I don’t think I am exaggerating when I say that Saturday’s Football Focus was saved by the perfect bacon sandwich. It arrived at precisely 0945 BST on the morning of the show.

Up until that point, the day hadn’t been a winner. I stayed up far too late the night before watching the second round of golf’s USPGA and my two little daughters decided to rise like salmons at 0602 BST the following morning. When I finally left for work at 0730 BST in the rain, I dropped my TV shirt in a vast puddle next to the car.

After arriving at TV Centre, I did a little live interview with presenter Jo Good on 6 Music and then headed to the BBC News studio for an appearance on BBC One’s Breakfast programme. Sadly, we were understandably bumped because Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore turned up to talk about the start of the 2010/11 season.

I then went to watch all the various pieces that were going to be screened on Football Focus with the editor and director before heading to the production office, where we “do our stuff” before the show. The bacon sandwich came into the room via the fair hand of production co-ordinator Rachel Paterson. Not only is Rachel key to the programme timings and owner of one the great nicknames of our time – Pato Banton – she also understands the complexity of the perfect bacon “sanger”. I’m not picky about how the sandwich turns up but if it comes exactly how I’d make it myself, it is hard not to avoid a little fist pump. And that’s just what happened on Saturday.

Here are my four steps to making the perfect bacon sandwich:

Baguette or, at a push, two slices of white bread (DISCLAIMER if the baguette is crunchy or floury, send it back immediately);
Butter;
Thick but not too crispy bacon;
Just enough ketchup so that when you squeeze the bread it pops out the sides but doesn’t drip.

Follow those easy pointers and you are on your way to a culinary masterpiece.

With my spirits lifted, I was back on track for the first Football Focus show to be filmed in the studio this season. There was a miniature panic halfway through the programme when Alan Shearer was nowhere to be seen and we were about to present him with a 40th birthday cake. The crisis was averted when Shearer suddenly appeared, blowing out the candles on the cake, which was presented to him by Alan Hansen.

By the way, if you missed Saturday’s show, you can see the online version below.

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Lots of people have been asking about the opening to the programme, which featured some dudes in football shirts running around a forest. Well, it was the brainchild of Andy Fraser, who organised a combination of actors and BBC employees to meet in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, although it did not go off exactly as planned.

Despite Fraser warning everyone all to “stay on the path”, assistant producer Stu Hutchison (in the Stoke shirt) decided on an elaborate overtaking manoeuvre that ended in a tremendous face-plant. It has now been entered into the ‘Top 10 Decks of All Time’ between Devon Loch and Mary Decker.

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The rest of Saturday was spent watching my Premier League Fantasy Football team crumble before my very eyes. I have made all the textbook errors over the years. . . picking injured players, not changing the team, chasing goalscorers the week after they bag hat-tricks etc etc. But I was determined it would be different this season.

I sat down last Thursday and carefully picked a majestic side. Didier Drogba was skipper, Florent Malouda was in there, too, as was Marlon Harewood, included as a cheap striker. Joe Hart was in goal and the midfield boasted James Milner and Frank Lampard.

Then I did what you should never do when you come out of an exam at school – I talked to other people! They picked holes in my team and told me about world-beaters who had been banging them in for fun in pre-season. So out went Drogba, Malouda, Harewood, Milner and Lampard and in came Nicolas Anelka, Tim Cahill, Mauro Boselli and Cesc Fabregas. I needed to free up a little cash, so Hart got the boot for Robert Green!

I don’t support a Premier League team so my choice of players for my fantasy side colours the way I view the top division. For example, I found myself celebrating a meaningless late headed goal from Ryan Shawcross last season, while Charles N’Zogbia gave me an unhealthy interest in Wigan for a few weeks.

There was a twitter-based discussion on the merits of Fantasy Football this week, with one man highlighting the feeling of being torn when one of your chosen strikers takes a penalty against your goalkeeper. The dream scenario is an initial save from the keeper with the rebound then being tucked away by your lad. . . points a plenty!

If you’ve got any Fantasy Football secrets you want to share, it would be great to hear them. I should point out that I have never finished anywhere other than mid-table in our leagues at work. And if you have any suggestions for Focus, let’s have them, too.

You can follow the progress of this week’s show on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Bonjour comrades. It’s been a while but the season is upon us so I thought it was high time I got back on the blog.

