BBC bosses got fans reminiscing as it announced on Friday that the broadcaster’s popular sports-based quiz show, A Question of Sport, has been axed. The BBC One favourite has been running for 53 years.
The news came just three years after Sue Barker was dropped as host alongside long-running team captains Matt Dawson and Phil Tufnell. But fans have taken to social media to reflect on the good times, after a video of Paul O’Connell appearing on the show resurfaced.
Posting on X, user @jackkenmare wrote: “A Question of Sport has been axed after 53 years. We’ll always have this moment, when Paul O’Connell gave one of the greatest answers in quiz show history. So good”
He then shared the infamous clip where Sue Barker was hosting the quick-fire question round, which saw AP McCoy give an incorrect answer which led to two letters being revealed on a hangman-style puzzle.
The board was then passed back to Phil Tufnell’s team. Sue then clarified that they must solve the two-word puzzle, which was “anything to do with sport.”
Sue, 67, then asked: “Do you want to move on?” Which prompted contestant Paul O’Connell to have a guess in an attempt to solve the board.
There were only two letters out of the 23 spaces revealed, which led team captain Phil, 57, to say: “Have you got it? Are you sure? It’s a really long second word!”
Confidently, ex-Irish rugby player Paul answered: “Borussia Mönchengladbach, no?”
Sue then responded: “Let’s see if you’re right” before the letters all lit up to reveal he had indeed guessed the correct answer, which was the name of a football team in Germany’s Bundesliga.
Whilst Paul and his teammates celebrated, the opposing team, captained by Matt Dawson, 51, looked around in shock before the star took to his feet to give a standing ovation.
The BBC blamed “funding challenges” as the reason for the long-running show coming to an end, and in a statement said: “Due to inflation and funding challenges, difficult decisions have to be made, therefore Question Of Sport is currently not in production at the moment.”
Fans on X, formerly Twitter, rushed to comment on the video with many blaming the BBC for changing the format of the show. One user wrote: “Sad that it has come to an end, as it used to be a great show. But its decline has a lot to do with its current presenters. About as interesting as a can of magnolia paint!”
“So Paddy McGuinness killed Top Gear and A Question Of Sport in less than 2 months?” another added.
And a third penned: “It was ruined the moment they got rid of Sue, Matt and Phil.”
A fourth fan also commented: “The second they revamped it for ‘the greater good’ this was always going to happen. Why not leave things as they are. Such a shame and will be greatly missed. If ITV have anything about them they’ll get the old crew together and start again. Everyone will watch it.”
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