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{{Short description|English journalist, writer and radio broadcaster}}
{{
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Alan Gibson
| image = Alan Gibson 1976.jpg
| caption = Gibson in the 1970s
| birth_name = Norman Alan Stewart Gibson
| birth_date = {{birth date|1923|5|28|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Sheffield]], [[Yorkshire]], England
| death_date = {{death date and age|1997|4|10|1923|5|28|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Taunton]], [[Somerset]], England
| education = [[Taunton School]]
| alma_mater = [[The Queen's College, Oxford]]
| occupation = Journalist, writer, radio broadcaster
| spouse = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Olwen Thomas|1948|end=div}}
* {{marriage|Rosemary King|1968|end=div}}
}}
| children = 4
}}
'''Norman Alan Stewart Gibson'''<ref>His obituary in ''The Independent'' gives his third name as "Stewart" as does IMDb, but both ''Wisden'' and Cricinfo give it as "Stanley".</ref> (28 May 1923 – 10 April 1997) was an English journalist, writer and radio broadcaster, best known for his work in connection with [[cricket]], though he also sometimes covered [[Football (soccer)|football]] and [[rugby union]]. At various times Alan Gibson was also a university lecturer, poet, BBC radio producer, historian, Baptist lay preacher and [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] parliamentary candidate.
==Life and career==
Alan Gibson was born at [[Sheffield]] in [[Yorkshire]], but the family moved to [[Leyton]], on the north-eastern outskirts of London, when he was seven,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gibson |first1=Alan |title=A Mingled Yarn |date=1976 |publisher=Collins |location=London |isbn=000216115X |pages=22–24}}</ref> and subsequently to the [[West Country]], where he attended [[Taunton School]]. Apart from his time at university, he spent all his subsequent life in that region, most of his cricket reporting being of [[Somerset CCC|Somerset]] and [[Gloucestershire CCC|Gloucestershire]] matches. After school he went to [[The Queen's College, Oxford|Queen's College, Oxford]], where he gained a First in history and was elected [[Presidents of the Oxford Union|President of the Oxford Union]], though he never took office because of being called for [[Conscription in the United Kingdom#After 1945|National Service]].
Gibson was a member of the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] and served as President of the [[Falmouth and Camborne (UK Parliament constituency)|Falmouth and Camborne Liberal Association]]. He stood as parliamentary candidate for that constituency at the [[1959 United Kingdom general election|1959 General election]] but came third.<ref>The Times House of Commons, 1959</ref>
He was briefly a travelling lecturer with [[Exeter University|University College, Exeter]], before getting a job with the West Region of the [[BBC Radio]] [[Home Service]]. That led him into cricket (and other sporting) commentary on matches in the region, though he did not do much of this until leaving the BBC staff and becoming a freelance. Eventually he graduated to national broadcasts, including appearances on ''[[Test Match Special]]'' from 1962 to 1975.<ref name="CMJ">Christopher Martin-Jenkins, ''Ball by Ball: The Story of Cricket Broadcasting'', 1990.</ref> He was a presenter of the [[BBC West]] regional TV news magazine programme ''Westward Ho!'' during 1953. Between 1955 and 1966, with his fellow compere Derek Jones, he presented a Saturday morning radio programme for the West Region called ''Good Morning!'', interspersing popular music with unscripted chat between the presenters.<ref>Gibson, ''A Mingled Yarn'', pp. 129–47.</ref> He was the narrator for the short documentary film ''Falmouth for Orders'' in 1965 and for three episodes of the BBC TV natural history series ''[[The World About Us]]'' between 1968 and 1973.<ref name="imdb">
He wrote on cricket at various times for ''[[The Sunday Telegraph]]'', ''[[The Guardian]]'', ''[[The Spectator]]'' and ''[[The Cricketer]]''. From 1967 until 1986 he was a cricket reporter for ''[[The Times]]''. He also reported [[rugby union]], in print and on radio. He appeared on the radio shows ''[[Sunday Half Hour]]'' and ''[[Round Britain Quiz]]''. In 1961 he briefly joined the recently launched [[Westward Television]] to present ''Westward Diary'' after "he had been involved in a disagreement with the West Region authorities of the BBC over a comment he is alleged to have made in a two-way records programme with Derek Jones".<ref>"Alan Gibson goes to commercial TV", ''Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser'', 9 September 1961</ref>
As a cricket commentator he was articulate and often drily humorous. On a Saturday afternoon sport programme, [[Neil Durden-Smith]] once mentioned that he had been having tea with the Bishop of Leicester. On being cued in, Gibson began his commentary stint with: "No episcopal visitations here."<ref name="CMJ"/> His cricket writing for ''The Times'' was generally light-hearted, often concentrating more on his journey to the match (invariably by train, often changing at [[Didcot]], rarely straightforward) than on the cricket itself.<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-alan-gibson-1267171.html Obituary published in ''The Independent''.] Retrieved 26 September 2009.</ref>
In his pieces he coined the descriptions "the Sage of [[Longparish]]" for his colleague [[John Woodcock (cricket writer)|John Woodcock]], "the Demon of [[Frome]]" for [[Colin Dredge]] of [[Somerset CCC|Somerset]], the Old Bald Blighter (the OBB) for [[Brian Close]] and "the [[Shoreditch]] Sparrow" for [[Robin Jackman]]. Woodcock said concerning their reports for ''The Times'': "I write about the cricket, and Alan writes about 'A Day at the Cricket'."<ref>''Growing up with Cricket'', p174.</ref>
In 1975 he was chosen to give the address at the memorial service for Sir [[Neville Cardus]], held at [[St Paul's, Covent Garden]]. This was printed in the following year's edition of ''[[Wisden Cricketer's Almanack]]''.<ref>[http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/152557.html Sir Neville Cardus, A Tribute] Retrieved 15 Sep 2011</ref> He was elected the first President of the [[Cricket Writers' Club]] in 1982.<ref>[http://www.cricketwritersclub.com/honoursboard.aspx Cricket Writers' Club presidency] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312123737/http://www.cricketwritersclub.com/honoursboard.aspx |date=12 March 2007 }}</ref>
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He married twice: to Olwen Thomas in 1948 and to Rosemary King in 1968. Both marriages produced two children and both ended in divorce.<ref name=imdb/> He died at [[Taunton]] in Somerset.
==Select bibliography==
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==Notes==
{{reflist}}
==References==
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[[Category:1997 deaths]]
[[Category:People educated at Taunton School]]
[[Category:Alumni of
[[Category:British male journalists]]
[[Category:British sports broadcasters]]
[[Category:English cricket commentators]]
[[Category:Cricket
[[Category:Sportspeople from Sheffield]]
[[Category:Presidents of the Oxford Union]]
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[[Category:The Guardian journalists]]
[[Category:English rugby union commentators]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Sheffield]]
[[Category:20th-century British military personnel]]
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