Episodes 1 – 20
Here is a brief run down on what you can expect on each episode, click on the title to go to our podcast hosting site to listen to the shows
In our first show we interviewed the South Shield’s indoor bowls club general manager Ian Riches, we delved into his role at Shields and we also find out about the club’s new branding idea as the “Vipers”, we have Richies round up, our competition and we also kick the can down the street on a couple of subjects. Aired 6th November 2019 (Currently our most listened to show).
Our second show featured one of the games rising female stars – Devon Cooper, we find out how Devon started, her highlights and low lights plus Devon reveals future ambitions and also tackles Bolty’s 7-up questions. We also catch up with England’s Louis Ridout and Sophie Tolchard plus there is Richies round up, our competition and a bit of chat. Aired 13th November 2019
We focus on the great work done at Whiteknights IBC as we chat to general manager Andy Knapper, we find out about their attempts to attract new members plus Andy talks about his playing ambitions and also tackles Bolty’s 7-up questions. As a bonus we touch down with West Denton’s John Booth in readiness for the club hosting the WIBC Under 25 championships plus there is Richies round up, our competition and a bit of chat. Aired 29th November 2019
We take a trip down under for show 5 as we speak to Aussie legend Mark Casey on the rise of the Ultimate Bowls format plus we chat to one of the Jackeroo’s Chole Stewart on her career to date and Chole also takes Bolty’s 7-up challenge, there is the usual Richies round up, competition and a bit of chat. Aired 11th December 2019
Episode 5 – The Flying Scotsman
On show 5 we caught up with a legend of the game – Scotland’s Alex “tattie” Marshall MBE, probably the games most decorated player Alex takes us through his career and gives us his views on the state of the game, Alex takes on Bolty’s 7-up challenge plus there is Richies round up and our competition. Aired 26th December 2019
Episode 6 – The Long and Short of it
On our 6th show with the upcoming Indoor World Championships due to start at Potters Resort we took the opportunity to speak to sports writer Dom Picksley. Dom has been instrumental in providing reports on the WBT championships for many years so we had a good old pick of his brains on a few burning questions. We also caught up with the Short Mat Players Tour top man Craig Burgess For anyone who does not know what the SMPT is or what Short Mat Bowls is we would highly recommend listening to the interview as Craig sheds some light on the game. Plus Dom tackles Bolty’s 7Up challenge, there is Richies Round Up, the competition and a bit of kicking the can down the road chat. Aired 10th January 2020
On this weeks show we have the England internationalist owner and editor of Bowls International Magazine Sian Honnor. We chat with Sian about her career in the sport, her fantastic magazine that has kept many a bowler updated with stories from around the world and some general bowls talk, Sian also takes on Bolty’s 7Up challenge. We also get an insight into the life of a World Championships qualifier when we speak to Cumbria’s Kevin Harrison who lost narrowly to Darren Burnett in the first round at Potters last week. For any new qualifiers this is a must listen as Kevin gives us a great insight of his experience on the blue carpet at Potters. Richie provides his in depth roundup and we have our usual chat which includes responses to a couple of emails and any other burning issues. We will also have another competition sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports. Aired 24th January 2020
Episode 8 – The Umpire Strikes Back
On Show No.8 we interview International umpire Allan Thornhill. Alan gives his insight into our sport from an official point of view. Also on the show we discuss “that” Nicky Brett shot which has gained global exposure and what we feel is needed off the back of it. We have our regular competition sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports, Richie has his regular roundup and one of the hosts take’s on Bolty’s 7up challenge and its not Bolty. We also respond to a couple of email questions. Aired 7th February 2020
Episode 9 – Ability Not Disability
This week the discussion is around disability bowls and our guest is Garry Hood from Scotland. We think listeners will not only be inspired by Garry’s story but will also have a broader understanding of how accessible our sport is to all and potentially gain a better knowledge of what we can do to prolong the lifespan of participants. Garry also takes on Bolty’s 7Up questions. The usual Richie roundup and our competition sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports. We also discuss the recent lad’s Under Home International Series plus we kick the can down the road. Aired 21st February 2020
