As breaks go, Martin Kelner’s Screen Break was not “off air” for very long.
The Guardian‘s widely admired sport on TV column, axed after 16 years in the latest round of cuts, is set to transfer to the Racing Post from tomorrow.
sportsjournalists.co.uk was first to report the dropping of Kelner’s column, together with several other big name writers.
Since then, as we reported last week, The Guardian‘s chief sports writer, Richard Williams, has also taken redundancy.
Kelner, the “second banana” to presenter Jim Rosenthal at the SJA’s British Sports Awards last month, appeared in the sports pages of The Guardian for a final time on December 30.
In a management statement, the Racing Post said: “The former Guardian journalist will continue with his lighthearted and witty preambles about the world of sport on TV. His first column offers refreshing insight on this year’s Celebrity Big Brother contestants including Frankie Dettori, along with a closer inspection of the betting for the reality TV show.”
Post Editor Bruce Millington said: “I’ve been a huge admirer of Martin’s writing for many years so it’s tremendous that he’s now a columnist for the Racing Post. The positive reaction we’ve had from readers and within the media shows the regard in which Martin is held.”
Kelner continues to work on a daily show on BBC Radio Leeds and is a regular member of the Fighting Talk panel show on Radio 5.