RN: The warmth you have for Aberdeen wouldbe shared by any real football fan, you’ve seenthe good and the bad times as an Aberdeen fan;do you agree with Fergie’s comment in the fore-word to your book that your glory years were a‘miracle’?

Ally Begg: “Miracle can be defined as a “won-derful occurrence”. I find this quite apt to de-scribe that period in my life. It was the perfecttime to grow up and I feel quite blessed to haveexperienced all the fantastic times under Sir

Alex. I suppose it was a minor miracle what theClub achieved considering the domination ofthe Old Firm in Scotland at the time. Take intoconsideration Sir Alex had no money to spendand was told quite sternly by the Club Chairmanat the time to work with his youth players, itshows the mark of the man and his coacheshow they all moulded a team which would go onto have the amount of success they did. MaybeI can argue he created his own miracle!”

RN: Can you see similarities in the difficultiesfaced after he left Aberdeen with United rightnow?

AB: “To be honest not really, the game in thepast 30 years has changed so much its almostunrecognisable. Sir Alex was given time, DavidMoyes was not – I’m now starting to wonderhow much of the three years Mr Van Gaal willactually be given to turn things around. Thepressure to deliver results is all that mattersthese days, not building teams or working hardbehind the scenes. With the legacy that Sir Alexhas left behind if United do not win the Leaguethat is deemed as failure – whether we like it ornot! It’s all there for us to see the impact of notqualifying for the Champions league, the finan-cial impact is huge – it wasn’t back when SirAlex first started.”

RN: Clearly you had a nice bond with himwhen you worked at MUTV; I can imaginethough there is a mix between buzzing your titsoff and shitting yourself before each interviewwith the hairdryer always at the back of yourmind, is that a fair review?!

AB: “Absolutely, in my book I have told the taleof meeting him personally and professionally, onthe odd occasion I did interview him I spentmore time preparing, checking my questions,making sure I did not insult his incredible foot-

ball brain than any other person I interviewed.He makes you step up to the plate; he com-mands your very best efforts! I am extremely for-tunate that with my Grandfather’s (RN: arespected journalist) connection he was alwaysvery welcoming and spent time chatting to meabout my family, Glasgow, Aberdeen and mywork at MUTV before actually getting into thecrux of the interview. Thankfully he always said“well done” after every interview so I knew Icould go home in the safe knowledge that the

boss was pleased with my days’ work, thosetwo little words (well done) is what makes you“buzz off your tits”!!”

RN: How does it work, would he say whichsubjects were off topic beforehand, or did youand the presenters or the club make thosejudgements? I’m thinking of his mind games,when he did say something, or didn’t, subjectscovered and not…

AB: “Thankfully in my experience no subjectwas ever off topic. Working for a Club Channeldiffers from a normal broadcaster – the club haseditorial control (and rightly so) so your ques-tions have to be carefully thought out before-hand. It was always very important to me that Ifound a balance between editorial decisionmaking and not insulting the intelligence of thefan. A fan knows when the wool is being pulledover their eyes; they pay their subscriptionsafter all so deserve the very best from us. I al-ways went through my questions with the play-ers and Sir Alex prior to the cameras rolling so Iwould not catch them unprepared. Trust playeda huge part in my time at MUTV so I believe Iwas always able to get the best out the playeras they knew I had no agenda!”

RN: Which interview stands out for you andwhy?

AB:  “Too many to mention to be honest. Thefirst time I interviewed Sir Alex after newly join-ing MUTV was simply exhilarating. I had notseen him for many years and was visibly shak-ing as he walked into the room. My co-presen-ter at the time at MUTV, Jeannie B, gave me agentle dig in the ribs and whispered in my ear tobehave myself which helped calm me down.After making the introductions and discoveringI was an Aberdeen fan and the grandson ofJohn Begg, Sir Alex took me to one side andtold me what a great man my Grandfather was

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and that I should be incredibly proud. He alsosaid how delighted he was that I was on-boardat MUTV and to make sure I carried on myGrandfather’s legacy. We had a window of 10minutes to interview the gaffer – he stayed withus for 30 minutes chatting about winning theEuropean Cup and life as a whole at United – atruly magnificent day!”

RN: Every player is different of course, RoyKeane said on his book tour that the players did-n’t like doing MUTV as it was a distraction,

what’s your take? Who stood out (and didn’t)?

AB: “I think he’s talking utter bollocks. I don’tthink the players believed doing MUTV was adistraction, it may have been a pain if theywanted to get off home or had pressing mattersbut I believe most players upon entering the stu-dio simply got on with it. They all respected wehad a job to do as much as they had a job to do.Meeting David Beckham for the first time wassurprisingly easy as his world fame at the time(2002) was astonishing. His humbleness left alasting impression on me. Ryan Giggs was greatfun as was Dwight Yorke and Ole Gunnar Sol-skjaer. Phil and Gary Neville’s professionalismalways impressed me. I enjoyed chatting to allthe players and staff to be honest, I can’t recallever coming out the studio thinking “Christ thatwas hard work” even when I interviewed MrKeane – bless him!”