Where on earth did the summer disappear to? I came back from the World Cup in South Africa, went straight to the Open Championship at St Andrews and then all of a sudden it’s time to dust off the boots again!

We kicked things off last Saturday at Elland Road with the first of what will hopefully be about 12 on-the-road programmes this season. The last time I was there, six or seven years ago, I was a last-minute stand-in for the guy on the public address system. I asked for a big wave from those sitting in what was then the Lurpak Stand and a few thousand people told me they didn’t really want to! I feel we bonded.

This time around it was a much more friendly affair and we kicked off the season without too much fuss. I know people have very strong opinions about Robbie Savage but – whatever you think of the man – giving him a camera for a few days turned out to be a tidy decision and I thought that was probably the stand-out piece from show number one. The Kaiser Chiefs – drummer Nick Hodgson and bassist Simon Rix – were spectacularly laid back but good fun. Those boys really know their football but it is very much from a ‘Leeds is the centre of the universe’ perspective. After the programme, we thought we would try to get their views on a couple of topics that did not involve their beloved club.

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Hopefully there will be plenty more behind-the-scenes stuff for you this season. There are a number of pieces in the pipeline but if you have any other ideas then let me know and we shall try to sort something out.

Actually, one of the other things we are trying this season is a direct result of comments and requests on this blog. Loads of people asked for Football Focus to be available on the iPlayer. We have not been able to do it because of rights issues concerning Premier League matches but this season we are making a few edits here and there and producing an online version each week.

It will not be on the iPlayer because that device is only allowed to show programmes exactly as they what went out on air but it will be available each week on the BBC Sport website from early evening Saturday onwards. So I am now able to say: “If you missed last week’s programme, you can watch it here. ”

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While we are talking changes, the other new thing is the Focus Forum. Friday Focus will continue as ever – normally with Captain Lawrenson – but every Tuesday we will film a little something extra for the website after we have had our planning meeting. We thought we would kick it off this week with Admiral Motson.

So all the new stuff seems to be going well and we had everything ready for the first Premier League show of the season until Martin O’Neill decided he had had enough at Villa Park on Monday. That was understandably the main talking point in our Tuesday meeting, with several opinions being heartily voiced.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Villa this season but a lot of that depends on who they get to replace O’Neill and how many players will still be there by the time he takes over. As for who the rest of the league, I did a little piece for Newsround this week and made a few outlandish predictions.

Chelsea to win the title by 10 points;
Adam Johnson to win player of the season;
Darren Bent to finish with the Golden Boot;
Blackpool to finish in the top half;
And the Fruit Salad to make a comeback as the nation’s favourite sweet!

When I showed them to Lawro he genuinely laughed out loud. That may be because he is a Refreshers man but I do not see the point of making predictions if you are not going to extend the neck a little. Feel free to send yours through to see if you can do any better. By the way, is anyone else missing the sound of the vuvuzela?

As ever you can follow the show throughout the season by following me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Is it possible to win someone over to the beautiful game by taking them to a single match?

A few weeks ago I decided to conduct my own experiment. I was on a week’s holiday with family and friends, two of whom – Libby and Sophie – had never been to, or even watched, a football match. I decided to change all that.

Staying in a barn in Derbyshire, the two midweek games within striking distance were Derby v Preston and Sheffield Wednesday v Doncaster. We chose Hillsborough. On the journey there, I took the opportunity to give them a little context. I explained that Donny were historically a lower division side now playing in the Championship while Wednesday were a ‘big’ club who spent too big in the 1990s and eventually paid the price. Both Libby and Sophie looked a little bored.

After we’d paid for our tickets, Sophie wondered where she’d be able to buy some pre-match tucker. I told her there would be a selection of reconstituted meats on offer at outrageous prices inside. Libby had feared that would be the case and had come prepared. . . with a packed lunch!

Even my dad knows that packed lunches at football matches are a big no-no. He used to take a bag of apples to every Crawley Town game and I remember one Saturday he refused to give me 20p to buy a Marathon (now Snickers) at half-time. I was instead offered one of his Braeburns but it didn’t really have the same appeal.

My issue with a packed lunch is that it robs you of one of the essential elements of the football experience – average food. A flask of tea, or soup, is acceptable but anything beyond that takes you into a dark place. All you need is a gingham tablecloth and you’re ready to watch polo!

