Bill McLaren

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William Pollock "Bill" McLaren CBE (born October 16, 1923 in Hawick , † January 19, 2010 ibid) was a Scottish rugby commentator . Until his retirement in 2002, he was the "voice of rugby" ( the voice of rugby called) and has numerous phrases coined.

Life

McLaren grew up in Hawick in the Scottish Borders and started rugby as a child. He played as a winger for the Hawick RFC first team prior to World War II . During the war in Italy, he fell ill with tuberculosis and could only be cured by using the antibiotic streptomycin , which was new at the time . During the tuberculosis treatment, he commented on the table tennis games in the hospital and thus made his first experiences in his later job.

After returning to Scotland, McLaren studied sports science and taught in schools until 1987. His career as a reporter began with the local newspaper Hawick Express . From 1952 he worked for the BBC . He commented on his first international match on the radio, when Scotland and Wales met . Six years later he switched to television. His last international match as a reporter followed in 2002, opponents were again Scotland and Wales.

In 2001, shortly before the end of his reporting career , McLaren was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame . He is the only member of the Hall of Fame who was not primarily active as a player.

McLaren had been married to his wife Bette since 1947. He had five grandchildren, including Scottish internationals Rory Lawson and Jim Thompson . In 1976 he commented on the game between Scotland and England , in which his son-in-law Alan Lawson was able to put two attempts .

McLaren died on January 19, 2010 in his hometown at the age of 86.

literature

  • Bill McLaren: Talking of Rugby . Stanley Paul, London 1991 (English).
  • Bill McLaren, Peter Bills: The Voice of Rugby . Bantam, London 2004 (English).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Peter Bills: Classic phrases from commentator Bill McLaren. The Independent, February 4, 2009, accessed June 18, 2009 .
  2. Bill McLaren, the 'voice of rugby', dies aged 86. BBC, January 19, 2010, accessed January 19, 2010 .