RN: Was there pressure from above over con-tent, restrictions on anything critical being said(for example I’m thinking of Stuart Pearson afterhis comments after a Derby Day defeat?) Howmuch freedom did you have/do they have?

AB:  “We had to be very careful and mindful ofnot being overly critical. MUTV represents thefootball club and has to abide by

the rules. I think it’s testimony to all those thathave worked there and continue to work therethat the channel and the club have a fantasticrelationship and have stood the test of timewhere others have failed. Yes, there have beenups and downs but that’s only to be expected.The guests should in my opinion have freedomof speech but for an amicable relationship tocontinue words have to be chosen carefully, itwill only work this way whether we like it or not.I had the same problems at Celtic TV when

guests were banned from the channel for theirover exuberant comments. I personally did notagree with the banning of guests as it is a per-sonal opinion after all. For me it was all aboutmaking good television and if the odd criticismslipped into the chat I had no problems with it. Ialso believed the players needed to be a bitmore thick-skinned when I was there and ac-cept that constructive criticism comes with theterritory – at both United and Celtic.”

RN: I think a lot of Reds enjoy certain aspectsto MUTV - United in Press, press conferences,games with Paddy Crerand, etc - but feel itcould be and do so much more (it rarely showssay press conferences live or breaking eventslive), and has a lot of repeats. Was that some-thing you and colleagues were aware of? Is thata fair criticism?

AB: “Living abroad since 2007 means I havenot seen MUTV for many years now but I con-tinue to have friends to this day that work at thechannel and work incredibly hard to deliver thevery best content to the fans. I have been toldthat the channel is vastly improved since I leftten years ago in terms of delivery and produc-tion value. I joined when the channel was stillvery much in its infancy and yes there weremany repeats but the schedules had to be filled.

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At the time MUTV had in relative terms a smallteam who worked round the clock to deliver.They could only do so much with the resourcesat hand. We also have to take into considerationbudgets, trust me when I tell you running a clubchannel is not cheap and has to run within itsmeans. I can also tell you all that work at MUTVstrive to make the channel better, it’s why we dothe job we do!”

RN: 1999-2004 was a pretty special period atUnited, what was it like watching it unfold soclosely?

AB: “I joined the season after United won thetreble so it was incredibly exciting. To be frankas this was my major breakthrough in terms ofbroadcasting and my career the performanceson the pitch almost took a back-seat. I was soengrossed on improving my presenting styleand broadcasting skills I rarely took the time toenjoy the actual game of football – as bizarre asthat may sound! I made it my mission to gain thetrust of Sir Alex, his back-room staff and theplayers that the results almost became second-ary. I knew I had my weaknesses as a broad-caster and needed to improve my skill set.MUTV was the perfect platform for me to learnthe trade; I made many mistakes along the way,some which to this day I still regretbut the channel helped mouldme into the broadcaster Ibecame. I take it as a hugecompliment that PhilNeville, Andrew Cole,Mikael Silvestre, LouisSaha and Mike Phelanwho have all been outhere in Qatar as guestsremembered me andtake time out their busyschedules to meet for cof-fee and reminisce about daysgone by.”

RN: So what are you up to now?

AB: “After spending 7 years in Singapore I nowreside in Doha, Qatar. I moved here last Augustto take up a Senior Football Producers role withbeIN Sports. Last season I produced our Pre-mier and Champions League coverage and pro-duced the World Cup. This season I was taskedwith improving our Europa League coverage aswell as over-seeing our European coverage fromLa Liga, Serie A, French Lique 1 to the Bun-desliga. I also dip into International footballwhen called upon, only recently I produced theScotland v England game but the less saidabout that the better!”

RN: So, we’d better mention it… a member ofBad Boys Inc… it sounds both surreal andbarmy from the book, but you lived it, how doyou feel now looking back at that spell?

AB: “It’s only been since meeting my wife thatI now look back on that period in my life with agreat deal of fondness. It took many years ofsoul-searching, questioning of one’s sanity andreasoning to be fully comfortable with what I ex-perienced. For many years I distanced myselffrom the band and anything to do with it. Iwanted to be taken seriously by those that em-ployed me but found that hard to come by es-pecially when I secured freelance work with SkySports News. In the short time I was there I be-lieved nobody took me seriously as I was carry-ing this baggage. To be honest I was glad whenI left. Writing the chapter in my book helped meget many frustrations off my chest and open upabout the nonsense that was Bad Boys Inc.Today, I don’t give a shit what people think or ifthey want to judge me on something I workedon 20 years ago. I am extremely fortunate andblessed to have gone through that experienceand in years to come I can sit down with my weeboy and tell him that his Dad once performed onTop of the Pops and had a top 10 hit!”

RN: You are self depreciating over the baggageof celebrity in the Bad Boys chapter, and theabuse you received (from Dundee fans at agame vs Aberdeen) as part of that but you’veseen the spotlight thrown now onto footballerslike pop stars once were, does that shift surprise

you?

