always remember his CM Punk entrance https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WO22fVUBelQ

That looks so completely ridiculous with hindsight

I still feel that Nicholson has the capability to have a bit of a renaissance as a PDC player but he seems to have decided that darts punditry is an easier way of making a living.

He's not old he could come conceivably come back but there's not many who fall through the darting trap door and make it back again.

If you're not on Sky or ITVs payroll making money from darts punditry can't be that easy unless he's picking up work abroad or something?

Have been loving the coverage on this and am another one who is a fan of Nicholson's commentary and analysis. Really found his niche here.

He does a darts podcast that I think is fairly popular so perhaps he's getting some money from that if it's sponsored.

The fact of the matter is that he's only earned £6500 in prize money this year so he must have some other means that's tiding him over.

Nicho is also popular on the exhibition circuit I believe.

Thornton shaking his head after 4 darts! This aint gonna last long!

Another blistering performance from Taylor (leaving aside the extraordinary miss at D12 for the nine darter...)

I like the way that Jason Mohammed is steering Taylor through these interviews in rather firmer fashion that Dave Clark does and isn't allowing him to just ramble on to his heart's content as normal.

Or at least he did at the start of the interview

Interesting conversation on the commentary about Wright talking about taking 2 sets of darts up and throwing one set for doubles and one for 'normal' play.

Is there actually anything in the rules about taking up as many darts as you want? Like they said you could have one dart for the top half of the board one for the bottom or anything!

A good line up for later, I'm really enjoying it.

Yeah should be some good stuff tonight, Phil is looking in great form but he often flags on these tournaments where you play multiple times in a day, 2 games tonight might stretch him a bit.

Bit of a struggle for Wade so far.

It is brilliant to see this level of darts on the BBC again.
For the past 20 odd years millions of us have missed out on seeing the best of the best on our TV screens, but tonight we get a chance to do just that.

Cant wait to see Van Gerwin vs Anderson later

I'll still be amazed if even one viewer decides to subscribe to sky on the back of watching this.

DOUBLE..........DOUBLE......

What a match this is....!

Generally have been impressed by the BBC coverage of this, it has had a rough edge or two and Jason Mohammad has been both very good at times in interviews but has also shown that he's probably not been an avid PDC darts follower. Nicholson and Mark Webster have been great and Vassos, Caroline and Dan all good choices (in my opinion).

I'm a fan of top sport being free on tv so that could cloud my judgement, however two things in particular I have found good about this are:
- a bit more time between matches to talk about the matches (lack of commercials and Ray Winstone and others telling us to bet); and
- no walk-on girls (surely a sexist relic of the past, which both darts and F1 should bin)

Nothing wrong with walk on girls, darts has always been non-pc and long may it continue.

The coverage is better than Sky Sports for me, and that I still love.

I just miss the commentary from the Sky team which I enjoy more, but it's still great and overall I prefer the BBC, no commercials are a big plus.

Oh and yes I agree

On the commentary team, it is crying out for Stuart Pyke! But a great addition to the year. On the no commercials, it does make this a bit of a different format too, with two long sessions.

Walk on girls I threw in a bit for fun, but it is good to have a tournament without them, and maybe it would be good to have a tournament with walk-on boys too.

And on the current final - perfect, surely MvG will get his revenge (even if I want Phil to get a major again).

So we've got the MvG v Taylor final that the PDC and the BBC desperately hoped they'd have when the tournament was conceived

Hoping for an MvG win - and one that isn't spoiled by Taylor acting the prick as was the case in the Matchplay final.

Surge from MVG blew Ando away.

So it's Taylor V MVG, Phils gonna need that form he showed last night again!

I like MvG to take it, but the Power looks good it's a close call this time around.

Still fancy Taylor for the win, but whatever happens the BBC have got the timing of this programme woefully wrong. This show will be finished well before 9:30 never mind 10:30.