The girls pose for the cameras

Libby had brought the full selection. There were cheese sandwiches, crisps and a smattering of fresh fruit. I told her it might be the first time a plum had ever been taken into Hillsborough. The rest of us went to the food stalls.

The Steak and Henderson pies border on legendary status at Hillsborough, but I made a slightly irrational choice and opted for the £3 ‘Mega-dog’ – a large sausage-based product which became vaguely edible once I smothered it in ketchup and mustard.

Libby and Sophie were enjoying the pre-match hype so I decided to explain formations. Libby seemed a little more interested in her plum but Sophie was lapping up the fact that Donny played a fluid system based on the passing powers of their midfield with Brian Stock as the central hub.

Wednesday dealt with that fluid system easily for the first 20 minutes and hit the post through Marcus Tudgay. Libby thought it was a goal until about midway through the half!

For the rest of the period, Donny’s game came together as Wednesday’s fell apart and Elliot Ward volleyed them ahead five minutes before half-time. “Chuffing nut cakes Wens-dee,” shouted the bloke behind us. Libby and Sophie looked confused but not as much as they did a minute later when the same guy accused Luke Varney of having a “50p head”!

“Sheffield aren’t very good, are they?” offered Libby, 10 minutes into the second half. “You’re not wrong love,” came the response from nut-cake man. Donny continued to dominate and doubled their lead through a comical own goal from James O’Connor.

“Gerrit ont floor Wens-dee, you donkeys,” came the cry from a few rows back. That was mild compared to the language now coming out of nut-cake man. The one thing I had forgotten to warn the ladies about was the slightly fruity football vernacular. They didn’t seem to mind, though. They were busy having their picture taken with a group of Chinese exchange students and paying very little attention to the action.

And then, in a flash, it was all over and the ladies experienced another integral part of the football experience. . . staring at brakelights for the best part of an hour on the A61.

“So, did you enjoy that?” I asked. “Not really,” came a rather lukewarm response. “People didn’t really seem to be having much fun,” added Sophie. “Do you think you’ll go to another one?” I asked tentatively. There was a long pause before the following reply: “I’ve been now so I don’t need to go again, do I?”

My experiment had failed. Worse still, news came through on the radio that we’d missed an eight-goal bonanza at Pride Park. Maybe if we’d gone there, Libby and Sophie would not have been lost to football forever.

Then I watched as Libby’s face lit up as she found another plum in her handbag. She looked a lot more excited than she did for either of Donny’s goals. Clearly there are some battles you just cannot win.

Let me know if you’ve similarly tried, and failed, to introduce someone to the beautiful game. By the way, former West Ham striker Dean Ashton is on the sacred sofa this week so fire in your questions for him, too.

In the meantime, you can find me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

I am writing this on the train to Manchester. I am accompanied by a small bag of salad gums, an iced bun and a banana (for health purposes).

I am on the way to get some goal scoring tips from Bolton’s Kevin Davies for Sport Relief. You will be able to see me embarrass myself on Saturday’s show and it will probably make an interesting blog for next week. . . as long as I don’t disgrace myself.

This week I want to blog about another striker. Last Thursday I went to see Wayne Rooney at a World Cup launch event at Earls Court hosted by a World Cup sponsors. Hundreds of competition winners got the chance to see their hero and have their picture taken with the world cup. We had five minutes with the man who can’t stop scoring and our latest behind the scenes piece will give you a good idea of how it all came together. . .

BEHIND THE SCENES
You can imagine that the whole place was full of PR warriors, bouncers and sponsor types. Rooney was due to arrive about 3:30 and in the 15 minutes beforehand things started to get a little crazy.

Wayne is actually very laid back about it all. I first interviewed him seven years ago when he won the BBC North West Young Sports Personality of the Year Award.
He has matured immeasurably since then and not only seems to understand the responsibilities that go with the job but is now able to give genuine insights when answering questions.

The sponsors were obviously delighted to have him there. The event had been planned for six months and they were desperate for everything to run smoothly. That desperation can sometimes lead to a little panic. . . “Can you turn your camera off please? Wayne will be here in 10 minutes” said a slightly tense security guard. “Can you clear the area please? We need space for Rooney” barked another – pointing at the vast expanse of floor that could have easily supported about 30 Twister mats.

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“He’s not royalty mate” came the cry from the back. The heckler was correct. This was another example of football going ‘Hollywood’.

