Sunday 21st March - talkSPORT

Rugby Union: LV= Cup Final
Northampton Saints v Gloucester - Russell Hargreaves

Cricket: Second Test Match
Bangladesh v England - Jack Bannister













A final word on talkSPORT's Alan Brazil and his yearly exploits at the Cheltenham Festival from his mate Charlie Sale of the Daily Mail:


Trust Alan! If I was a betting man I'd have stuck a fiver on Ian Danter getting the call to cover for Al on this morning's Breakfast Show. Mind you I doubt the odds on offer would have been worth my while.

UCI World Track Cycling Championships

BBC R5LSX - Simon Brotherton and Graeme Obree. Scrolling Text says it's Peter Slater as host, but it doesn't sound like him.

talkSPORT


Saturday 27th March

Horse Racing: Dubai World Cup
Meydan Racecourse - Rupert Bell (commentary)


Sunday 28th March

Rugby Union: Guinness Premiership
London Irish v Sale Sharks - Elliot Cook

Formula 1: Australian Grand Prix
Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit - Maurice Hamilton

I see BBC Radio have won commentary rights to the Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race back from LBC, who held exclusive rights to it for five years, something that had escaped my attention until I saw a TV trailer for the BBC coverage of the race.

The race will be broadcast live on BBC Five Live Sports Extra this weekend - unsurprising given that it takes place at 4pm on Saturday. I think they always used to put it on Five Live before they lost the rights but with it taking place at that time I can see why they've stuck it on Sports Extra, as doing commentary of it on Five Live would drive away listeners wanting to follow the football.

Anyone know when the deal changed and if LBC will still be covering the race in any form?



Maurice Hamilton, once Five Live's F1 commentator, turned up as a guest on talkSPORT's Sports Breakfast this morning having covered the Australian Grand Prix for that station on Sunday.

I have no idea if this was a one-off or if he's due to be their regular F1 reporter, but that he is described as "talkSPORT's F1 correspondent" on the station's online Media Player suggests the latter.

I know James Allen, formerly ITV's F1 commentator, appears on talkSPORT a fair bit but isn't available to report on Grand Prixs for them, so Hamilton (who covers F1 for the Observer meaning he is at the races) would be a good call rather than just off-tubing it.

Out of interest, are Five Live no longer using Maurice on their F1 coverage?

He used to summarise didn't he but they got Anthony Davidson in last year instead. Maurice was still a bit part of their coverage but has obviously been either phased out by 5 Live or taken the decision to report for Talk Sport instead.



On Good Friday btw Five Live have a 2-5 programme which was due to do commentary on Fulham v Wigan, but the match has been pushed back to Sunday due to the home sides Europa League involvement. So instead they'll be doing Rugby League commentary on St Helens v Wigan.

I think Maurice Hamilton was Five Live's main commentator for a few years, after Jonathan Legard had left their F1 coverage to concentrate on football reporting, with Ian Phillips alongside him as summariser at the time.

This changed a few years back when their F1 coverage was given a younger feel, with David Croft being brought in as commentator (seeing Maurice shifted to summariser with Phillips dropped entirely) and Holly Samos as pitlane reporter.

It was only last season that he was dropped in favour of Davidson, wasn't it? Are Croft/Davidson still their commentary team this season?

What might be the case is that Maurice is still being used by Five Live as a pundit on any weeknight F1 discussion programmes they do, but with them not using him as part on their live Grand Prix coverage despite him being on-site, it has allowed his ex-boss Moz Dee the opportunity to call on him to provide updates for talkSPORT.

If he is working for both stations, I don't think this is viewed as a big issue these days. Relations between Five Live and talkSPORT have never been more cordial seemingly, as it's not unusual for sports broadcasters to turn up on one station one day then the other the next. Just the other week Ray Parlour appeared on both Matchday Live and Five Live Sport during the same Saturday!

*Nods*

156th University Boat Race

BBC Radio Five Live Sonja McLaughlin
BBC Sports Extra Nick Mullins, Martin Cross and Barnie Williams (commentary)

Sunday 4th April - talkSPORT

Rugby Union: Guinness Premiership
London Wasps v London Irish - Russell Hargreaves

Formula 1: Malaysian Grand Prix
Sepang International Circuit - Graham Courtney

talkSPORT have launched a new Formula 1 programme - well, to be more exact a half hour segment during Sunday night show The Sports Bar - which I believe officially begins tonight between 8-8.30pm. It's called The LG Grand Prix Show.

It's co-hosted by the signing I never thought I'd see talkSPORT make - Eddie Irvine - who will be alongside usual presenter Andy Goldstein.

Here are the details about the new show (thanks to 4-4-2 for flagging this up in the talkSPORT Chat thread): http://www.autosport.com/news/grapevine.php/id/82563

Thursday 8th April to Sunday 11th April - talkSPORT

Golf: The Masters
Augusta National Golf Club - Bob Bubka

Horse Racing: The Grand National Meeting
Aintree Racecourse - Rupert Bell and Paddy Power


Additionally, I imagine Talking Rugby may supply talkSPORT with a reporter at the Heineken Cup quarter final between Munster and Northampton on Saturday and at at least one of Sunday's quarter finals in the Challenge Cup.