If you haven’t seen “that shot” on social media or TV then you must have been in hibernation so who better to give us the low down than the current World Number 1 Nicky Brett. This was a great interview and we discuss the here and now as well as providing his greatest challenge to date with Bolty’s 7Up questions. We also have Alistair Hollis from Bowls England who provided us with updates and opinion in what will be a regular interval slot in the future. It was great to hear about the new appointments at board level and an insight into the future. Our competition is an absolute stormer this week with some great prizes up for grabs for 3 (yes we said 3) lucky winners. Whilst you are catching your breath we also have our Richies Roundup and discuss a couple of emails on the show. Aired 6th March 2020
In our 11th show we go “commando” and alongside South Shield’s general manager Ian Riches we just basically kick the can down the street, we look back at the Viper’s loss in the Denny Cup semi finals, we explore the role of the lead and discuss the role of the media in the sport. The table is turned on Bolty in his 7Up challenge plus our usual competition and Richies round up. Aired 20th March 2020
Episode 12 – Treasure Chestney
Due to social distancing we have done an Ant and Dec style show from our homes, so David is on a satellite line from deepest Sunderland. Our guest on the show is Exonia & Devon’s England internationalist Jamie Chestney. Jamie chats about his new role with Bowls England, his new life as a parent with Natalie, plus some general bowls chat and of course tackles Bolty’s 7Up questions. Richie has a very short roundup and we both give our answers to a popular questionnaire that has been doing the rounds as well as some general bowls talk. We also have our regular competition sponsored by Alex Marshall sports. We hope you enjoy the show to be broadcast and as always we hope everyone stays fit and healthy during these isolation days. Aired 3rd April March 2020
Episode 13 – No Airey’s or Graces
On Show 13 we were joined by Cumbria’s former England international Stuart Airey, during the interview Stuart gave us a great insight into his career with some great stories plus life as a Cumbrian player where he has been part of a highly successful outfit for many years.
Stuart also tackles Bolty’s 7Up questions. Richie also provides a short roundup and we discuss some emails and relevant chat. There is also our usual competition thanks as always to Alex Marshall Sports. As a bonus we also had George Babalev on the show from the Bowls Development Alliance providing some very useful information for clubs during this tough period. It will be a great resource for any clubs who may be worried about the future or need assistance with funding etc. Due to the length of both calls we are going to provide the BDA information as a separate recording for those who are specifically looking for assistance. Aired 17th April March 2020
Episode 13 (Bonus) – George Babalev BDA Update
As promised during our “No Airey’s to Graces” show here is an interview with the Bowls Development Alliance’s George Babalev. As the development manager George is well placed to pass on advice to clubs that maybe feeling the pinch during the Corana crisis. Aired 24th April March 2020
On our 14th podcast we have the Irish Voice of Bowls namely David Corkill. We cover David’s career from starting as a 9 year old to present day and a lot in between. Some of those topics cover his time as a player, becoming the commentator for BBC and his spell as a voice over on The Edge Gameshow. He also talks to Richie about the old days but I just had to listen being a young’un I did however get an opportunity to ask my 7Up questions. We also have our regular competition sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports, Richie has a short Roundup and we catch up on a great week full of Spot Prize competitions and more. Aired 1st May 2020
Episode 15 – The Sport of Kings