The stars are no longer ‘just footballers’ but are right up there with the George Clooneys of this world and with that comes the super-celebrity baggage. It certainly won’t be Rooney – because he is well looked after – but I don’t think it will be too long before I go to interview a player and someone tells me I can’t look him in the eye.

I used to work at a radio station in Manchester and in my first month there George Michael came in to talk about his latest album. There were no fans allowed within 100 yards of the building.

I was frisked on arrival by Mr Michael’s private security and told, under no circumstances, was I to enter the cordoned off area inside the building. Half the joint had been plastered with that bright yellow ‘do not cross’ tape and even my regular loo – was frustratingly the wrong side of the divide.

As I made my way to the newsroom an officious looking woman was telling everyone the ‘rules of engagement’. “Please don’t look directly at George and you’re not allowed to talk to him”. Bonkers!

A few years later Westlife turned up when they were at the peak of their powers. The station got a phone-call 10 minutes before they arrived asking for 32 hot meals for the band and their entourage. I tried to get it pushed up to 33 put the boss was having none of it.

And then there was the time that Robbie Williams came in. We used to have one of those garden goals in the office and after I’d interviewed him about football, and his latest tune, he fancied a knock about so we settled on a penalty shoot-out. Robbie took his five first and bagged three of them.

As he then went in goal I jogged to get the ball that had rolled around the corner. I was followed by his security dude who said, under his breath, “You better let him win. . . all right?”. I thought about it for a moment and then unleashed some inappropriately fierce penalties for such a small room. Four nestled in the back of the net and – although Brother Williams was fine about it – his burly security guard looked at me in the same way Mark Groves had done at primary school just before he gave me a massive Chinese burn.

Football is thankfully a long way away from all that but when I interviewed Rooney last Thursday there were 26 people in the room! Half of them were media types but that is still a considerable throng to make sure everything ran smoothly.

The event itself went off without a hitch. Sadly I only discovered the highlight as I was leaving. . . a stall handing out free pies. I nailed a chicken and mushroom number and pocketed a beef beauty for the way home.

As I left I saw two young girls squealing and comparing pictures of Rooney on their phone. There were hundreds of happy punters delighted to catch a glimpse of a man who, hopefully, has a big summer ahead.

It certainly got the World Cup juices flowing but football has to keep a careful eye on itself or the new Maradonas of this generation could very easily become pre-Maradonas!

You can follow me on twitter

Faster

Things in the Walker house were not good earlier in the week. Both the miniature heroes were ill – number one had a temperature that just hit 39 degrees and number two was feeling the pain of new fangs coming through. It meant Tuesday’s trip to Windsor was a little too much for everyone.

Even though we were the only people on a boat that can hold about 200, the tour bloke still gave us the full spiel.

I now know there are 44 locks on the Thames and that there are over six miles of corridors in Windsor Castle. I could baffle you with additional castle-based facts, but I thought I would tell you about last week’s trip to see Kevin Davies.

To mark the fact that the Premier League sponsors were giving £1000 per goal and £500 for every shot on target last weekend to Sport Relief, we were invited to a one-on-one masterclass with the Bolton striker. Upon arrival at Bolton’s training ground, I met up with our crew, led by fearless producer Chris Treece. But when we bumped into Kevin, he seemed spectacularly underprepared for what was ahead. “You want me to get changed?” he asked. “I thought it was just an interview. ”

We were also lacking a goalkeeper, so, as Kevin disappeared into the deep recesses of the changing room, the PR man from Barclays approached the club’s press officer.

Within seconds, a bloke with gloves turned up. Neil Edwards is the academy coach at Wanderers and, presumably because he is Welsh, is known by everyone as ‘Taff’.

Barrel-chested Kevin soon joined us and you can see the edited version of our masterclass right here.

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I know it sounds slightly sad, but the overhead kick at the end is definitely one of the highlights of my footballing career. I’ll happily admit it was a complete fluke. What are the odds of perfectly connecting with one of those bad-boys at the first time of asking?

Kevin had been pinging balls in for about four minutes before urging me to “finish off with something special”.

I thought about attempting Rene Higuita’s scorpion kick but then the rational part of my brain kicked in. A. I could end up looking like an idiot on the telly. B. There is a 70% chance I could break my back. C. I’d just eaten an entire bag of mixed nuts and it wasn’t the time to be contorting my body.

As Davies delivered the perfect ball toward me, it seemed to hang in the air and say “attempt the overhead”.

