This is the crux. Allen over-contributed in an offensive way. Legard is backing right out and letting Martin do his job.

It's a thousand times better than last year. Can you IMAGINE how Allen would be calling these Brawn / Button wins? It would be vulgar beyond words.

Legard does not back right out.

You don't think he does. I think he does. It's opinion. Each to their own.

Don't like it - switch to the 5 Live or CBBC commentary.

I've not minded Legard really because his voice blends in much the way a football commentator's does.

Though today I thought he was a bit lost for words and out of rhythm a few times.

Or perhaps my awareness has been heightened thanks to this silly forum!

Eddie was just shot down by Martin

Legard poor today again.

Wibbling on about tyres twice while there was more important action going on infront of his eyes.

He doesnt seem to see things happening, almost like he isnt watching the race.

It was left to Brundle to pick up on things after Legard shut up. Not that JA was any better mind.

Then you lose out on Brundle's commentary...

Why can't they put the lowest quality presenting on channels with the lowest audience?

Legard needs to stop saying @pushing on@ all the time, and I dont like when he goes through the running order and uses the word "from" all the time (Button from Vettel from Piquet from...)

He also said "making hay" more than once...I didnt see any hay being made the entire race.

Martin really needs to check which tyre is prime and which is option before the race starts!

Yeah he goofed up there. Looks like Toyota were listening to Brundle as well...

Making hay while the sun shines is a very well used phrase in this country, I have no problem with him using it.

Why were Legard & Brundle both talking about a close race involving 5 cars still when Button was 12 secs ahead and they all had one stop left ??

I think Brundle is being affected by his co-commentators fragility.

I'll certainly be emailing BBC again after Dullard's dreadful performance today.

I appreciate that the BBC are doing one heck of a job with F1.
Sadly, I think Legard is an evident weak spot. And becoming ever more so.

For previous races I've preferred to listen to the Croft/Davidson show, (in China they were admitting to looking out at the window and commenting on stuff that wasn't on-screen) but today, with the coverage of the London Marathon, there didn't seem to be that option on Freeview.
So I endured Legard.
I'd actually rate him a distinct negative, rather than merely a neutral, aspect of the package.
Perhaps I should have remembered to try CBBC, even though I don't exactly fit their target demographic!


IIRC he was desperate to get away from Radio F1 commentary, struggling to find anything fresh to say about the (then) Ferrari domination. Unfortunately he now gets Button running clear, nicely ahead of the Trulli train. Just plain bad luck.
Perhaps he should try snooker?

I'm well aware of it, i believe I live in the same country. But when you're watching an F1 race and you hear "Vettel.....making hay...". "and here's Rubens Barrichello making hay", you begin to wonder...

Sir, Unfortunately, after today's Bahrain Grand Prix, I have to report that I do believe Jonathan Legard is getting worse, not better, in his commentaries for your otherwise superb coverage of Grands Prix. Jonathan is making too many errors and is clearly struggling to take in exactly what's happening in the race in-terms of strategy etc. I really hope you will contact James Allen with a view to him replacing Legard for the remainder of the season. Regards.

----

Except that the sun doesn't shine very frequently in the UK...

So perhaps he should limit saying it to once a fortnight

That would appear to be an appropriate frequency

oh dear oh dear!

Legard's defining moment this afternoon came when he tried to make the most tenuous of links between some bloke holding his breath for 21 mins and the cars forming on the grid. I can't remember word for word what he uttered (hopefully it's in the highlights later), but it made absolutely zero sense what he was on about.

Anyway, found out in the end. Thanks to none other than his predecessor, James Allen: http://allenonf1.wordpress.com/2009/04/26/...lds-its-breath/

Dear Sir

I would like to express my dissatisfaction with the commentary of Jonathan Legard during the 2009 Formula 1 season especially today. While I appreciate he is new to F1 tv commentary his delivery, lack of passion in his style of commentary and frequent errors are having a negative effect on what is otherwise excellent coverage of the 2009 championship

With James Allen having shown passion and knowledge and having an excellent working relationship with Martin Brundle I highly recommend James Allen taking over lead commentary

Ok, people may not like JL, fair enough (but I have no problem with him myself).

But to be asking for James Allen to replace him I cannot understand!

You can't all be close members of JA's family surely?

I'd much rather have Legards measured tones, than James Allens false, and extremely irratatiing, "excitement".

I have watched the TV coverage with the sound turned down and the BBC radio coverage on almost since Murray Walker retired.

Allen >>>>> Legard >>>>>> Murray

I think I would rather have Stephen Hawking commentate than ever be subjected to Murray again

You started so well but then did a BMW in your final sector...

Agree completely

I don't understand the false nostalgia and longing for some halfwit to scream irrelevenat ramblings through my TV and completely miss relevant events on track


The time has come for two ex drivers to share the commentary box

My wife started watching F1 in 2007 and she could do a better job than any of the above

Nice BS

Nice bright sunshine?