Welcome to our 15th podcast “The Sport of Kings”. Our guests this week are Rishi Persad one of the best sports presenters in the business and has a lot of passion for bowls and sport in general. Rishi chats about his career and has some great stories – definitely not one to be missed. We also have Scott Morland on to discuss his amazing work at Darlington South Park BC and having known Scott for a lot of years it was good to catch up and have a laugh with someone who likes to create positive discussion via what some may see as creating a bit of controversy but for others it is probably saying what others are frightened to say, Scott is a great guy and you may have read his story in Bowls International but you can hear it from the man himself. The 7Up questions have been furlonged for a bit so Scott takes on our new game Bowls or Balls. Five questions with a true or false answer but in our case it is Bowls or Balls. Richie has a quick roundup and we catch up on our discussions regarding positions and focus on the role of the thirds and skips. Finally to end a packed show we have our regular competition sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports. Aired 15th May 2020
Episode 16 – Back to the Future
There have been a few questions on bringing youth into the sport recently so we catch up with Bowls Leicestershire’s Stephen Beamish to discuss the implementation of a youth academy in the county. Stephen also attempts to knock Scott off the top of the Bowls or Balls leaderboard. We discuss the latest rage in accessories – the laser measure, we give our thoughts on the concept. Its a trip down memory lane to the 2007 National Championships at Worthing when something very unique happened. Plus we catch up with some of the outstanding questions that were unanswered during our new Facebook feature – Bolty’s live Blog. Aired on 29th May 2020
Two of the games top women young guns Lorraine Kuhler and Katherine Rednall are in the hot seats, the two England stars discuss the current state of the game and give us their thoughts on the World Indoor Championships, the Open Singles Circuit and they throw in a bit of England chat. They also tackle Bolty’s Bowls or Balls quiz (which is a must listen) along the way adding significantly to the bloopers list in what was a really enjoyable chat with a few laughs along the way.Richie’s Round Up goes all Stephen Hawking and we tie up a few loose ends. Aired on 12th June 2020
Episode 18 – Foster – Amber Nectar
On show 18 we had the pleasure of having another Scottish legend, Paul Foster MBE joined us via zoom for a chat. Paul’s achievements are phenomenal and it takes a 2 second search to bring up a lengthy list so it was nice to chat about what has made him the player he is today and to get an insight into the make-up of his career and the fact that he was a decent footballer. How did his delivery style come to fruition? How did his partnership with Alex Marshall plus Jack & Victor?…… we find out what that is all about. More important than all that though was his participation in Bowls or Balls. Potentially one of his career highlights . Richie’s round up has been furlonged or has he just gone down the beach but we do catch up on a few topics. Plus we have our regular competition kindly sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports. Aired on 26th June 2020
Episode 19 – Just Bowl With Mark Dawes
On show 19 we have a chat with former World Indoor Singles champion Mark Dawes to discuss the impending closure of his indoor club and the huge impact it will have to so many members of the sport. We also discuss his world title winning journey and get to know more about the quiet, unassuming character we see gracing our greens…….or is he? We catch up with Ian McCombes the general manager of “Just Bowl”. For anyone who is not aware of this fantastic organisation and what a positive effect they have on peoples lives whilst promoting our sport then please take some time to have a look at the website www.justbowl.org where you will find a wealth of information and case studies that really makes great reading. We see huge benefits to clubs with the Just Bowl equipment and would highly recommend adding it to your facilities to give your Open Days a positive impact and an alternative way to interact with new and existing members. Mark Dawes tackles a “Lancashire edition” of Bowls or Balls and we have our usual competition which again we are grateful to Alex Marshall Sports for there support. Aired on 10th July 2020
On show 20 “Back To Indoors” Well three weeks seem like a month….. but we are back. On our 20th show “Back To Indoors” our guest is the EIBA’s chief executive Peter Thomson. Peter gives us the low down on all the work the EIBA have done to get indoors bowls back up and running. As its another milestone we have a chat about the 29 great guests we have had on the show. There is a Blooper special and as usual we have our competition which again is kindly sponsored by Alex Marshall Sports Ltd. As a Brucie Bonus we have a re-run of one of Bolty’s infamous Bowls or Balls🤔 Thanks again for your support and hope you enjoy the show. Aired on 24th July 2020