My mind went back to a County Cup final between Hazelwick (my school team) and Thomas Bennett – the last time I attempted something similar in a match. My effort that night was rather unspectacular. The connection was alright but the ball rocketed into my own face and out for a goalkick!

This time was different. As I positioned myself, I knew it was going to be good. I felt the whole of the ball connect with the top of my foot and watched as it whacked the crossbar and ripple the back of the net.

Now I know what you’re thinking. “Hold on a minute, you buffoon. There were no defenders, the keeper wasn’t really trying and there was absolutely nothing riding on it. ”

All correct observations and you could probably add the fact that even at full speed I looked the wrong side of lethargic. But, as I glanced back across goal, Mr Davies looked back at me as if to say, “How on earth did YOU do that?”

For a moment, all was right with the football world. I felt like I could bang one in from 40 yards or swat away the likes of Vidic, Terry or Carragher with a single swivel of the hips.

The moment didn’t last too long because my next touch was a classic mid-shin that rocketed off at right angles to my intended target. . . but it didn’t matter.

This week, let’s celebrate those rare moments of genius. Let’s make this blog a tribute to those times when you’ve felt that – however briefly – you could take on the sporting world and win.

Let’s hear about the shot, the volley, the putt, the delivery, the moment that still defines your sporting memories. The one you’ll save for the grandchildren.

The whole of Football Focus comes live from White Hart Lane this week for Spurs v Portsmouth, so you can also let me know if you’d like to see something in particular and we’ll try and squeeze it in.

You can follow me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Greetings and salutations! I am actually enjoying some time away with the family this week in not-so-sunny Devon.

We left as soon as we were finished at White Hart Lane on Saturday – our latest on-the-road production this season. I hope you enjoyed it.

I received plenty of angry emails from Arsenal fans – as many as I got from Tottenham supporters when the programme came live from the Emirates earlier this year – berating us for our choice of venue.

You can never please everyone but I thought Focus had a good pace to it and it was great to have Sir Les Ferdinand giving his insight as Spurs chase a top-four finish.

In a bid to turn me into a Tottenham fan, my dad took me to a game at White Hart Lane back in the late 1980s. We watched Spurs play Stoke City. I remember Glenn Hoddle but little else.

There was about a 10-year wait before I returned – this time to the press box to watch Hoddle manage the side. Sitting in the same seat on Saturday brought back memories. We also filmed our latest behind-the-scenes footage there. You can watch that below.

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The Spurs press box is a rare one. Few are that close to the pitch, within one row of the dugout. Press boxes are a subject close to my heart.

I spent about the first eight years of my career in various ones up and down the country and they have provided some memorable moments.

The first game I covered was at Chesterfield in 1999. I was there for Hallam FM and my enduring memory is the rage from the seasoned hack sat in front of me.

He spent the entire game with my knees in his back or either side of his head.

At half-time, he launched a verbal assault, telling me that I was unprofessional and too tall to work in a press box. I made matters worse by spilling half my Bovril down his back at the start of the second half.

I was very privileged to sit behind Stuart Hall in the press box at Maine Road on many occasions. He always seemed to be doing little or no work during the match but every now and again he would giggle to himself. At full-time, I used to wait – along with a large group of supporters – to hear him deliver his Shakespearean prose on radio.

I once asked Mr Hall what would be his one piece of advice to a rookie reporter. “Buy a hat young man,” he said. “The bigger the better. ” I didn’t follow his advice. Perhaps that’s where I went wrong.

Those of you who read my blogs each week will know how I love to talk about food. Well then, I won’t let you down this week.

I used to love going to Pride Park once Derby introduced deep fried prawns and guacamole into their pre-match grub.

Leicester weren’t far behind in the food stakes. The press officer once sent me off on my journey home with a four-pack of éclairs and a selection of pies and pasties. He still has a special place in my heart.

At the other end of the scale was Coventry City. I’ve got nothing against the club but I once turned up there to find they had run out of plates and cutlery.

The humble chip played a part in my worst catering experience

I was ludicrously hungry so decided to use my programme as a makeshift platter. My cunning plan would have worked had the chef not chosen to cook chicken casserole!

My worst catering experience took place at Bolton’s Reebok Stadium on a freezing cold night about five years ago.

I had to wait ages to file my half-time report and was late getting to the press lounge. I quickly picked up a handful of chips and a pie on one of those polystyrene trays and doused the bad boy in gravy.

