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The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Man Utd title winner didn't want to leave house after being mocked for his looks and got apology from Gary Lineker
LUKE CHADWICK has revealed he was left battling depression and anxiety after being mocked for his appearance. The former 3 Luke Chadwick (middle) has admitted he suffered from depression and anxiety during his time at Manchester United Credit: PA 3 The former midfielder was ridiculed for his looks Credit: PA 3 Now 44, the ex-MK Dons and Stoke midfielder has opened up his experience Credit: Getty Chadwick came through the United youth system, winning the Premier League in 2001. He would go to play for West Ham, Stoke and MK Dons in a near two-decade career. Ahead of releasing his autobiography Not Just a Pretty Face, the 44-year-old has opened up about abuse he suffered as a young pro. Chadwick admits cruel comments about his appearance made him want to hide away in his house in the early stages of his career. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL He told "I didn't want to go to the shops, I didn't want to go out with my friends. "I would just want to stay at home because I was so scared that people would talk about the way that I looked. "I wasn't able to speak about it to anyone – not even my family, my friends – it was something that I kept so deep inside. Most read in Football BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK "I probably felt helpless, in a way, because I just didn't know how to deal with it. And I just wanted it to stop, really." Chadwick's anxiety improved after moving away from Old Trafford to join the Hammers in 2004. Ex-Man Utd player Luke Chadwick claims his 'stomach twisted' whenever he appeared on TV as he battled depression He continued: "It wasn't until I came away from Manchester United, and the spotlight's not on you as much. "I was able to rebuild my confidence and live a really happy life. "Football was always the place I felt free - the place where I didn't think about anything else." Chadwick also received an apology from Gary Lineker for comments made on the BBC show They Think It's All Over. Lineker was a team captain on the panel show, which regularly poked fun at Chadwick over his looks. The England legend wrote on X in 2020: "I was part of that show, therefore, I too would like to apologise to Luke Chadwick for any hurt caused." Depression... the signs to look for and what to do Depression can manifest in many ways. We all feel a bit low from time to time. But depression is persistent and can make a person feel helpless and unable to see a way through. They may also struggle to about daily life. Mind says these are some common signs of depression that you may experience: How you might feel Down, upset or tearful Restless, agitated or irritable Guilty, worthless and down on yourself Empty and numb Isolated and unable to relate to other people Finding no pleasure in life or things you usually enjoy Angry or frustrated over minor things A sense of unreality No self-confidence or self-esteem Hopeless and despairing Feeling tired all the time How you might act Avoiding social events and activities you usually enjoy Self-harming or suicidal behaviour Difficulty speaking, thinking clearly or making decisions Losing interest in sex Difficulty remembering or concentrating on things Using more tobacco, alcohol or other drugs than usual Difficulty sleeping, or sleeping too much No appetite and losing weight, or eating more than usual and gaining weight Physical aches and pains with no obvious physical cause Moving very slowly, or being restless and agitated If you feel this way, visit your GP who can help you. If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support. The following are free to contact and confidential: Samaritans, CALM (the leading movement against suicide in men) Papyrus (prevention of young suicide) Shout (for support of all mental health) Mind, Rethink Mental Illness,
Daily Mirror
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Gary Lineker left the BBC with no choice as he finally reaches full time
The last two years have seen Gary Lineker run into a host of controversies, so it is easy to forget he used to be mainly known for scoring goals, his big ears and flogging crisps. Following his retirement after a distinguished playing career, Lineker joined BBC Radio 5 Live as a football pundit before becoming a team captain on the sports game show They Think It's All Over from 1995 to 2003. The quiz in many ways helped him to have a more relaxed persona on screen, having initially seemed a little wooden in front of camera at times. In 1997 he took over as host of Grandstand and when then-presenter Desmond Lynam was at Aintree for the Grand National which was abandoned due to a bomb alert. Lineker had hours to fill and learn to front live TV on the job. Speaking last month about it Lineker said: 'I was thrust in there, just one camera, no autocue, or anything. It wasn't great, but actually it wasn't that bad either. But I tell you it was quite an experience, that was actually a defining experience because I thought if I can cope with this, than I can cope because you can't get anything more difficult than that.' After honing his skills he replaced Lynam as presenter of the BBC's flagship football highlights programme Match Of The Day in 1999, when Lynam defected to rival ITV. Lineker would later become the corporation's highest-paid presenter, with the BBC's latest annual report showing his salary to be to around £1.35 million a year. All the while he was also advertising Walkers Crisps, made in his hometown of Leicester. The partnership was so strong they would rename a flavour Salt and Lineker in the Nineties. Lineker also presented Match Of The Day in his boxer shorts in 2016 after losing a bet which saw Leicester win the Premier league. But his relaxed and jokey manner then began to show cracks in the last few years as he was hit by a string of controversies. He was temporarily suspended from the BBC in March 2023 after an impartiality row over comments he made criticising the then-government's new asylum policy on social media. Pundits refused to go on the show without him and he was reinstated. The BBC then