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The Patrick Kinghorn Q&A Interview
Exclusive to talkSPORT1089.co.uk

Patrick Kinghorn was lured away from the path of further education to the
bright lights and fresh air of the racecourse after leaving school at the age
of 17. The University of Leeds Drama Department was the University of Life's
gain for three & a half years as he worked for the family bookmaking business.

In 1998 the pressure of betting tax hit the off course markets and the family
business was scaled down. Following an unsuccesful stint at tyring to make it as
an actor in Hollywood, Patrick moved to Antigua to help expand Victor Chandler’s
American betting operation. Following the end of his contract, Patrick moved back
to the UK and decided to get into TV broadcasting. He cut his teeth with SIS, The
Racing Channel and Attheraces before joining talkSPORT permanently in 2003.

You started working for talkSPORT in 2003, did you have much radio
broadcast experience before joining the radio station on a permanent basis?
I started doing bits and pieces for talkSPORT about a year ago as part of the At the Races sponsorship deal. I didn't have any experience on radio before which meant that the gentle introduction of 5 minute slots was a perfect way to get started! It was a similar situation when I started at attheraces. I had limited TV experience then but managed to progress quite quickly and as you know present the Drivetime show on talkSPORT.

Having been a presenter on radio at talkSPORT and on television on At the Races, you must have interviewed a large number of sportsman. Which person was the best to interview and why?
On talkSPORT, having Chris Eubank and Dennis Lillee in the studio was a great buzz but for attheraces my favourite interview was Sir Peter O'Sullivan the legendary horseracing commentator. He is a man who commands enormous respect within the broadcasting world and he gave me the best piece of advice I've had in my career so far. He pointed out that broadcasters in horse racing have the hardest job in sport because they are dealing with gambling more than the actual sport and when that is the case people are far less forgiving. With that in mind I knew I had to try and broaden my horizons and with a natural passion for all sports I am over the moon that talkSPORT have given me that chance.

You have recently been given the Drivetime show alongside former Republic of Ireland International Forward Tony Cascarino. How does it feel to work with such a legend of the game?
Tony Cascarino is one of the nicest sportsman I have ever met. Completely down to earth for a man who has done so much. He has been a pleasure to work with and I could not have wished for a better sparring partner to try and make a success of the show on drivetime.

Drivetime is one of the most important programmes for a commercial radio statio as it has a great number of listeners. What kind of preparation is made to make the show sound like it is?
We have a great production team. Russell D'Albertanson, Tim Boyd and Jamie Edwards. Those guys put the show together in the morning. I get in about 12:00pm we all have a chat and decide on the big stories of the day and potential breaking news. Then Cascarino's Bentley rolls in at 1:00pm and he gives us his thoughts on the day's proceedings and we kick on from there.

You took over from Bill Young on talkSPORT's Drivetime show earlier this year, would you say the current format to the show is the finished article and are you always looking to improve it?
There is a rough shell there now but we are all agreed there is a lot of development to be done. The aim has got to be to try and attempt to emulate the success Alan and Mike have had on breakfast and Paul and Andy have in the afternoon. That is not to say we are trying to copy their shows but try and develop the kind of relationships those guys have which make their shows so successful. That doesn't happen overnight but as long as every Friday at 7:00pm I can talk to the guys and we can say the show is getting better than I know we are moving in the right direction and we can make it work.

Your new Drivetime show on talkSPORT has come into a certain amount of criticism of late on internet messageboards. Do you welcome constructive criticism towards yourself and the show?
I knew this one was coming! I have been reading your website and reading the unofficial forum on the website ever since I started doing the cameo attheraces pieces on talkSPORT.

As a broadcaster I want to be a success and part of that is delivering a product that people want. That said you are never going to please all of the people all of the time. Feedback is important and while I'm not going to pander to every whim of what I see on the net it does represent a group of people who listen to the station regularly. A great example of me taking note on what is said about me is that in the early days of drive I was talking far to quickly. It was brought to my attention by several parties (the net being one) and I knew I had to do something about it. I am trying to ensure I don't talk to quickly while not negating my naturally excitable personality which is what makes me the presenter that I am.

