Nicky Campbell on his ex-boss, former BBC Director General Greg Dyke in Thursday’s Guardian.
I interviewed Greg Dyke (above) the other day about his directorship of plucky Brentford. He said he is a lifelong fan of the Bees, as indeed he is of Manchester United, and thankfully his loyalty to each has never been tested because they have never met. He is all right, then, like the philanderer who keeps his two mistresses (Brenda and Mandy we’ll call them) at different ends of the M1. Until Trisha brings them together on daytime TV, Greg is as happy as a dog with two bones. Mandy is classy and glamorous. She scrubs up well and despite a humungous overdraft is much admired. Brenda doesn’t have the gems but does have a heart of gold.
This imbroglio notwithstanding, is it really possible to “support” two clubs? You know the answer, don’t you? Supporting your team is like a love affair and when love is real it is all-consuming, all-embracing and absolutely indivisible.
A Presbyterian minister who married friends of mine nipped away at 4.40pm on the day of the reception. He was found with a radio in a far corner of the hotel in a state of euphoria. Celtic were his passion and they had won. He told my friend that he often went in his dog collar to Celtic Park and was frequently let in free with a respectful “Enjoy the game, Father”. Ten to three on a Saturday afternoon was no time for religious pedantry. But in his passion for Celtic, he has no choice. There is something ineffable, intangible and magical about that club, and like the attachment you have for your team it surpasseth all understanding. But like the person you love or the God you worship, there can only be one. Greg – cut the crap.
In a completely unrelated developement, Brentford have pimped last weekend’s FA Cup hero DJ “Hustle & Flow” Campbell to Birmingham for the sum of £500,000.
Apparently, it can be done.