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Brian Johnston's autobiography "It's Been A Lot Of Fun", double cassette cover, 1997

Brian Alexander Johnston MC (June 24, 1912 - January 5, 1994) (known as Johnners) was a cricket commentator for the BBC from 1946 until his death. Born in Little Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, he was educated at Eton and New College, Oxford and joined the BBC in January 1946, after service with the Grenadier Guards in the Second World War in which he won the Military Cross. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 461 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (600 × 780 pixel, file size: 117 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Brian Johnston autobiography Its Been A Lot Of Fun, double cassette cover, 1997 This image is of a cover of an audio... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 461 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (600 × 780 pixel, file size: 117 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Brian Johnston autobiography Its Been A Lot Of Fun, double cassette cover, 1997 This image is of a cover of an audio... The Military Cross (MC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries. ... June 24 is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 190 days remaining. ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday in the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday in the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... January 5 is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar). ... Bowler Shaun Pollock bowls to batsman Michael Hussey. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion. ... Hertfordshire (pronounced Hartfordshire and abbreviated as Herts) is an inland county in the United Kingdom and part of the East of England Government Office region. ... The Kings College of Our Lady of Eton beside Windsor, commonly known as Eton College or just Eton, is a public school (privately funded and independent) for boys, founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. It is located in Eton, Berkshire, near Windsor in England, situated north of Windsor... and of the New College College name New College of St Mary Latin name Collegium Novum Oxoniensis/Collegium Sanctae Mariae Wintoniae Named after Mary, mother of Jesus Established 1379 Sister college Kings College, Cambridge Warden Prof. ... The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion. ... The Grenadier Guards is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... The Military Cross (MC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries. ...

On 27 August 1922 his father drowned at Bude, Cornwall at the age of 44. August 27 is the 239th day of the year (240th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... For the French humanist jurist, see Guillaume Budé. Bude (Cornish: ) is a small resort town in north Cornwall, England, UK, on the coast at the mouth of the River Neet. ... Cornwall (pronounced ; Cornish: ) is a county in south-west England, United Kingdom, on the peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar and Devon. ...

Johnston began his cricket commentating career at Lord's for BBC Television in June 1946 at the England v India Test match. He became a regular member of the TV commentary team and, in addition, became BBC cricket correspondent in 1963. In these early years, Johnston was an occasional presenter of other BBC shows, including Come Dancing and All Your Own. Come Dancing BBC TV ballroom dancing competition show that ran on and off from 1949 to 1995, becoming one of televisions longest-running shows. ... All Your Own was a BBC childrens television programme. ...

From 1965 onwards Johnston split his commentary duties between television (three Tests) and radio (two Tests) each summer. In 1970 Johnston was unceremoniously dropped from the TV commentary team but continued to appear as a member of the Test Match Special (TMS) radio team. He retired from the BBC in 1972 on his sixtieth birthday, and became a freelance commentator and it was in that capacity that he continued to appear on TMS for the next twenty-two years. Test Match Special (known as TMS) is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4 (long wave), Five Live Sports Extra (digital) and the internet to the United Kingdom and (where broadcasting rights permit) the rest of the world. ...

Johnston was responsible for a number of the TMS traditions, including the creation, often using the so-called Oxford '-er', of the nicknames of fellow commentators (for example, Jonathan Agnew is still known as "Aggers", Henry Blofeld as "Blowers" and Bill Frindall as "the Bearded Wonder"). He once complained on air that he had missed his cake at tea during one match - the TMS team are still sent cakes by listeners. The Oxford -er is a colloquial, sometimes facetious, abbreviation once prevalent at Oxford University (from about 1875), which gave rise to such slang as rugger for Rugby football, soccer for Association football and the now archaic footer for either code (but more usually soccer). ... // A nickname is a name of a person or thing other than its proper name. ... Jonathan Philip Agnew (nicknamed Aggers) is an English cricket broadcaster and former professional cricketer. ... Autobiography published in 2000 Henry Calthorpe Blofeld (born at Hoveton Home Farm in Norfolk on 23 September 1939) (known as Blowers, thanks to the late Brian Johnston) is a sports journalist. ... William Howard Frindall ( March 3, 1939, Epsom, Surrey ) is a British cricket scorer and statistician who is familiar to cricket followers from his appearances on the BBCs radio programme Test Match Special. ...

Incidents and gaffes

In one famous incident during a Test match at the Oval, Jonathan Agnew suggested that Ian Botham was out hit wicket because had failed to "get his leg over." Johnston carried on commentating (and giggling) for 30 seconds before dissolving into helpless laughter.^[1] Among his other gaffes was A Test match in progress. ... The famous gasometers, which are now listed buildings. ... Ian Terence Botham OBE, (born November 24, 1955 in Heswall, Cheshire) (nicknamed Both, Beefy, Beef or Guy the Gorilla) is a retired England Test cricketer. ... Hit wicket is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. ...

when Neil Harvey was representing Australia at the Headingley Test in 1961.^[2] Robert Neil Harvey MBE (born October 8, 1928 in Fitzroy, Melbourne, Victoria) is a former Australian cricketer who represented the Australian cricket team between 1948 and 1963. ... Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley. ...

