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5 minutes with Tony Squires

 

What qualifications do you have to host a sports show?

Absolutely none! I'm neither a celebrity nor an ex-sportsman. The whole idea is getting together a range of people who aren't experts but are passionate, having a chinwag as if they were in a pub chewing the fat.

You and the Prime Minister John Howard share a love of the ST George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL. D you get together and have cosy chats?

Well, you can't pick the members of your tribe. I'm waiting for my invitation, but I'm well down the list behind people like Mark Taylor.

What did you think about South Sydney being axed from the NRL at the start of last year?

I was disapointed, because St George and Souths always made for a good match. But it made me slightly happy that firends like [TV personality] Mikey Robins suddenly didn't have a team. I always like to see my friends suffer.

Who would you love to have on The Fat?

[Current Australian cricket captain] Steve Waugh, as he holds the top office in the land. And [musician] Neil Finn is a hero of mine.

What are your favourite sports?

I love a live AFL match, but i can watch every minute of every hour of every day of a cricket test match- and golf, even if it's literally like watching the grass grow.

And your best and worst TV shows?

I love The West Wing, but reality show Temptation Island is truly a low point in humanity. It's hard to think of anything less 'real' than what's on TV at the moment.

 

--7th-13th April, 2001 TV Week.