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You say that he acted like this in order to make his colleagues reach the same professional standard he set himself, but that doesn't explain something that you haven't commented on at all, namely his viciousness towards others in general, as illustrated by this piece from the autobiography of the late, great ITV commentator Brian Moore:

"Nobody is more competitive and I had the feeling that he had a pretty high opinion of himself and of the ´óÏó´«Ã½. I had no contact with him on those Wembley days which was probably to my advantage since he would doubtless have set out to denigrate ITV and probably me with it. That's his way. I once went to watch a game in Cardiff where he was broadcasting. 'You here looking for an audience?' he said as an introduction with that mixture of smile and sneer. I never sought David's company and he didn't seek mine. We preferred to keep our distance."

Let's also not forget that he took the Corporation to a tribunal in the late '70s after being dropped from the Cup Final commentary and feeling that he was being sidelined from too many big events.

Now from what you say, there's no doubt that the lessons he imparted upon you and other people he worked with were valuable ones, but you can't help but think whether there are other ways to teach these effectively without resorting to intimidation and riding roughshod over people and their feelings under the guise of "professionalism".

Fortunately, we live in a more enlightened time of workplace relations where these is a lot more respect and courtesy between superiors and their underlings; indeed, I work in a Human Resources department and can tell you that if anyone behaved in my organisation the way that Coleman did in the ´óÏó´«Ã½ back then, they'd be facing disciplinary proceedings.

I hope that you and your other colleagues in positions of superiority within ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sport - and indeed within the Corporation and broadcasting in general - treat those below you rather more considerately than Coleman did with you, and not just for the reasons of maintaining good workplace relations; as the saying goes, "be nice to people on your way up because you'll need them on your way down", and you just have to look at what happened to Richard Keys and Andy Gray earlier this year as proof of that.

(PS: I had to post this in separate chunks as your software wouldn't let me submit it all in one go)

OK, my first section was censored, but it referred to the fact that the most prominent Coleman clip on YouTube is of him tearing strips off notable former ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sport producer Jonathan Martin over a messed-up studio link during the 1970 World Cup - which, as the comments that accompany the video prove, don't give you that great an impression of the man.

Human Resources eh Jason

says it all really

Nice article Carl, I will watch the programme with interest. And to be fair, you have given a pretty balanced view of the man so not sure why Jason Crawley is getting so excited!?! I think the ´óÏó´«Ã½ should offer David Coleman a guest berth for the Olympics next year. I think it will be interesting to hear what he thinks of London 2012 in comparison to other Games.

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On a personal level he also had very poor relations with Kenneth Wolstenholme, and i agree with some other posters here that it is fair to say that his habitual haranguing of subordinates would not pass muster in today's ´óÏó´«Ã½, but for me he was the greatest commentator we have ever produced, a man of real gravitas, and knowledge, and, despite the occasional tendency to commit the odd Colemanball, a truly memorable wordsmith.
Added to which the fact he commentated sublimely on my two favourite sports, football and athletics, during my adolescent years, and i conclude that i regard him as one of the greats, and i look forward immensely to this long overdue tribute, which i trust is loaded with rare archive.

I suspect we've all had work colleagues or superiors we didn't like, but I tend to judge people by how good they are at their jobs, not by whether I like them personally or not. In David Coleman, we were lucky to have another of that great generation of commentators to whom a tribute such as this is long overdue. His ability was summed up best for me by something he said of Cathy Freeman at the Sydney Olympics when he said she "had the world at her feet and a nation's soul on her back." To sum up in so few words the symbolism of that race to Australia is a very rare gift.

For me, as a fan, I am merely pleased that this programme has come while David is still here to see how highly he is regarded, and rightly so, within the sporting world.

Loved his commentaries on Coe v. Ovett races in 70s/80s, especially at the Moscow Olympics - "...those blue eyes, like chips of ice...", as Ovett eyed gold.

Coleman epitomises the golden era of televised sport, when TV brought top events and drama into your living room and everything seemed on a more human level than nowadays, where the money derived from television has actually distanced sportsmen and women away from their audience, and it turned itself into a big corporate monster.

I remember David Coleman as a very excitable commentator at times. This would explain the phrases that laid the foundations for Private Eyes's "colemanballs" column. "Juantorena opens his legs and shows his class" from the Mexico Olympics was the one I remember best - because it was a good, pithy statement (as well as being a most incredible double entendre).

Live commentary always carries some risk of bringing with it an unfortunate phrase or two - there's no time for the commentator to reflect on what they are saying.

I was one who never truly appreciated David Coleman during his time. To me, he came across as my dad commentating on events with his sweater and slippers style. That was obviously part of his mass appeal and long-standing style.
However, I wish more of today's commentators would take a course in Coleman's skills. Coleman could talk without becoming critical of the athletes or offering too much of his own opinions. He basically told the viewer what was happening and conveyed his excitement.
Coleman was part of a generation of commentators from John Motson, Barry Davies, Bob Wilson and all, that provided a wonderful Saturday afternoons sport on Grandstand.

