A Question of Sport is a long-running BBC quiz show which started on 2 December 1968 and continues to this day. It is currently recorded at The Studios, MediaCityUK. It has been recorded in Manchester since the programme's inception at various studios including Dickenson Road Studios and then the Granada Studios and New Broadcasting House.
It involves two teams of sports stars answering questions on their own and other sports. Each team has a resident captain, each of whom is joined by two stars of the sports world. Having run almost uninterrupted since 1970, the show is now Britain's longest continuously-running game show with 942 episodes (as of 26 September 2011). On 8 January 2010 episode No. 885 was a celebration episode of AQoS's 40th birthday (Series 39, episode 13).
The show was hosted by Stuart Hall in its regional format from 1968 to 1969, then nationally by David Vine from 1970 to 1978, and then from 1979 until 1997 was anchored by veteran BBC sports commentator David Coleman, although Vine returned for part of one series in 1989 when illness forced Coleman to temporarily stand down from hosting duties. Coleman was also unavailable for two shows in 1996, so one of the team captains, Bill Beaumont, sat in as host (the only team captain ever to host the programme), while the rugby star Will Carling took Beaumont's place as captain and in Coleman's final series as host, Ex-tennis star Sue Barker stood-in for a couple of shows including one at Christmas, A role that she would permanently do after Coleman's retirement.
Matthew Stevens (born 11 September 1977) is a Welsh professional snooker player. Stevens has won two of the game's most prestigious events, the Benson and Hedges Masters in 2000 and the UK Championship in 2003. He has also been the runner-up in the World Snooker Championship on two occasions, in 2000 and 2005. Stevens reached a career high ranking of #4 for the 2005/2006 season, and is currently ranked inside of the elite top 16 at number 10. Stevens is known as a good breakbuilder, and has compiled over 200 competitive centuries so far during his career.
Stevens turned professional in 1994 and in his second season won the Benson & Hedges Championship to qualify for the 1996 Masters. At the Masters he beat Terry Griffiths 5–3 but lost 6–5 to Alan McManus. The following season he also showed potential by beating Stephen Hendry 5–1 in the Grand Prix. In the 1997/1998 season he reached the semi-finals of both the Grand Prix and UK Championship. He also reached the quarter-finals on his debut at the Crucible of the World Championship, beating Alain Robidoux and Mark King before losing to Ken Doherty. In 1998 he reached his first ranking final at the UK Championship, losing 10–6 to John Higgins.
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist. With his backing group The Shadows, Richard, originally positioned as a rebellious rock and roll singer in the style of Little Richard and Elvis Presley, dominated the British popular music scene in the pre-Beatles period of the late 1950s and early 1960s. His 1958 hit single "Move It" is often described as Britain's first authentic rock and roll song, and John Lennon once claimed that "before Cliff and the Shadows, there had been nothing worth listening to in British music." A conversion to Christianity and subsequent softening of his music later led to a more middle of the road pop image, sometimes venturing into gospel music.
Over a 53-year career, Richard has become a fixture of the British entertainment world, amassing many gold and platinum discs and awards, including three Brit awards and two Ivor Novello awards. He has had more than 130 singles, albums and EPs make the UK Top 20, more than any other artist and holds the record (with Elvis Presley) as the only act to make the UK singles charts in all of its first six decades (1950s–2000s). He has achieved 14 UK No. 1 singles (or 18, depending on the counting methodology) and is the only singer to have had a No. 1 single in the UK in six consecutive decades: the 1950s through to the 2000s (discounting digital downloads and counting only CDs, he had a UK No. 1 single in the 2000s). Richard is the biggest selling singles artist of all time in the UK, with total sales of over 21 million and has reportedly sold an estimated 250 million records worldwide.
Nicholas Bernard James Adam Byrne, Jr (born 9 October 1978) is a singer-songwriter, radio and TV presenter and former footballer. From 1998 until 2012 he was the oldest member of Irish pop band, Westlife.
Before his music career, he played professional football and represented Republic of Ireland at several underage levels. Since then he has had a successful international radio and TV presenting career. His wife Georgina is the daughter of former Irish Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, and they have twin sons called Rocco Bertie Byrne and Jay Nicky Byrne.
Byrne was a footballer who played for Home Farm and St. Kevins Boys in North Dublin. He became a professional football player, and joined Leeds United as a goalkeeper in 1995, and was a squad member of the FA Youth Cup winning team of 1997
He played for Leeds for two years, leaving when his contract expired in June 1997. He played in a reserve game for Scarborough F.C. and in a trial game with Cambridge United before returning to join Dublin club Shelbourne. He then signed for Cobh Ramblers playing 11 games, then St. Francis F.C., all in Ireland's League of Ireland.
Susan (Sue) Barker, MBE (born 19 April 1956 in Paignton, Devon) is an English television presenter and former professional tennis player. During her tennis career, she won the women's singles title at the French Open and reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 3. She is now one of the main sports presenters at the BBC.
Barker's tennis career began in 1973 and she won her first top-level singles title in 1974. She won three additional titles in 1975. Barker first reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament in 1975 at the Australian Open. She won the German Open in 1976, beating Renáta Tomanová of Czechoslovakia in the final 6–3, 6–1, and won the French Open the same year, again defeating Tomanová in the final. In 1977 she won two singles titles, reached the semifinals at both Wimbledon and the Australian Open, and upset Martina Navratilova to reach the Virginia Slims Tour Championships final, where she lost in three sets to Chris Evert.
After an injury-plagued 1978 during which her ranking dropped to World No. 24, she won three singles titles and reached three other finals in 1979. She was named the tour's "Comeback Player of the Year" by her fellow professionals. Barker reached one final in 1980 and won the last singles title of her career at Brighton in 1981, finishing the year ranked World No. 16. She won her last doubles title in 1982 at Cincinnati, and played her last professional match in 1984.
question of
life and
death
point
return
common cause
common guilt
total victory
or total loss
there's no