The oft cited quote:

allegedly occurred when Michael Holding of the West Indies was bowling to Peter Willey of England in a Test match at the Oval in 1976. Johnston claimed not to have noticed saying anything odd during the match, and that he was only alerted to his gaffe by a letter from "a lady" named "Miss Mainpiece".^[2][3] According to Christopher Martin-Jenkins,^[4] the cricinfo biography,^[5] and the biography of Brian by Johnston's son Barry, ^[6] Johnston never actually made the remark. His son says "It was too good a pun to resist...but Brian never actually said that he had spoken the words on air." . Michael Anthony Holding (born February 16, 1954) was a West Indian cricketer. ... Learie Constantine, was one of the first great West Indian players. ... Peter Willey (born December 6, 1949) is a former English cricketer, who played as a right-handed batsman and right-arm offbreak bowler. ... The logo of the England Cricket Team which shows the three Lions of England below a five-pointed crown The England cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales, operating under the auspices of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). ... Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. ... The famous gasometers, which are now listed buildings. ... Christopher Dennis Alexander Martin-Jenkins, known as CMJ (born 20 January 1945), is a cricket journalist and commentator for Test Match Special (TMS) on BBC Radio 4. ...

Other work

Before World War II Johnston worked for the family coffee company, including a posting in Brazil, but he had little liking for the work.

As a BBC staff commentator Johnston variously presented and participated in a wide range of BBC radio and television programmes. These included radio programmes such as In Town Tonight, Down Your Way, Trivia Test Match, and the Royal Command Performance of The Good Life. He also commentated on events like the funeral of King George VI, the coronation of Elizabeth II and the wedding of HRH The Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer in 1981. Brian was also for several years one of the presenters of the Channel 4 magazine programme for the over sixties "Years Ahead" along with Robert Dougall, Zena Skinner and Paul Lewis. In Town Tonight was a BBC radio programme broadcast on Saturday evening from 1933 to 1960. ... Down Your Way was a BBC radio series which ran from 29 December 1946 to 1992, originally on the Home Service and then on BBC Radio 4, usually broadcast on Sundays. ... Trivia Test Match is a British radio programme that aired originally during the early 1990s on BBC Radio and has subsequently been repeated more recently on BBC Radio 7. ... The Royal Command Performance is an annual music festival event, originally first staged in the Palace Theatre in 1912, in front of King George V and Queen Mary. ... The good life is an ambiguous term for the life that one would like to live. ... George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions from 11 December 1936 until his death. ... Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor; born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen sovereign states, holding each crown and title equally. ... Prince Charles may refer to: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, current heir-apparent to the British throne Any of the previous British royals named Charles, Prince of Wales The former Belgian regent, Prince Charles of Belgium This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that... Diana, Princess of Wales (Diana Frances;[2] née Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. ...

Memorial Trust logo

Brian Johnston was a great fan of the British Music Hall and revelled in its often mildly risqué "schoolboy" humour. The "An Evening with Johnners" one man show that he performed at the end of his life included many excruciating jokes, as well as his broadcasting and cricket reminisces. Image File history File links BJMT.JPG Brian Johnston logo Brian Johnston Memorial trust logo. ... Image File history File links BJMT.JPG Brian Johnston logo Brian Johnston Memorial trust logo. ...

His autobiography, It's Been a Lot of Fun, was published by WH Allen in 1974, with an updated version appearing in 1985. He also authored or edited a number of other books.

Johnston's informal and humorous style was very popular. When he died, the Daily Telegraph described him as "the greatest natural broadcaster of them all" and John Major, the British Prime Minister and cricket fan, said that "Summers simply won't be the same without him". Brian Johnston’s memorial service was held at a packed Westminster Abbey on May 16 1994. The following year the Brian Johnston Memorial Trust was established to promote cricket in schools and youth clubs, to help young cricketers in need of financial support, and to further disabled cricket. The trust is now part of the Lord's Taverners.
This article deals with The Daily Telegraph in Britain, see The Daily Telegraph (Australia) for the Australian publication The Daily Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper founded in 1855. ... Sir John Major, KG, CH (born 29 March 1943) is a former British politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and leader of the British Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster, which is almost always referred to by its original name of Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral (and indeed often mistaken for one), in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ... May 16 is the 136th day of the year (137th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Lords Taverners is an English charity dedicated to the promotion of cricket among young people. ...

External links

• BBC Test Match Special Legends
• Official Brian Johnston web site
• Blind Cricket, of which Brian was a supporter
• Brian Johnston Memorial Trust

References

Primary reference: Heald, Tim (1995). Brian Johnston: The Authorised Biography, Methuen. ISBN 0-413-69320-1.

1. ^ Listen to mp3.
2. ^ ^{a b} Johnston, Brian (1984). Chatterboxes: My Friends the Commentators. London: W H Allen & Co. ISBN 0-352-31493-1. 
3. ^ Johnston, Brian (1990). It's Been a Piece of Cake. London: Methuen. ISBN 0-7493-0293-3. 
4. ^ Martin-Jenkins, Christopher (1990). Ball by Ball - The Story of Cricket Broadcasting. Grafton Books, 160. ISBN 0-246-13568-9. 
5. ^ http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/15526.html
6. ^ Johnston, Barry (2003). Johnners - The Life of Brian. Hodder & Stoughton, 367. ISBN 0-340-82471-9.