I could hear the announcer saying the players were coming back out so I sprinted the two flights of stairs back to my seat.

Unfortunately, I lost my footing in the last few strides and had to commentate on the entire second half with my face covered in gravy.

As I was standing on the platform at Horwich station after the game, a friendly Bolton fan asked me if I knew I had some chips in my hood. . .

Right, with everyone at Spurs obsessed with finishing fourth, let’s have your predictions for the top six at the end of the season.

I’m going with the way it stands at the moment. . . Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs, Manchester City and Liverpool.

You can also send in any food-related injuries.

We’re on at 12:15 this Saturday but if you can’t wait until then you can follow me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

I am off to Barcelona and Milan this week to do a spot of filming in the company of some very important people.

After spending a few hours with Barca president Joan Laporta and interviewing a few players, I fly to Milan for Clarence Seedorf’s charity bash, where I will hopefully grab a word with some significant football faces.

I think this might qualify as the most showbiz week of my life, eclipsing the time I interviewed Dannii Minogue and The Chuckle Brothers in the space of three days. Luton Airport – the scene of potential problems for Alan Hansen

I hope our European adventure will make an interesting blog for next week but I thought I would give you a bit of an insight into last week’s programme in the meantime.

If you’ve watched Focus for a while, you’ll know Alan Hansen makes one appearance on the sofa for us toward the end of each season. Last Saturday was that day, but it almost didn’t happen.

“I’ve been re-directed to Luton,” came the quite worrying text from the nation’s favourite pundit at about 0915 BST on the morning of the show.

A quick check on the wonder web revealed that his budget flight would need refuelling before flying on to Heathrow – way too late to make it for Focus.

“You’ve got to get off that plane,” is a text message I’ve wanted to send since watching Die Hard 2.

We had visions of Hansen removing ceiling panels in the toilets, shuffling through luggage and finally shinning his way down a refuelling pipe.

Sadly, it was a lot duller than that. He told a steward from BA that he needed to get off and the bloke opened the door.

Hansen still arrived much later than normal, and it wasn’t until 1203 (I remember because there was a crème egg next to the clock) that editor Mark Cole and I were able to run him, and Lee Dixon, through our plans for the programme.

I could tell they were both in a rather mischievous mood.

From the minute we sat down, Hansen was ribbing Dixon about taking a sheet of paper in with him on which were written the remaining games of both Burnley and West Ham.

Hansen is of the opinion that if you can’t remember something, it’s not worth it. Lee is more of a “fail to prepare, prepare to fail” type of human.

I introduced them at the top of the show by saying they had 12 league titles between them.

Hansen did not waste little time jumping in. “How did you get to 12?” he asked on air. “I’ve got nine. ” “And I’ve got five!’ added Dixon.

What followed was some furious fact checking while the pundits mumbled about dropping standards at the BBC.

We were then scheduled to talk about the upcoming Manchester United-Chelsea game for the next three minutes.

Chelsea’s game against Manchester United was among the topics up for discussion

I was still trying to get a prediction out of Alan well into minute number four. “Time to move on,” said the editor in my ear. I pressed Hansen again. . . “I’ll tell you before the end of the programme,” was his response.

The second chat was just as lengthy but it was good stuff.

When I asked Hansen if he thought Martin O’Neill would leave Villa in the summer, given all the midweek speculation that had gone on, he gave me the “Scottish look”.

It’s the same one that Gordon Strachan has spent years perfecting and David Moyes uses in almost every post-match interview.

Hansen then had another go at me for not knowing how many titles either he or Dixon had won. “Where’s your research?” he growled.

I stuck to my guns before he finally declared that he was just messing about and he had in fact won eight league titles while Dixon had picked up four. I think that is the closest I have ever come to dressing-room banter with two professional footballers.

When I go in next week, they’ll have probably tied my shoelaces together and urinated in my gym bag.

By this point, valuable seconds were being shaved off everywhere to make sure we hit our 1300 deadline.

“Ten seconds to closing link,” said production assistant Rachel Paterson in my ear as Hansen began telling us why Alex McLeish should win the manager of the year award.

Like the professional he is, Hansen made his point perfectly and we said “goodbye” just as we were told to “stop talking”.

“I enjoyed that,” announced Hansen as he removed his microphone and strolled towards the office to watch the rest of the Manchester United – Chelsea game with his Match Of The Day brothers – Gary Lineker and Mark Lawrenson.