issued new rules about twitter. In November 2024 he announced he would be stepping down from presenting Match Of The Day at the end of the season, but would still host World Cup and FA Cup coverage. In February this year along with 500 high-profile figures he signed an open letter in February urging the BBC to rebroadcast a documentary, Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone, to BBC iPlayer. The BBC board highlighted 'serious flaws' in the making of this programme. In April he was outspoken again and said some BBC bosses 'wanted' him out of the corporation, despite still having a contract with them for more than a year. And finally a month later he is exiting the broadcaster early, however, after apologising for sharing and then deleting a post on his Instagram account from the group Palestine Lobby, illustrated with a picture of a rat, which prompted calls for him to be sacked from the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA). Lineker was an iconic football presenter who millions will know as one of the faces of England's highs and lows in World Cups and European Championships. But having famously never been booked in his football career where he was so level headed, he has been asked to leave by the BBC for an ill advised decision.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gary Lineker will be an even bigger danger to the BBC once he is gone
Whatever your views on Gary Lineker you cannot argue with his range. Few can rival a career which has spanned Nagoya Grampus Eight to crisp adverts, Sports Personality of the Year to They Think It's All Over, podcast impresario to Baller League manager. This is made possible by wearing several hats. Wisecracking Gary fronts Match of the Day but sweary Gary swaps in for The Rest Is Football. These days serious Gary seems to be in charge of the social media passwords. In a 45-minute interview with Amol Rajan it was the lesser-spotted contemplative Gary, in a quiet and almost maudlin register for long periods. But it was the sight of spiky Gary which left the strongest impression. In a very BBC 45 minutes its 19th best-paid employee interviewed its first, mostly about the BBC. There was some gentle foreplay about his football career, Diego Maradona, Paul Gascoigne, scoring goals for fun, Walkers packs for goalposts etc. Rajan attempted some matey humour, ribbing Lineker for failing to make his county youth football team, then learned in real time that the first rule of speaking to footballers is that the only people allowed to make jokes are footballers. Lineker himself was good on his pant-wearing MOTD appearance 'I didn't eat that day,' and laudably honest about the horror of his son George's leukaemia and anxious dreams of a white coffin. Thankfully George recovered. The loudmouth lefty ogre his critics perceive was absent until 20 minutes in. Lineker was questioned about being stood down from MOTD in 2023 after a tweet comparing the then-Tory government's policy on illegal migrants with 'language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s.' Credit: BBC 'I love the BBC and I didn't like the damage that it did to the BBC,' said Lineker. Rajan pushed back about expectations of neutrality, Lineker responded by pointing out that impartiality rules were intended for news and current affairs staff, not those in other areas, especially not freelancers like him. After a cagey opening the mood had turned combative. 'This is the mistake the BBC makes,' said Lineker, 'the BBC tries to appease the people that hate the BBC, the people that always go on about the licence fee and attack the BBC. They worry way too much about that rather than worrying about the people that love the BBC, which is the vast majority, because the BBC is a wonderful institution. It's got its problems, but that is a mistake that they made.' Taking him off air was 'a silly overreaction,' he said, and he revealed he learnt about the decision when it became public, rather than being told privately beforehand. 'I wasn't that bothered, because I suspected it was coming,' said Lineker, although he was moved to tears in a cab after Ian Wright and Alan Shearer announced they would not appear on MOTD in support of his removal. Lineker has signed a letter calling for the iPlayer reinstatement of the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone, which was removed after its 13-year-old narrator was discovered to be the son of a Hamas official. 'The BBC as a whole needs to be impartial' about the conflict between Israel and Palestine, said Rajan. 'Why? It needs to be factual,' said a suddenly forceful Lineker. 'It wasn't impartial about Ukraine and Russia.' He will have many supporters here. Despite his allusions to the corporation not wanting to give him a new contract for MOTD, Lineker does not seem to have an axe to grind with the highlights programme he has fronted for 26 years. There was no flicker of discomfort on this subject, nor reason to doubt his reasoning that 'it's time' to step away. It would be surprising if he deviated much from this line in future, especially given he will still be fronting the BBC's FA Cup coverage and next year's World Cup. His words and demeanour on non-sporting topics were more intriguing. He expects to wind down his TV work and concentrate on podcasting until retirement. This is the medium where he is free to express himself without constraint, to a highly receptive audience. Being self-employed by his Goalhanger production company removes any further inhibitions. Suddenly you could see Lineker as a more dangerous presence as a BBC outsider than he ever was within it. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Gary Lineker will be an even bigger danger to the BBC once he is gone
