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Bill Beaumont: career memories and highlights

My major sporting passion as a young lad was as a Blackburn Rovers supporter. My next door neighbour took me at the age of six to my first game. I badgered him because he was a season ticket holder at Rovers to take me, and he did do and ever since then I've always been a passionate Blackburn Rovers supporter. My first sporting memory would be the 1960 FA Cup final when Blackburn got beaten three - nil by Wolves and a guy called Dave Whelan, who went on to gain fame and fortune in the sports business with JJB Sports, was the full back for Rovers and broke his leg in the final. I didn't go to the game but I remember watching it on TV wearing my Blackburn shirt and being devastated when we lost.

Cricket was another major love. My first sporting memory in cricket was going to the 1961 Test at Old Trafford for one day when England played Australia. England got beaten and Ted Dexter got ninety something and Richie Benaud bowled them out in the second innings and was the man of the match.

Rugby obviously then became more important in my life and I came down to Twickenham as I was playing in a Colleges game (North Colleges were playing in London) and watched I think it was the 1970 England v Ireland game. Tony O'Reilly came out of retirement to play in that game but England won the game kicking a few goals. That was the first time I had been to Twickenham. It was somewhere I never thought I was ever going to play, you never think that that's going to happen, it was just somewhere nice to come and I was just there to enjoy it. It was nothing like it is now, it was far more relaxed. I wouldn't say you could get tickets on the gate but you could almost do that.

In terms of career highlights beating the All Blacks in November 1979 in Otley as captain of the North of England side was certainly one. That was a great team to be associated with and we beat them easily; four tries to one. It was fantastic and something you don't forget. The following season winning the Grand Slam, the first time England had won the Grand Slam in twenty-three years, again was something I enjoyed being associated with. Other highlights were Captaining the Lions to South Africa later in 1980, going on two Lions tours but then retiring at twenty-nine. I didn't expect to retire, I thought I was going to carry on playing and be the first guy to captain two Lions Tours. I was favourite to have done so but that wasn't to be, though I was proud that I won that first Test I ever played for the Lions and the last Test I ever played for the Lions; proud I won those two games though lost all the others in-between!

When I played for England, Wales were the best team we played against by a mile. They had great players; Gerald Davies, JJ Williams, the likes of JPR Williams, Gareth Edwards, the best player I ever played against; he was so good, you just couldn't get anywhere near him. Lots of great players around then, Ireland would have Mike Gibson in the centre and Willie John McBride who I played my debut against for England in 1975; All great players.

After Rugby I was a team captain of a Question of Sport for thirteen years, opposite Willie Carson, the late Emlyn Hughes and then Ian Botham. That was fantastic for me to sit alongside the superstars of sport. There were great fun times like when Princess Anne came on the programme. The stories of Emlyn with Princess Anne were all true; he tried to nick her handbag and then tried to scribble an answer down for her and got the spelling all wrong. Just basically happy memories on a regular basis, I really enjoyed it, it was great fun. There was one time when the fire alarm went off when the last picture came up on the picture board. We had to leave the building so me and Ian Botham walked out together out through the crowd and neither of us knew who the person in the picture was so we asked the people in the crowd. They knew so they told us who it was. It was Ian's question so I knew that he would win it but when we went back the producer had switched the photograph. It was good fun but it was competitive, we wanted to do well. The worst thing I used to do was get the sex wrong of the mystery person; I was rubbish at that. One week I thought Bryan Robson was Gillian Gilks. My wife would say 'look at their feet that will tell you if it is a man or a woman'. David Coleman was great to work with too, a real professional; he absolutely loved sport and loved mixing with sports people. And he had a massive, incredible knowledge of sport. Great to work with one of the broadcasting icons; I totally respected the man, he was a great bloke.

Bill Beaumont

Memory added on October 30, 2014

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Bill Beaumont is supporting the Sporting Memories NetworkBill Beaumont is supporting the Sporting Memories Network