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ITV4 ToB Coverage

Is anyone else having their coverage ruined by Hugh Porter and Rob Hayles' "commentary"?
Surely being to identify the riders is a basic requirement of a commentator? Hugh knows nothing about road cycling, Rob does but is unable to string a lucid sentence together.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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57 comments

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technojim | 11 years ago
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Don' play with vodka! You'll go blind. I'm drinking shandy and I'm leathered already.

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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I don't know about the highlights as I don't watch ITV4, I watch it live on Eurosport....

Are the highlights not just a rerun of the commentary of the day? Without voice overs

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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There you go Techno, couple of drinks for you.

I have ITV on the TV and Eurosport on the computer. I just heard

Oozkatel Oozkadie and Paplo Oortasun being called out  19

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pjay | 11 years ago
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It looks like they are re-recording parts of the commentary for the highlights programme. They didn't know who had finished second during the live coverage today, was distinctly embarrassing. Lo and behold, in the highlights they did!

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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I hope you mean the battle for 4th and 5th  3

If they didn't know who JTL was then it should be off air right now

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pjay | 11 years ago
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Yes, sorry, the sprint behind JTL and Koenig

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Adey | 11 years ago
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Back to the drinking game.......
Have a drink everytime Hugh says "tapping out the rhythm"
Guarenteed blottoed by the end of the show!
Bless him

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technojim | 11 years ago
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That's a good one, I'll put it on the list. He usually wheels that out whenever there's a shot of someone pedaling.....

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issacforce | 11 years ago
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soory to disapointdarth but never watched x factor anmd never will

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samg123 | 11 years ago
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Who's the new Irish guy today? I quite like him- less of the unbearable excitement of Porter!

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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I was forced to watch ITV today after my Eurosport feed went dead.

SO happy I didn't have to put up with Hugh Porter....Has he been pulled from the show?

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pjay | 11 years ago
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Feeling slightly guilty now... but not too guilty. Hugh has gone and the new Irish guy is excellent.

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technojim | 11 years ago
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Don't feel too guilty, no doubt he'll be back for the worlds. They were on BBC last year, I presume it's the same again. Better stock up on the beers, because everyone's in different kit and there's loads of randoms riding it's going to be even more difficult to tell who's who.

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pjay | 11 years ago
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Please tell me the World's are on Eurosport...

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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Pretty sure they are. BBC are ok, but if they have pulled Porter from the ToB to start the worlds.....I shall NOT be watching it on the beeb

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didds | 11 years ago
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No matter how bad they are they CANNOT be as cringingly awful as Dan Atherton on the Cycle Show thing the other week... after his 728th "well, err, yeah, well, you know" I just gave up. I know these guys are amazing bike riders 1st and not journos, but if they can't string a sentence together on the phone when the producer is setting up the program, don't bloody interview them. Its just... ARGGHHH!

didds

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handlebarcam | 11 years ago
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One thing is for sure: I'm going to humming that glorious little ditty they play over the Tour of Britain graphics before and after each ad break for months to come. Its artistry is in the great tradition of Western classic music, picking up where the Romantic composers of the 18th and 19th centuries left off. I mean, just marvel at its structure and tonal range:

Der-der der-der der-der der-derrrr

Sublime!

I am of, course, being sarcastic. I am not mental. What it is is the answer to the question, posed to a sound engineer the night before the coverage started, "What tune can we use that won't cost us anything in rights payments?"

P.S. I agree completely with the above comments about Hugh Porter. Dreadful. Simply dreadful. Rob Hayles, however, is getting better.

P.P.S. To the positivity police, like issacforce, this is clearly a thread for complaints. What harm is that doing you? Sure, give your counter opinion, but don't accuse people who fail to share your rose-tinted view of the world of having no life. If more people complained, or rather more people listened to the dissenting opinions already being voiced, the world would be in a lot less of a sorry state than it currently is.

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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Nice Technojim, but I'd need a bottle of vodka before watching and then with the rules above finish another 2  19

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technojim | 11 years ago
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The only way to get through it is to turn it into a drinking game. Take a drink when he says:

And the crowd is going BALLISTIC (One spectator is jumping up and down half heartedly on the spot)

He's really amplifying his intentions to the peloton (Someone launched an attack)

Is that Paplo Urtason making a move? (Any Euskatell rider shown on screen)

Look at that fantastic scenery (Any helicopter shot)

Finish your drink every time he mangles the pronunciation of Euskatell Euskadi

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Jon | 11 years ago
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I stumbled across this thread after having winced every time a rider from "Eskadull Eskadee" was mentioned. I thought Liggett was bad with the names but he's got some serious competition here. They should take pride in their work and bother to familiarise themselves with the riders' and team names.

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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For 2 simple reason's. The camera's never showed him AT ALL. The other being he never showed himself at the front of the bunch at all.

The was a mention of a young GB rider from the team being there. But seen as he was never on screen or at the front. How could they know who he was?

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Darthshearer replied to Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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Gkam84 wrote:

For 2 simple reason's. The camera's never showed him AT ALL. The other being he never showed himself at the front of the bunch at all.

The was a mention of a young GB rider from the team being there. But seen as he was never on screen or at the front. How could they know who he was?

So when it came to the highlight programme they couldnt mention him on the graphic they had time to do?

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chrisdstripes | 11 years ago
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Well said Darth.

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Darthshearer | 11 years ago
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Here is another rant.

Today Josh Edmonson came in with the leading bunch. He is a fantastic GB U23 talent set to ride in the worlds team. He is currently 19th on GC.

Does he get a mention? No, does he get a mention when they show the GC riders, No. They show that Downing is down on GC and how Cav is now down and even Wiggins, which is to be expected, BUT nothing about a great ride Josh is doing!

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Darthshearer | 11 years ago
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Isaac, do you watch Xfactor? Whats your thoughts on that?

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Darthshearer | 11 years ago
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We should be greatful for ITV putting it on live I suppose but Hugh is just shocking AND they missed the split in the peloton yesterday in the highlights programme!

Hugh does, or did know his stuff but its time for him to retire, he is the cycling version of Murray Walker.

If he cannot learn the riders names then its time to go, its been on big Sky wankfest by him and its sickening now.

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Comrade | 11 years ago
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Now then....there's the rear of the peleton...now then, what's the problem with the commentary?

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Some Fella | 11 years ago
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I was glad Sky and Cavendish knew where the finish line was in Blackpool today because the director and camera operators didnt seem to.

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phax71 | 11 years ago
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Aw, come on, you love it when Hugh starts shouting the place down ....  1

He's big on the drama anyway.. makes me smile even if often factually incorrect..

He lives within about a mile of me, I've never seen him anywhere though ... certainly not out on the road..

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Bhachgen | 11 years ago
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I'm delighted at the level of coverage we've seen on free to air channels this year. All the grand tours, Olympics, the town centre crit series. It's been fantastic and hopefully the broadcasters will make their decisions a bit sooner next season. ITV in particular show literally nothing else worth watching but their sports coverage other than football generally stands up well.

Hugh Porter is not the best especially when covering road racing, but it's not an easy job. We've heard quite a few different commentators and summarisers across the different channels over the course of the season. Hopefully someone like Rob Hayles, Chris Boardman or Brian Smith is taking this opportunity to learn the ropes and we will see some "new blood" taking the mic over the next few years, assuming we continue to be blessed with so much coverage.

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