It may have been foul outside but rain did not stop play at Theatre Royal Brighton when Peter Baxter, former producer of TMS, joined forces with eccentric commentator Henry Blofeld for an evening of hilarious anecdotes.
And what an ideal pairing they turned out to be – Blowers, a vocally flamboyant jester, counterbalanced by the droll wit of Baxter, who proved to be much more than a mere stooge.
Their reminiscences paid homage to such luminaries as John Arlott, Martin Jenkins and, inevitably, Brian Johnson (Jonners), who was responsible for ending the stuffiness of cricket commentaries and bringing in a sense of fun.
Baxter took the opportunity to dispel the myth that Jonners actually spoke the immortal phrase involving Michael Holding and Peter Willey. Jonners was the source of many tales, from his first outside broadcast standing on the seat of a ladies loo through to stories of his overseas jaunts – both too scurrilous to detail here.
To demonstrate the BBC’s lack of humour, Blowers told a wonderful story about his appearance on Ready Steady Cook and how his abbreviation of Ainsley Harriott’s first name had to be cut from the recording.
Tale after tale had the audience rocking with non-stop laughter.
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