Business News The Griffin Report
Veteran broadcaster Gary Newbon is one of the most recognisable names in West Midlands sport, having spent five decades rubbing shoulders with the stars. His 50-year media career was acknowledged with an MBE in the New Year honours list. Jon Griffin finds out how Newbon plans to impart his wisdom to the business world.
and now he’s a proud MBE. But at 73, Gary Newbon shows
H
few signs of slowing down. After a lifetime of coaxing pearls of wisdom from the likes of Brian Clough and Muhammad Ali, Gary is looking to turn his talents to the business world. “The biggest fear for many
leading business executives or those with important public roles is speaking in public or to large groups of people. Broadcasting holds similar apprehensions and fears, if not more so. “I would like to train chief
executives how to speak in public. I do motivational speeches – I believe most things are achievable if you set your mind to it and are prepared to put up with setbacks. “One of my themes is that you
should do what you want to in life, not necessarily what your parents want you to do.” Solihull-based Gary rose from a
humble Cambridge upbringing – his father started working life as an apprentice printer and his mother was a shopkeeper – to cover seven football World Cups, three Olympic Games and spar verbally on TV with the likes of Pele, Clough, Alex Ferguson, Muhammad Ali and many others. Now, with an MBE for services to
media, sport and charity newly under his belt, Gary, whose working career took in over 20 years as West Midlands Controller of Sport for ITV, has a lifetime of lessons and anecdotes to pass on to younger generations. “In business, I knew who I wanted,
I checked people out. People can interview well, people can interview badly. What you want to know is what the person is like, whether you can trust them. There are many people in the world who can talk a good game, but can they play it? “I have only had four employers
in my whole life. I still believe in loyalty. Maybe one of my faults is I am not ruthless enough – I do not think I have ever trodden on anybody in TV or journalism just to get on. “My parents always believed in honesty and integrity. No-one is
e has been the face and voice of West Midlands sport for half a century –
Gary Newbon
‘I have only had four employers in my whole life. I still believe in loyalty’
going to live forever, you have to live with yourself.” A lifetime at the sharp end of
broadcasting has given Gary a rare insight into the human psyche – and one man stands above all others in his vast memory bank. “Brian Clough was an
outrageous, highly confident, egotistical genius with a fantastic kind streak, particularly for the
underdog. In 2002, when I had a stroke, I came out of hospital and I had a letter which said: ‘Get well, we love you, Barbara and Brian Clough’. “Both Clough and Alex
Ferguson were incredibly compassionate men. With Ferguson, nobody ever questioned his authority, he was always in control.”
Today Gary, whose MBE also
reflected his work as Midlands President of the Lords Taverners and with other charities, is as busy as ever, including ambassadorial roles with Hotel du Vin, energy firm Utilita and others as well as running his own Prime Ticket Productions firm. “My main ambition now is for my
kids and grandkids to outlive me,” he says tongue in cheek. “But I would like to do a bit more in the business world, I quite fancy being non-executive director of a company.”
February 2019 CHAMBERLINK 19
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