Radio and TV presenter Danny Baker is reuniting with on/off collaborator Danny Kelly to front a new football show for BT Sport, the sports channels from broadband giant BT.
The channels will offer sports fans 38 Barclays Premier League matches per season, exclusive Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) coverage and 800 hours of live tennis, including the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships.
Airing on Friday evenings, Baker and Kelly’s Vaguely Sporting Phone-Out will be a live interactive football show broadcasting live from the BT Sport studios in the Queen Elizabeth Park throughout the 2013-2014 season.
The first show will air on August 16, the day before the Barclays Premier League season kicks off.
The two Dannys have worked together on football shows for various radio stations over the past 20 years, most notably for BBC Radio 5live.
Their new series is a co-production between BT Sport and Campbell Davison Media, the company behind Baker’s multi award-winning BBC Radio 5live Show on Saturday mornings.
Baker said: “We intend to make all other twisted opinion shows seem as dull as egg eating contests. No wait, egg eating contests are pretty cool aren’t they? Like in Cool Hand Luke who, lest we forget, before he ate the eggs was just called Hand Luke.
“So just as I said, but forget the egg eating contest bit. Instead think ‘all other football opinion shows” That’s it. Baker & Kelly: The Best At All That Stuff. Sometimes right. Sometimes wrong. Always certain.”
Journalist, TV presenter and TalkSPORT host Danny Kelly added: ““Baker! Kelly! Back! Hurrah! Thrilled! Let torches be lit in the high places of the land and bunting be flown from every spire!
“Seriously, we’re delighted to have another crack at whatever it is that we do. Only BT Sport could combine the strategic vision, creative drive and financial muscle to make this happen. It’s even possible they won’t regret it.”
“Danny Baker and Danny Kelly are two of the country’s best-known and admired football hosts,” said Simon Green, head of BT Sport.
“Their off the wall observations and passionate, humorous and engaging style of debate will be a huge hit with our viewers as we try to build some fantastic and fun programmes around the incredible live rights we have secured.”