:
http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/hugh-porter-dismissed.125469/#post-2347532

Edit by Mod: Threads merged, so there might be some overlap of comments.


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## deptfordmarmoset (8 Mar 2013)

I like a nice drop of porter....


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## Maz (8 Mar 2013)

snorri said:


> Never heard of him , what have I missed?


 I'm with you. I saw the first post and thought maybe he was a newsreader or something.


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## accountantpete (8 Mar 2013)

Bring back David Duffield.


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## GlasgowGaryH (8 Mar 2013)

accountantpete said:


> Bring back David Duffield.


+1 I gave up watching the cycling on Eurosport when he left. His stories use to brighten up the dullest race


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## ColinJ (8 Mar 2013)

Fokker said:


> +1 I gave up watching the cycling on Eurosport when he left. His stories use to brighten up the dullest race


Some of the races don't actually _need_ brightening up! Especially just when the action kicks off ...


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## brodiej (8 Mar 2013)

ColinJ said:


> Some of the races don't actually _need_ brightening up! Especially just when the action kicks off ...


 
Too right.

David Duffield commentating on track riding is a nightmare thought.

Imagine him describing a sprint. By the time he'd finished telling us the wine he'd had for dinner the night before and the local cheeses, the race would have been over, the medals awarded and the crowd all gone home


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## accountantpete (8 Mar 2013)

brodiej said:


> Too right.
> 
> David Duffield commentating on track riding is a nightmare thought.
> 
> Imagine him describing a sprint. By the time he'd finished telling us the wine he'd had for dinner the night before and the local cheeses, the race would have been over, the medals awarded and the crowd all gone home


 
Yes - but lets face 90% of road races are downright boring until you get to the final 10km and DD did keep you entertained until that point.

I admit that when the 10km was reached then DD carried on the same style which did annoy some people.


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## ColinJ (8 Mar 2013)

brodiej said:


> Too right.
> 
> David Duffield commentating on track riding is a nightmare thought.
> 
> Imagine him describing a sprint. By the time he'd finished telling us the wine he'd had for dinner the night before and the local cheeses, the race would have been over, the medals awarded and the crowd all gone home


DD's cheese and wine report!


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## thom (8 Mar 2013)

oldroadman said:


> Perhaps we should be a bit more positive?
> ...
> Eurosport is much improved by the Harmon/Kelly combination, and Kirby/Backstedt/Lloyd are pretty good too.


I agree with pretty much all of this !
It's quite easy to take pot shots - HP was ripe for retirement yes but he did well for the BBC and cycling in years past when the public interest was much lower. There's no need to project derision on him at this point - Liggett irks me much more.
Simon Brotherton should be a good replacement and I hope HP turns up now and then in some form, if not as a commentator. I hope ITV realise similarly that it is time to move forward.


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## dellzeqq (9 Mar 2013)

Kelly knows his stuff (nobody more so on Paris Nice) but he is kind of dull. If the intention is to make the event attractive to non-enthusiasts, then you need someone with him with a bit of zip.


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## rich p (9 Mar 2013)

David Harmon manages to keep me interested in a long stage race. He throws in a bit of local colour, architecture and cycling chat and still manages to identify the riders pretty well. Hugh Porter and the last years of David Duffield were notably poor at rider recognition, team recognition and tactics. Time moves on.
Kelly, despite his intimate knowledge, just doesn't quite cut it - Backstedt shows him up in that role.


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## dellzeqq (9 Mar 2013)

cycling needs AC Jimbo! Does he ride a bike?

http://www.thescore.ie/james-richardson-tips-799912-Feb2013/

the thing is this. Sports writing is at an all-time high. Open any paper, including the ones you have to disinfect first, and there's a world of insight, humour and literary talent. And yet...sports coverage on TV is really dull (I except Jonathan Pierce from this). Why? Television outstrips The Street of Shame in so many ways, but the sad tale of Colin Murray (and the sadder tale of those two sex pests on Sky) suggests that the people who run sport on TV are pretty cowardly.


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## Tomba (9 Mar 2013)

Brotherton sounds like a decent replacement. Just hope they don't give any work to Ant McCrossan, voice like dragging your nails down a black board.


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## Briancampbell (12 Apr 2013)

claver58 said:


> Cycling fans were told he was leaving the Beeb to explore other paths.
> In fact the Beeb gave him the push without any warning. Hugh has been the voice of cycling for 30 years or so. May not to be everyone's liking (I liked him though) but he knew the sport.
> Thank you BBC for being your usual subtle organisation!


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## Briancampbell (12 Apr 2013)

I heard him commentate at the finish in Wells on the Tour of Britain 2 years ago. he did a superb job. Very confusing as on the highlights that night he seemed to be commentating live on the TV as well. Presumably he was commentating to the final edit. I think he, like a few others tend to get a little confused, get names wrong etc. etc. all it takes is a young guy beside him to keep him on track.


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