""Juantorena opens his legs and shows his class" from the Mexico Olympics was the one I remember best" - except it was Ron Pickering in Montreal.

All people at the top of their profession in the UK can't but help attracting detractors. Coleman did convey tremendous knowledge about all the sports he commentated on. And IMHO he got it spot on re ITV and Brian Moore.

great commentator great guy
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For Colemanballs who can ever forget the classic "the batsmans HOLDING, the bowlers WILLEY".

I sometimes wonder if he actually planned these Double Entendres!

Re number 9

Wolstenholme remained a very bitter man with regards to Coleman replacing him as the ´óÏó´«Ã½s main football commentator- KWs autobiography written 25 years after the event showed he (KW) never forgave the ´óÏó´«Ã½ top brass-

It is only retrospectively that we appreciate high quality sports commentators.

As usual everybody thinks they could do the job but fail to appreciate the commitment and professionalism. Apprenticeships should be tough and testing otherwise you end up with sub standard product / service.

Mr coleman was passing on what it took to succeed in his industry and give the public what they paid for high quality entertainment and professional commentary.

Good on him...

He was marginally better than David Vine.

"the batsmans HOLDING, the bowlers WILLEY"....was actually said by Brian Johnston.

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David Coleman was one of the greatest Commentators that the ´óÏó´«Ã½ could ever have.
Grandstand, Sportsnight, A Question of Sport...says it all about him.
Coleman sits alongside the best of ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sport including David Vine, John Motson, Murray Walker...the list goes on....a legend in his own right.

Re. the Colmanballs "opens his legs and shows his class" etc I actually remember this piece of commentary from the 1976 Olympics. It was made in commentary on a qualifying round of the 100m and was said of Valeri Borzov (who later did not succeed in defending his title). He was sufficently better than the rest of the field he was able to start slowly and accelerate away from his rivals. I am 100% sure of this and recall was sufficiently amused to almost immediately leave the telly to seek out my father to tell him. I think the qualifying rounds of the 100m would predate an appearance by Juantorena certainly in the 400m where that comment might have been most expected to be said. Do recall the "man among boys" comment about Juantorena in the 400m events; he just looked bigger than everyone else in the field.
I've always believed it was Coleman rather than Pickering who said it (more the sort of thing he'd say) but have had seeds of doubt sown by having read that those two agreed it was said by Pickering. Wonder if the ´óÏó´«Ã½ have archives of the 1976 100m men's qualifying rounds?

a fitting tribute to a great broadcaster but sad there wasnt an "upto date" interview with the man himself.

Why do so many otherwise great sport commentators behave like they are bigger than the event they're covering?
Coleman was like that, brilliantly efficient but you always got the impression that his was the official version, screw anyone else. Was he REALLY a fan in the way that Carpenter or Motson, Stevenson or Cheese, were/are fans? That's the sort of person we want commentating.
Always wondered how he reacted the next time he met John Sherwood after the "Who cares who's third?" blather, which Wikipedia calls a "near orgasm of excitement", when commentating on Hemery's win in Montreal.
Some sports commentators are loved by genuine fans; can't imagine Coleman ever was.

4. At 10:24am 23rd Apr 2011, JasonCrawley wrote:
Fortunately, we live in a more enlightened time of workplace relations where these is a lot more respect and courtesy between superiors and their underlings; indeed, I work in a Human Resources department and can tell you that if anyone behaved in my organisation the way that Coleman did in the ´óÏó´«Ã½ back then, they'd be facing disciplinary proceedings.

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Hope you watched it as John Motson made that very point-Ironically Motson said people would go "running to the HR DEPT" these days !!

from the film i Got the impression Motty doesnt agree with your point of view sir

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I missed the programme on Tuesday night as I was in work, and forgot to record it. No problem, I thought, this is where good old iplayer comes into its own. Alas, for some reason, the programme is unavailable on the iplayer. Is there a reason for this, and will it become available?

That just about sums it up sport has no need for this type of gamesmanship

Will this documentary be shown again? I missed all screenings and noticed not it is not on iplayer

Carl, please can you pass on to the production and editorial team my delight at what a fantastic programme this was. Of course David had his idiosyncracies however I forever despair when so many people want to look at the negative side of a person or story. Regardless of some of his personal conduct pointed out by some here, the man added so much to sporting events, great moments and TV programmes with amazing knowledge, impeccable timing and a perfect choice of words. I'm sure he wasn't easy to work with, but the end result was superb. The same is true of the programme and thanks to the ´óÏó´«Ã½ for commissioning and showing this programme. I'm only 37 however it was quality throughout and brought back memories for me that I will cherish.