The BBC have confirmed a stellar line-up of snooker legends past and present for their coverage at the Crucible.
Kyren Wilson, 33, will begin the defence of his title in Sheffield this weekend after beating Jak Jones in last year’s thrilling final.
GettyKyren Wilson is the reigning champion[/caption]
However, he will have to overcome the Crucible curse if he is to go back-to-back.
Hazel Irvine will yet again host the BBC’s coverage alongside a star-studded line-up of pundits bringing you analysis, including current professional Shaun Murphy who will compete in Sheffield alongside his media duties.
Abigail Davis will be supporting the coverage on reporting duties who you may recognise better from interviewing Luke Littler on the Ally Pally stage in Sky’s coverage of the darts.
The BBC confirmed that all the action from the Crucible will be broadcast on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four and on iPlayer, with coverage starting this Saturday at 10am.
Here we take a look at all of the snooker legends who will be bringing the action to your screens over the next couple of weeks.
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Hazel Irvine – Lead Presenter
Irvine has been one of the voices of the BBC for over three decades and has been the face of the snooker coverage since 2000.
The Scottish presenter is considered a trailblazer as one of the first females to host sports broadcasts on the BBC.
Whilst Irvine has worked across numerous sports including the Olympics and football, she is most known for her work on snooker.
Irvine herself made the announcement after The Masters final at Ally Pally back in January that the BBC had agreed a deal to show all the Triple Crown snooker events until 2032.
PAIrvine has been the face of the BBC’s snooker coverage since the turn of the century[/caption]
Seema Jaswal – Presenter
Seema Jaswal is one of the more recent stars of sports broadcasting and features prominently across the BBC’s coverage.
The 39-year-old has worked at numerous major football events.
But Jaswal is instantly recognisable to snooker fans, having supported Irvine on presenting duties for the Triple Crown events on the BBC since 2019.
GettyJaswal has a stellar CV in sports broadcasting across football, snooker and darts[/caption]
Abigail Davies – Reporter
World Darts Championship host Abigail Davies has stepped away from the oche this spring to join the BBC’s team at the Crucible.
Since starting with Sky Sports in 2017, Davies has quickly risen to the top of the presenting scene and is on reporting duties for the BBC where she will be bringing live reaction from the players at the table.
Davies is celebrated as an advocate for mental health awareness and has spoken openly about her struggles with an eating disorder when she was younger.
Instagram / abigaildavies26Davies is best known for her coverage of the darts with Sky Sports[/caption]
Stephen Hendry – Pundit / Co-Comms
The seven-time World Champion has been working for the BBC as a commentator since 2013.
Hendry‘s BBC career seemed up in the air earlier this year when he was left out off coverage of the Welsh Open, but he is back to bring us his insight from the Crucible.
Nicknamed The King of the Crucible, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest snooker players of all time, holding the world No 1 ranking for nine seasons.
Hendry winning his second World Championship in 1992
Steve Davis – Pundit / Co-Comms
Snooker pundit by day, DJ by night, Steve Davis is one of snooker’s most recognisable faces.
The Englishman won 71 major titles across his career and even received an OBE for his services to snooker in 2000.
During the 1980’s Davis won the World Championship six times but retired in 2016 and has worked on the BBC’s snooker coverage since.
Alongside his media work, he has featured on I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2013 and set up the electronic music group ‘The Utopia Strong’, performing at Glastonbury in 2016.
AFPAlongside his media duties, Davis DJs and performed at Glastonbury in 2016[/caption]
John Parrott – Pundit / Co-Comms
The Entertainer turned his hand to media after retirement from competition at the end of the 2010-11 season and has worked on the BBC’s coverage since.
The 60-year-old enjoyed a stellar career on the table, winning nine ranking events.
In 1991, Parrot won the World Championship and the UK Championship in the same year – one of only six players to ever achieve that feat.
Parrott is one of only six players to win the World Championship and UK Championship in the same yearGetty
Ken Doherty – Pundit / Co-Comms
The Irishman has been a regular commentator with the BBC since the 2009 Masters after a glittering career.
Crafty Ken won six ranking titles including the 1997 World Championship, and says he did it all with a cue he bought for £2 from his local pool club.
He even haggled the price down from a fiver, securing over 50 per cent discount.
Doherty, 55, reached the second round of qualifying for this year’s tournament but lost to David Lilley.
Doherty was beaten in the second round of qualifiers for this years tournament
John Virgo – Pundit / Co-Comms
Legendary commentator John Virgo will return once again to the Crucible.
Back in 2021, JV told the Talking Snooker podcast that he and his colleague Dennis Taylor were to be axed by the BBC, but here he is again four years on calling all the action.
A former professional himself, the 79-year-old was a semi-finalist in the World Championship in 1979, when he also won the UK Championship.
Virgo is known for saying “watch that cue ball” on comms
Dennis Taylor – Pundit / Co-Comms
Joining Virgo on commentary duty will be Dennis Taylor, who has worked as a pundit since retiring from the professional tour in 2000.
Taylor, 76, famously won the 1985 World Championship, beating the reigning champion Steve Davis with over 18million people watching through the night.
The Northern Irishman became known for his upside-down glasses which he claimed help him with his snooker and is no stranger to working in television.
One of his more famous TV appearances was on the third season of Strictly Come Dancing where he finished in eighth.
Taylor playing in the 1985 World Championship with his unique upside-down glasses on
Shaun Murphy – Pundit / Co-Comms
The Magician is set for a busy summer with a double role at the World Championship, after joining the BBC’s team in 2023.
Murphy last won at the Crucible back in 2005, and 20 years later he is in fine form, after beating Kyren Wilson to win The Masters earlier this year.
The 42-year-old has already pocketed £800,000 in prize money this season, but that isn’t stopping him from joining the BBC team away from the table where he will fill in as a pundit and commentator.
Murphy will complete his media duties alongside competing in the competition Creator – [#item_custom_dc:creator]