An example of something I think the forum got wrong was the interaction with the newsreaders. It isn't meant to be sexist, it is done with good humour and the full co-operation of everyone at Sky. It is all done tongue in cheek and is part of trying to develop a drive time "gang" which is also why we are bringing in Macca as much.

The show is still finding it's feet and I'd like people to give it a chance to bed in and judge it around Christmas time when it has had a solid run at establishing itself. I am not going to lie. I have and will continue to look at the forums. I won't be able to act on every suggestion/criticism I see but I view it as a valuable source of feedback. (Even when it is giving me plenty of stick such as it is at the moment!)

You recently covered for Alan Brazil on The Sports Breakfast. What was it like working with the legend that is Mike Parry and getting up very early in the morning to to the talkSPORT show?
Working with Mike was certainly a nerve-racking experience. I remember 5 minutes in to the first breakfast I did with him I was sweating buckets. It was excellent in terms of developing my radio skills because when you work with Mike you are working with the best there is when it comes to holding a thought-provoking debate. The only negative is that Mike & Alan's show is just that, Mike & Alan's. It is very hard to recreate what they have when one of them is missing but nonetheless I was delighted to be asked and got a lot out of it.

You were given the 6:00pm-8:00pm slot on a Saturday evening throughout the Summer on talkSPORT?. Was this one of the main reasons you left television station At the Races?
The fact that I was being given the opportunity to do more and more on talkSPORT certainly influenced my decision but the main reason I left attheraces was the fact I didn't want to become pigeon holed in racing. There aren't many racing broadcasters who can get gigs in any sphere other than racing. I want to work in environments which reflect my enjoyment of all sports and not just the sport of kings. It was becoming increasingly apparent that I wasn't going to be picked up by the BBC Sport or Channel 4 Racing (John McCrirrick has that base covered) anytime soon, so I decided to take the gamble (remember I hadn't yet been offered drive) and put myself in the market place

What was it about Horse Racing that got you so interested in it?
My father is a racecourse bookmaker so I have grown up with it. I love the sport and it's been a big part of my life. Not only that but without my racing knowledge I would have found it much harder to break into the media.

Having worked in television with At the Races before working for talkSPORT, would you like to return to working in television at all in the future?
I am doing some work on Sky's Sports interactive football at weekends this season starting with the Turkey v England game in October. But just to clarify my feelings I am fully commited to talkSPORT and want it to stay that way until the talkSPORT management tell me I should be feeling otherwise. I am currently lucky enough to have one of the best jobs in commercial radio and am enjoying the challenge. I want to make drive time a success and that is my top priority both professionally and personally.

A lot has been made of the uncertain nature of employment at talkSPORT but in a strange kind of way I like it that way. The way I see it is that if Cascarino and myself can make drivetime a success they will want us to stay but if we can't they won't want us and I would have to accept it. (As long as we're given a decent run at it!)

Who was your sporting idol as a child?
It's always been Tim Sherwood. It might sound a bit over the top but the fact is I followed his career from when he was playing as a teenager, when he played in the FA youth cup final for Watford against Newcastle (Gazza was in the Toon's line up) through all his senior club sides. I've seen him play as a 13 year old, lift the Premiership with Blackburn and play for England.

Have you seen any decent films recently?
Not really a film but I watched that drama on Channel 4 last night, The Deal about Blair and Brown's leadership "agreement" and thought it was excellent.

What books have you recently read?
Full Time by Tony Cascarino, of course!

Thanks to Patrick Kinghorn for the chance to interview him. You can listen to Patrick and Tony Cascarino on talkSPORT Drivetime weekdays between 4:00pm-7:00pm.

The Patrick Kinghorn Q&A Interview
Drivetime
September 2003