Episode 45 - 2011 In Review (Part 1) w/Emma Hyam

As 2011 draws to a close, we begin our retrospective of the year in sport. With the help of former guest host, Emma Hyam, we review the past 12 months in Rugby Union, Rugby League and Tennis.

The Greatest Events In Sporting History' is available from http://www.simplysyndicated.com/shows/sportinghistory/

Episode 44 - Basil D'Oliveira's Ashes Century in 1968

A big innings for the England cricket team, but an even more important one for the rest of the world. There was a time when South Africa's policy of apartheid was freely tolerated by many other countries. We talk about how one man swinging a cricket bat helped to change all that.

The Greatest Events In Sporting History' is available from http://www.simplysyndicated.com/shows/sportinghistory/

British Boxing Knocked Off The Pedestal Of Greatness

By Shane Thomas


These past two weekends have been damaging for British boxing. Starting the year with four World Champions, Britain is now down to one (although Ricky Burns should be officially confirmed as World lightweight champion in due course). Both Carl Froch and Amir Khan were dethroned in their encounters against Andre Ward and Lamont Peterson respectively. So where did Britain's two - now former - world champions go wrong?

Barcelona's Weeping Angels Show Their Nasty Side

By Shane Thomas


The worlds of Doctor Who and el Clasico are ones that seldom collide. But the twain seemed to meet after last weekend's encounter between Real Madrid and Barcelona.

As Real suffered their ninth defeat in the last ten clasicos, I was put in mind of the brilliant episode of Doctor Who, "Blink". The monsters in the aforementioned piece were "The Weeping Angels", benign statues whenever they are looked at, but rapid, ferocious monsters when they could escape the affliction of being gazed upon.

El Clasico - Here We Go Again

By Shane Thomas

In football parlance, the phrase "clasico" refers to a match between two marquee sides. You know the type, the Manchester United's, AC Milan's and Bayern Munich's of this world. Well, contests between Real Madrid and Barcelona have become so big that they have been dubbed, "el gran clasico". This is an occasion where the febrile hype is justified. Real and Barca is not a "clasico", it's the "clasico".

Shane Williams: Rugby's Little Engine That Could

By Shane Thomas


Last Saturday, Wales played Australia in a post-World Cup encounter. However the near 62,000 people inside the Millennium Stadium were not there to watch a rugby union match. They were there to honour for the final time, winger Shane Williams.

Since making his international debut 12 years ago, Williams has been a legend of Welsh rugby. He is his country's record try scorer, the third highest try scorer of all time, and was awarded the IRB's award for World's Best Player in 2008.

Episode 43 - Ben Ainslie w/Laura Eydmann

Sailing isn't a sport that gets a lot of coverage on our show, but it was only right to make an exception for arguably Britain's greatest sailor, Ben Ainslie.

With the help of sailing expert, Laura Eydmann, we traverse the career of the great man and his brilliant achievements. There's also an interesting story that may shed some light on Ainslie as an individual, which raises an interesting question. Do we want our sports starts to be nice or successful?

The Greatest Events In Sporting History' is available from http://www.simplysyndicated.com/shows/sportinghistory/