Only rarely, regrettably

Bollocks, utter utter bollocks, do you even live here?

If so have you gone blind this week? Or most of last summer unless you live in Buckinghamshire or Doncaster?

The whole phrase revolves around a lack of sunshine normally anyway or is that beyond your intellect?

I thought Legards defining moment was when he said

"Ferrari seem to need their KERS as some sort of a boost, not a boost as in KERS but in order to give the team a boost" or something like that.

FFS what a tosser.

brawn FROM brawn FROM brawn FROM toyota FROM brawn FROM button FROM alonso FROM barichello FROM brawn FROM ferrari FROM mclaren FROM hamilton FROM trulli train FROM rosberg FROM brawn FROM williams FROM brawn FROM....

SHUT UUUUUUUUP - TRY HOLD YOUR BREATH FOR 21 MINS / SEE WHAT HAPPENS YOU TOSSER

To be fair his comments related to a stunt which took place on the grid before the race with... a man holding his breath for 21 minutes in front of the drivers. Crucially though, we didn't actually see the stunt on BBC to my knowledge.

The coverage was great, ok a couple of - to be expected - errors kicking around. It's live tv. To have a go at any of it is a bit spoilt brattish.

Good post. Don't forget to contact the BBC with your concerns. http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/complaints_stage1.shtml

What a cnut, everybody knows that the word from is a swearword....

Legard giving Brundle way more room, and Brundle is so good he's filling it with ease. Great stuff, and I'm particularly enjoying Legard's race starts/ends, none of the Allen hysteria.

I watched the post-race forum for the first time today. Brundle's wind-up was fantastic...

Brundle: "Ross, Jenson's told us it's Brawn's championship to lose"
Brawn: "Has He????"
Brundle: "No, but - "



EJ is now perfectly acceptable, if not exactly my cup of tea. But it was funny watching Christian Horner's politely tried patience as Jordan dragged out a question. The Beeb is streets ahead of ITV.

The "from" statements and the "Kers seems to give a boost" comment were cringeworthy

Where did they dig this bloke up from?

His extensive CV as a F1 and Football commentator for the BBC.

So, not just USA water-boarding terrorists, eh?

Legard & EJ may be next in line as they both suck and terrorize all viewers with their ignorance

I think that the FOM TV Director is gay.

Its the second time he shown Glock adjusting his dildo before fitting into his seat.
Glock did some 5 identical moves to accomodate his playground.
They have shown Glock doing it in China and in Bahrain.

Stop it , for f*ck sake.

I can put up with a bit of hyperbole if the commentary keeps me awake.
The race was pretty good, but Legard's voice almost put me to sleep. I might try the 5 Live commentary for Barcelona.

Fair enough, but as I remember he didn't actually mention the connection?
As they were lining up on the grid he said 'And we saw ... [bloke holding his breath for 21 minutes]"
We thought 'Very impressive, but what's that got to do with anything?'

I felt it was better today, I didn't like allen when he did it, i think the most amusing memory i have of his commentry was monaco 01 or 02, quali, and he somehow went off on a tangent implying MS had finished for the day and gone off to have a w*nk, seriously, i remember brundles silence, if only i could find a clip of that.

Back on topic though, the everyman side of the commentry team is always a tricky one for knowledgable fans watching because we don't need to be babied though a race, we used to howl at murray with his errors, allen the same along with the bizarre things he came out with, and now legard is getting stick but they have a thing about needing a driver, and someone to relate to a general audience, i wouldn't like to have to try!

I reckon give them more time, the stuff in the pits is good, watched the red button forum after the race today and i though that really worked well, something itv couldn't deliver.

And of course no adverts! watching the TOCA package was a reminder of how grateful we should be for that, something to consider before sending emails of hate to the beeb!

Murray Walker had a long CV in F1 but that didn't make him any better

Nor Allen

I really don't think the general public need babby talking to by non driver commentators

Brundle is both insightful and clear to the general public

Allen and Leggard are the equivalent of screaming Sun and Daily mail front pages - they offer nothing but wailing headlines

This race is first one this year I have watch on BBC. I can't detect any difference from ITV broadcast. The same nacionalistic crap as usual. They are really great on put-downs; I must give them that.

Nationalistic?


Really?

No endless features on Lewis, no creaming over our own drivers, balanced commentary. Are you feeling alright?

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?f1legard&1

Well, maybe I have a different definition of balanced (and respectful) broadcast.

Yes, you seem to expect them to ignore Jense and Lewis all race. Compared to ITV it's as if they are.

I knew someone would complain about 1 interview with Lewis who just happens to be in the F1 headlines atm amongst the rest.

In the race who were they supposed to focus on? Jenson won, Lewis was 4th, they gave them as much (if not less) attention than the rest of the top 8.