Talking Rugby aren't at any Heineken Cup matches this weekend. On Saturday, they'll be at Harlequins v Leeds in the Guinness Premiership, and on Sunday, they'll be at Wasps v Gloucester in the European Challenge Cup. Russell Hargreaves at both.

5 Live/Sports Extra US Masters Golf

Commentators Iain Carter, Alistair Bruce-Ball, Andrew Cotter & John Murray
Summarisers Andrew Magee & Jay Townsend

Sale V Saracens (Guinness Premiership RU) - Gareth Jones for R5L

Racing: Grand National

BBC Radio Five Live
Host Mark Pougatch
Reporters Cornelius Lysaght, Luke hHarvey, Kevin Day, Rob Nothman
Commentators: John Hunt, Matt Jones, Malcolm Tomlinson, Matt Jones, Gareth O'Brien

BBC Radio Merseyside Alan Jackson (host) and Mike Hughes
Talk Sport Rupert Bell

Course Commentators Richard Hoiles, Stewart Machin and Mark Johnson

I hope that you were luckier than I was. Four bets, one 3rd (one 6th).


Cricket

BBC Radio Five Live
Essex v Hampshire Steve may

BBC London 94.9
Derbyshire v Surrey Mark Church (on-line commentary)
Worcestershire v Middlesex Andy Rowley (on-line commentary)

BBC WM
Warwickshire v Yorkshire Mike Taylor

Munster V Northampton Saints (Heineken Cup RU)

R5LSX - Nick Mullins (0-40) Alistair Eykyn (40-80) and Keith Wood

Biarritz Olympique V Ospreys (Heineken Cup RU)

BBC Radio Wales - Gareth Charles and Adrian Hadley (AM / Online / SW FM 2nd half only)
BBC Radio Cymru - Huw Llewellyn Davis and Huw Harris (commentary, Online only during Grand National commentary)

Anybody know anything about Steve May. I'm sure he's been on Saturday afternoon sports shows since I was a kid 30 plus years ago, but I can't say I've ever seen a picture of him or know anything about him.
Another one of radio's unsung heroes?

Judging by that, taking an educated guess it was probably Alistair Eykyn reporting on the first half of that game for BBC Radio Five Live, with Nick Mullins reporting on the second half for them.

Today's other rugby reporters for Five Live:

Heineken Cup Quarter-Final
Biarritz v Ospreys - Gareth Charles (due to his Radio Wales commitments, I suspect he only provided a preview, half-time and full-time report)

Guinness Premiership
Harlequins v Leeds - Ed Marriage

Rugby League: Super League
Harlequins RL v St Helens - George Riley



Steve is a long-standing sports newsreader on BBC Radio 4's Today programme. As well as being a Five Live reporter, he also reports on games for BBC TV's Final Score.

I could be wrong, but I recall hearing that he is from the East Midlands (which explains why he often covers games played in the Midlands).

Newcastle Falcons V Cardiff Blues

BBC Newcastle - Kevin Williams and Ian Smith (Online)
BBC Radio Wales - Nick Webb (updates)

Edward Bevan updating Radio Wales listeners to Glamorgan V Sussex in the LV= Div 2 game

Bristol V Bedford (RFU Championship)

BBC Bristol / Somerset - Ed Hadwin hosting with commentary from Andy Champion and Mike Rafter (1548MW / DAB / Online)

Sunday 18th April - talkSPORT

The Jeremy Kyle Show with Jeremy and Chris Davies, followed by Football First on Sunday with Ian Danter, Steve Lomas and Ray Houghton

Rugby Union: Guinness Premiership
London Irish v Leeds Carnegie - Russell Hargreaves

Formula One: Chinese Grand Prix
Shanghai International Circuit - Graham Courtney


I've yet to hear reports from the World Snooker Championship on talkSPORT, which is unusual as for as long as I can remember they have taken updates from an agency reporter at the Crucible. Perhaps they'll start taking reports from tomorrow onwards.

Bath V Northampton Saints (Guinness Premiership RU)

BBC Bristol / Somerset - Geoff Twentymann hosting with commentary from Andy Champion and Peter Short (94.9FM / 95.5FM / 104.6FM / DAB)

Newport-Gwent Dragons V Blues

BBC Radio Wales - Nick Webb and Marc Stcherbina (SE FM / Digital TV/Radio)
Real Radio South Wales - Hamish Stuart

Munster V Ospreys

BBC Radio Cymru - Eleri Sion hosting from Llandaff with commentary form Cennydd Davis and Emyr Lewis

London Wasps V Bath

BBC Bristol / Somerset - Geoff Twentymann hosting with commentary from Andrew Sheridan and Mike Tremlitt (all FM frequencies / DAB / Online)
BBC Radio Five Live - Alistair Eykyn

5 Live The London Marathon

Presenter John Inverdale
Commentators Vassos Alexander (Mens Race), Ed Harry (Womens Race)
Summariser Charlie Spedding
Reporters Rachel Burden, Alison Curbishley, Sonja McLaughlin, George Riley & Helen Skelton