Whatever your views on Gary Lineker you cannot argue with his range. Few can rival a career which has spanned Nagoya Grampus Eight to crisp adverts, Sports Personality of the Year to They Think It's All Over, podcast impresario to Baller League manager. This is made possible by wearing several hats. Wisecracking Gary fronts Match of the Day but sweary Gary swaps in for The Rest Is Football. These days serious Gary seems to be in charge of the social media passwords. In a 45-minute interview with Amol Rajan it was the lesser-spotted contemplative Gary, in a quiet and almost maudlin register for long periods. But it was the sight of spiky Gary which left the strongest impression. In a very BBC 45 minutes its 19th best-paid employee interviewed its first, mostly about the BBC. There was some gentle foreplay about his football career, Diego Maradona, Paul Gascoigne, scoring goals for fun, Walkers packs for goalposts etc. Rajan attempted some matey humour, ribbing Lineker for failing to make his county youth football team, then learned in real time that the first rule of speaking to footballers is that the only people allowed to make jokes are footballers. Lineker himself was good on his pant-wearing MOTD appearance 'I didn't eat that day,' and laudably honest about the horror of his son George's leukaemia and anxious dreams of a white coffin. Thankfully George recovered. The loudmouth lefty ogre his critics perceive was absent until 20 minutes in. Lineker was questioned about being stood down from MOTD in 2023 after a tweet comparing the then-Tory government's policy on illegal migrants with 'language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s.' 'I love the BBC and I didn't like the damage that it did to the BBC,' said Lineker. Rajan pushed back about expectations of neutrality, Lineker responded by pointing out that impartiality rules were intended for news and current affairs staff, not those in other areas, especially not freelancers like him. After a cagey opening the mood had turned combative. 'This is the mistake the BBC makes,' said Lineker, 'the BBC tries to appease the people that hate the BBC, the people that always go on about the licence fee and attack the BBC. They worry way too much about that rather than worrying about the people that love the BBC, which is the vast majority, because the BBC is a wonderful institution. It's got its problems, but that is a mistake that they made.' Taking him off air was 'a silly overreaction,' he said, and he revealed he learnt about the decision when it became public, rather than being told privately beforehand. 'I wasn't that bothered, because I suspected it was coming,' said Lineker, although he was moved to tears in a cab after Ian Wright and Alan Shearer announced they would not appear on MOTD in support of his removal. Lineker has signed a letter calling for the iPlayer reinstatement of the documentary Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone, which was removed after its 13-year-old narrator was discovered to be the son of a Hamas official. 'The BBC as a whole needs to be impartial' about the conflict between Israel and Palestine, said Rajan. 'Why? It needs to be factual,' said a suddenly forceful Lineker. 'It wasn't impartial about Ukraine and Russia.' He will have many supporters here. Despite his allusions to the corporation not wanting to give him a new contract for MOTD, Lineker does not seem to have an axe to grind with the highlights programme he has fronted for 26 years. There was no flicker of discomfort on this subject, nor reason to doubt his reasoning that 'it's time' to step away. It would be surprising if he deviated much from this line in future, especially given he will still be fronting the BBC's FA Cup coverage and next year's World Cup. His words and demeanour on non-sporting topics were more intriguing. He expects to wind down his TV work and concentrate on podcasting until retirement. This is the medium where he is free to express himself without constraint, to a highly receptive audience. Being self-employed by his Goalhanger production company removes any further inhibitions. Suddenly you could see Lineker as a more dangerous presence as a BBC outsider than he ever was within it.
BBC News
29-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Star panel revealed for BBC Radio Stoke Make A Difference Awards
An all-star panel of judges has been announced for this year's BBC Radio Stoke Make A Difference across all eight categories close at 17:00 BST on year's judges include an Olympic gold medallist and a former Blue Peter presenter as well as a host of actors and TV stars. Among them The Great Pottery Throw Down presenter Keith Brymer Jones and They Think It's All Over's Nick award ceremony will take place later this year at the Bet365 Stadium in Stoke-on-Trent. The full list of categories this year is:The Volunteer Award, judged by The Great Pottery Throw Down presenter Keith Brymer Jones, is awarded to an individual who makes a notable difference to their community by giving their time voluntarily to help Young Hero Award, judged by track and field athlete and sports presenter Jazmin Sawyers, will be awarded to someone under 16 who has made a positive impact in their community or achieved something Great Neighbour Award, judged by actor and TV presenter Nick Hancock, is awarded to an individual who helps to make the neighbourhood a better place to live or work in, either on a regular basis or through a single act of Active Award, judged by trampoline gold medal-winning Olympian Bryony Page, awarded to an individual or group of people who have used physical activity or sport as a way of improving the lives of those in their Animal Award, judged by former Blue Peter presenter Anthea Turner, is awarded to either a remarkable animal that improves people's lives or an individual or group of people who improve the welfare of Green Award, judged by explorer, author, and documentary maker Levison Wood, which is awarded to an individual or group of people who improve or conserve their local Fundraiser Award, judged by playwright and actor Deb McAndrew, is awarded to an individual or group of people who have gone the extra mile to raise funds for a good Community Group Award, judged by former SAS soldier Melvyn Downes, awarded to a group of people who have helped to change the lives of others within their community. A spokesperson for the station said: "We're so lucky in Staffordshire and Cheshire that they go above and beyond in their communities."Every year, we're inspired by their stories, and it's wonderful to be able to recognise just a few of them at this special occasion." To nominate a winner, visit the BBC's Make A Difference pages online. Shortlisted finalists will be notified from June 2025. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
