Clare Balding is irritating AIBU?

I love her.

Maybe it’s a horsey thing - Camilla the same!

I really like Clare Balding but do wish she’d brush that fringe back a bit. I think she needs a hair restyle

Oh gosh yeah - it’s like they are in a bar watching it on tv and having a private conversation - all the whooping and I can’t look

Because they have comments from the people who take part

If you want irritating, the two guys commentating on the snowboarding are beyond irritating. What exactly is goofy? Are we supposed to know?

I agree with this. I like her, I think there’s nothing offensive about her, she is a good sports presenter who does her research and is professional so why not have her anchoring the big sporting events - there are plenty of men who present many different sporting events despite only knowing about [insert one specific sport - probably football].

Incidentally does anyone else play the game Balding with their partner? - whenever Claire Balding appears on the TV the first person to shout “Balding” wins! (Literally no idea where this game came from / why DH and I started playing it…).

You ve made my point, she was ON the Traitors show.... hence she is then on the follow up show.... why?

@saltandvinegarchipsticks Male presenters are not given the range of sports and programs (often unrelated to sport) that CB is given.

How many men are also commentating on numerous different sports without comments like this?

Fair enough. I agree it was rude and not her finest tv moment.

Yes then I we to bbc for strictly!

bloody hope not

in fairness she wa son traitors so that’s why she’d be on follow up show

I'm not suggesting an "instead of" just that she is on far too often.... Surely they have other presenters?

Do we really need to have CB on the post Traitors show? On early morning walking radio programs?

I mean we never saw Lineker anchoring pretty much all BBC Sports, Shows, Radio programs etc ... tbh i half expected her to be the new Bake Off host...

It was still a horrible thing to say. Like, he'd done this amazing thing and she thought she had the right to say that, on TV, in front of millions of viewers. It was rude. Liam may have said he saw the joke, but it was still nasty. I would have expected something better from her, to be honest.

This is the problem - the BBC try to create celebrities and use them constantly for years rather than bringing in new tallent. They also use popularity over expertise. It creates these monsters (with egos to match) that noone can surpass.

They do it with news readers and other presenters, too. I'm ok with Balding, but i absolutely hate Fiona Bruce (she's like a female Michael Buerk), and she's on everthing, too.

I know. I meant she had done the Winter Olympics for years and does it brilliantly. And also does Wimbledon brilliantly.

I like her a lot. She comes across as intelligent, kind, and self-mocking. I also sense a lot of insecurity and low self-esteem that makes me really pity her.

She hasn’t done Wimbledon for years - just a few - sue barker did it for 30 years

She Doesn’t dislike her - how could you know what she feels - she said in the post she doesn’t dislike her

like lots of us we are sick of seeing her on everything

Agree wholeheartedly, Clare Balding is brilliant. Her Rambling programme on Radio 4 was worth the licence fee alone.

I was referring to her behaviour when in traitors!!!

I like her, she is calm and professional. A marked contrast to Chemmy Alcott’s effusive and emotional commentary yesterday.

Heard it all now. Big air skiing. USA girl crashed out and she will be “absolutely devo’d”. Just children commentating.

The other aspect to this is the big Air snowboard and skiing. The experts talk on and on like we all know what a goofy is! Or anything else they do. It’s difficult to work out what’s good because they think everything is great with loud whooping. The downhill skiing missed a lot of issues which caused slower times and Chemmy was not used enough! Lots of stats but poor commentary.

Clare anchors. She isn’t a commentator. Enthusiastic amateurs seem to be the commentators.

Oh come on, she apologised for that, and got it wrong for the tv audience. Most horse people, especially jockeys, say far worse to one another!

Btw Liam T saw the joke, said it was the best thing she ever said and got a free set of gnashers from the experience!

I totally agree!

I love Clare Balding!

Someone I knew met her on one of her radio rambles and said she turned up very low key, on public transport, wearing a baseballl cap pulled down incognito, with one sound guy, was genuinely interested, managed to speak to everyone and got to know the group really quickly, didn’t have any airs or graces whatsoever, and ended up with them having a swift half in the pup and then dashed off again.

And the focus was about mh so not an easy subject. They said she worked really hard and was really professional and easy to get along with throughout.

I must admit I prefer her to that tiny Scottish lady who endlessly did the snooker and darts who always seemed to have a private joke with herself.

And I can’t stand Gabby whatshername.

But each to their own!