AB: “No not really, I think football andcelebrity go hand-in-hand these days.George Best started it, others followedin the 70s and 80s but it was onlywhen David Beckham came along thatthe current celebrity culture surround-ing player’s sky rocketed. I also thinkwith the modern day social media craze

professional football players have be-come more accessible to the public and

media. It’s almost impossible to pick up apaper or a gossip driven magazine (not that Iever do) and see a story about a pro be it edito-rial or endorsement. It’s just the way our societyhas moved in the past 30 years, we have be-come obsessed with celebrity – to be honest Ifind it all mundane and unnecessary.

RN: And where do you see football going;more games on tv, can the PL survive at thispace and rate?

AB: “In my opinion the game is doing just fine.As long as the broadcasters and administratorsremember the core component in their dealings– the fans – I believe football will continue toflourish. The Premier League will continue tobuild with broadcasting rights up for tender verysoon and international sports broadcasterskeen to continue the relationship. Yes, we willsee more games on TV; I have no issues withthis. For some it’s the only way to follow their re-spective teams, especially if you live abroad.

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“MeetingBeckham for

the firsttime was

surprisinglyeasy”

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Long may it continue!”

RN: Will United one day go it alone with tvrights?

AB: “No, I don’t think they will, I don’t think thePremier League will allow it. As far as MUTV areconcerned retaining the secondary rights is keyto their core business. As a fan that is unable toactually go to games, being able to see the full90 minutes on the Club Channel is the perfectservice to keep up to speed with performances,etc.”

RN: Will we see this 39th game abroad?

AB: “Possibly, it all depends where the gamewill be played. The Premier League Asia Trophyhas proved very popular in the Far East. Havinglived in that part of the world for many years Ican appreciate how popular the Premier Leagueis. It was almost impossible to walk down Or-chard Road in Singapore and not see a jerseyof some description on every second person.The big four are hugely popular so a Manches-ter United v Liverpool game could be the way togo. The NFL has given it a bash in London sowhy not try it with football? I’m open to theidea.”

RN: You come from a prestigious family offootball journalists, what’s your view on footballjournalism nowadays?

AB: “My grandfather and my Uncle (now re-tired) were proper football journalists, simplythere to report the facts. They were both lovedand respected by all in the game. If a player,manager or board member told either “this goesno further” it didn’t! They were able to gain thetrust of all they came into contact with. I’m notsure I can say the same of most modern dayjournalists. Saying that I don’t blame them as allare competing with each other for headline sto-ries and put under a great deal of pressure bytheir Editors. My Uncle many years ago stoppedgoing to press conferences as some of his peerswould steal the line from his question and use itas part of their report – lazy journalism at itsbest! There are some great journalists out therewho deserve much credit for their writing andjournalistic skills. I always enjoyed the “Unitedin Press” show on MUTV, to be able to pick thebrains of esteemed journalists like Stuart Math-ieson and Steve Bates was always great fun!”

RN: Are you still in touch with anyone fromyour MUTV/United days?

AB: “Yes I still chat on with most folk from mydays at MUTV. The power of Facebook andTwitter has certainly helped me re-acquaint withold friends. My first ever news producer, Camp-bell Gray has remained a very close friend overthe years. Andy Kerr (former reporter) and I nowwork together in Doha, I produce him on a num-

ber of shows and reminisce about days gone byfrequently. I have also been very fortunate tokeep in touch with most of the ex-players whowere regular guests on MUTV such as Lee Mar-tin, Lou Macari, Clayton Blackmore and occa-sionally chat on with Eric Harrison and AlexStepney. It’s also been fantastic having the likesof Phil Neville, Andrew Cole, Louis Saha, MikelSilvestre, Mike Phelan and David Moyes over inQatar. I enjoy nothing better than having a fewminutes with the guys to talk football and MUTV.It’s the one aspect of my job which I love, beingable to enjoy the company of such great playersand names from the world of football.”

RN: So why should RN readers buy this book?

AB: “My book is a journey through life as afootball fan – yes it’s top heavy about AberdeenFC but I wanted all fans to be able to relate tothe story. I have done my best not to make thebook autobiographical but to some it may readlike this when I tell the tale of Bad Boys Inc andmy broadcasting career but I have tried to adda football spin to those chapters. I would like tothink that United fans will enjoy my writings ofmy time with MUTV and find the whole broad-casting chapters interesting if not a tad intrigu-ing! I have also attempted humbly to make thebook a form of inspiration to those that strive formore. I knew from an early age I wanted to bedifferent and life a varied life as I possibly could.With a great deal of ambition, determination andself-belief I was able to reinvent myself after thesplit of the band and forge what I would like tothink was a fairly successful broadcasting ca-reer. Trust me when I tell you if I can do it, any-one can do it!

The book (Begg to Differ by Ally Begg) can bebought via the normal routes: Amazon, Water-stones or direct via my publishers websiteRudlingHouse.com” n

Thanks to  Ally for his time. We found him a re-ally nice bloke to deal with who went out of hisway to help.

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“So Joel, ifyou agree, I’llcancel theStrootman dealand order100,000 moretwitter fol-lowers forDaley Blind.Back of thenet, Mister Potato.”

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