FOOTIE legend Archie Macpherson has two anniversaries on his timetable –
Sportscene’s 40th and Trainspotting’s 20th.
Archie — famous for his “Wooooof!” catchphrase — appears in a new BBC
documentary tomorrow that marks four decades of the classic Scottish telly
show.
And next year it’s two decades since Danny Boyle’s junkie smash rocked the
movie world.
The flick made Archie a cult film hero after he revoiced his commentary of
Archie Gemmill’s goal against Holland at the 1978 World Cup for the famous
sex scene involving heroin addict Renton (Ewan McGregor) and schoolgirl
Diane (Kelly Macdonald).
A follow-up is expected to be released next year with the original cast on
board.
The broadcasting veteran, 78, says: “I doubt very much they’ll get me back for
the sequ . . . for my commentary on Rangers against Alloa? I don’t think
so.” He was sent a script by Oscar-winning director Boyle but failed to read
it – which meant he didn’t know his voice would be the backdrop to one of
British film’s raunchiest moments.
Archie adds: “The Archie Gemmill goal has pursued me through the years,
especially with my voice becoming the background to that scene in
Trainspotting.
“But it didn’t annoy me in the slightest — I got paid for doing that.”
Kelly, 39, now won’t even wear a bikini on set after the X-rated scenes. And
five years ago Hollywood hunk McGregor, 44, confessed his wife Eve Mavrakis
hated his on-screen romp with the Boardwalk Empire beauty.
Archie says: “I met Ewan just before the 1998 World Cup in France — the night
before Scotland played Brazil.
“There was a big dinner and get-together. Sean Connery was there. Ewan was
with Ally McCoist and I had a brief chat with him which brought back
memories of the film.”
The Gemmill strike remains one of the highlights of Archie’s career in
commentary and he reflects on the glory days in Sportscene At 40 which airs
this weekend.
So do ex-host Dougie Donnelly and former Old Firm managers Neil Lennon and
Walter Smith.
Sportscene’s first episode aired on August 9, 1975, and the one-off
documentary — hosted by Tam Cowan’s Off the Ball sidekick Stuart Cosgrove —
charts Rangers’ journey to nine in a row and Celtic’s revival in the Henrik
Larsson era.
It also looks at the rise of Aberdeen and Dundee United under Sir Alex
Ferguson and Jim McLean.
Archie says: “They were happy times, the happiest times without a doubt.
Looking back at them makes me think how quickly the time has gone.
“I grew up in television with the best football we’ve ever seen — it really
was the golden age of Scottish football.
“It’s breathtaking compared to where we’re at right now.
“That generation of broadcasters saw the very best football and I was
fortunate and honoured to be part of it.
“I still bump into people who remind me of particular occasions and it’s nice.
“At the time you don’t bother about these things, you just do it. Things don’t
stick in your mind as much as they do for the viewer and the listener.”
Archie covered six World Cups during his illustrious career but Italia 90
spelled the end for his job with the Beeb.
He says: “I did my last commentary for the BBC in Turin — it was Scotland
against Brazil.
“Before then the national team had gone through an awful phase, especially
with the defeat against Costa Rica in the first match. I had a disagreement
with the BBC about how that game should be interpreted, put it that way.
“I was working in London at the time presenting sport for BBC Breakfast with
Jeremy Paxman and Jill Dando and I decided to concentrate on that.
“I always call a spade a spade. I’ve never been a punter with a microphone.
I want Scotland to win but if a team is poor, then I’ll say it.”
The Tartan Army were ecstatic last week when Gordon Strachan’s boys drew
England in the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
A showdown at Wembley is scheduled for next November. But Archie, who has
commentated on copious Auld Enemy clashes, has urged caution.
The former Scotsport commentator says: “There’s too much hype.
“They were well better than us in the last two games we played against them,
especially the one at Celtic Park. We have to be very wary about this. It
was a commentator’s dream in the past but it’s much more difficult now.
There’s an imbalance.”
Archie still keeps a close eye on the SPFL and he can’t believe how technology
has changed the job of Old Firm managers.
Last month Celtic boss Ronny Deila was captured on a camera phone jokingly
flicking the Vs at fans in a Canary Isles boozer and yelling, “Are you
f***ing ready?”, before recreating his iconic Ronny Roar.
Archie, a pal and biographer of late Hoops legend Jock Stein, says: “He’s a
free individual and obviously wants to relate to the supporters. It’s not
something Jock Stein would’ve done but we live in a different age.
“Managers were more remote back then. They didn’t do too many things in public
and there weren’t phones to pick up things really quickly.”
And Archie — who will make a Sportscene cameo in Sunday night’s highlights
show doing commentary on Dundee United’s clash with Aberdeen — hopes savage
BBC cuts won’t affect its investment in Scottish sport.
Archie adds: “It’s an institution under pressure in many areas and it’s all
money-driven.
“Live football in television is what everyone goes after these days.
“But I regretted when this stampede to get it seemed to subdue interest in
highlights — Sportscene used to get bigger audiences with highlights
programmes than live matches.
“You can edit out the inconsequential stuff.
“A good, punchy highlights programme like Sportscene is so valuable to a
Scottish audience.”
l Sportscene At 40 is on BBC1 Scotland tomorrow at 10.20pm.