On the subject of Hansen, I was alerted via Twitter recently about Hansen’s sporting prowess as a youngster. Apparently, he played both volleyball and squash for Scotland.

It got me thinking. A few blogs ago, we discussed our greatest sporting moments. So this week let’s do those sporting incidents you wouldn’t mind disappearing without a trace.

I once took the British number two to three games in table tennis. It sounds impressive until I tell you that she was six and I was in my prime at 21!

Feel free to fill the coffin with your own aberrations.

You can follow me on Twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Regular readers of this blog will know I went to Barcelona last week to interview the president Joan Laporta for Football Focus, which you can watch by clicking the link.

Sadly, the second leg of the journey to Milan did not come off. No matter, the visit to Catalonia was incredible. We got our meeting with El Presidente – eventually – but along the way we also encountered Lionel Messi, half the Barcelona squad, Eusebio, Sir Bobby Charlton and Johan Cruyff.

This is part one of the story of our trip – part two will follow next week. Producer Andy Fraser, camera wizard Jonathan Gout and I all left for Barcelona (via Madrid) last Tuesday morning. Both my travel companions are interesting characters. Fraser looks like Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Robbie Fowler all at the same time while Gout is a martial arts expert who once almost killed me with his index finger!

Getting a feel for the Nou Camp

The plan was to get accredited for the Barcelona v Arsenal game and then start filming the following morning. When we arrived in Spain, we learnt that the game was hideously oversubscribed and there was no room at the Catalan inn.

Rather than kick up a fuss, we decided to watch the game with some locals in a little bar off Las Ramblas. When Nicklas Bendtner scored, several pieces of chorizo were thrown at the telly. Once Messi started doing silly things to the Arsenal defence, the locals became far friendlier.

The owner was so happy I think he forgot to charge us for one our our 17 plates of patatas bravas. He had two dogs that strolled around the joint – one called Messi, the other Cruyff. Messi got a treat every time his namesake scored a goal. . . he looked considerably fatter than Cruyff!

On the way to breakfast the following morning, I had one of those conversations that only ever takes place in a foreign country after getting into the lift with an old Spanish guy holding a paper.

“Messi, ohhhh!” he said, pointing to the front cover. Aware of my linguistic limitations, I responded in kind with “Messi, ohhh”. I thought that would be it but he took it up a notch. . . “Messi, Messi” he said smiling.

I smiled back, lifted my shoulders into the universally acknowledged “how do you stop him?” position, and hit him with my own double “Messi”.

He seemed to find this hilarious and kicked an invisible ball with his left foot before announcing the inevitable “Messi, Messi, Messi”. Just when I thought this could go on for the rest of my life, the lift went “ping” and the doors opened.

Fraser, Gout and I headed for the Barca training ground. Gerard Pique was holding a news conference to launch his autobiography while there was also talk of an interview with Yaya Toure.

When we got there, the club’s press officer took us to one side to explain that Pep Guardiola had cancelled all interviews because he didn’t want players talking about their next game – El Clasico against Real Madrid. Our faces dropped until he told us that our one-on-one with Toure would go ahead but in a quiet corner away from the rest of the press. We were ushered into a little room overlooking the training pitches.

Practising were Messi and Xavi – the night after the destruction of Arsenal. Standing four feet away from them was an upside down stool. Try to visualise this if you can: they had to chip the ball into the legs – first with the right foot and then the left – before they could shoot at the keeper. Despite the temptation. . . neither took a shot at goal until they had landed two balls in the stool.

It was a fascinating exercise to watch them do it time and time again and a real insight into the attention to detail that has made Guardiola’s team so good to watch.

Toure turned up 30 minutes later and was a true gentleman. He reminded us that the boss would kill him if he mentioned the Madrid match so we talked at length about Barca, Messi, his own career and, of course, his brother, Manchester City defender Kolo.

You can watch the interview here, as well as a behind-the-scenes piece from the Nou Camp. . .

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We thanked Toure for his time and were told that Pique’s press conference was about to start and to expect one or two surprises! As we made our way to the room, we were followed by a guy who looked a lot like Thierry Henry. . . it was Thierry Henry!

Behind him was Carles Puyol, Andres Iniesta and Victor Valdes, then came Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Bojan Krkic and Messi. Soon the entire squad and coaching staff were in attendance, cheering Pique along.

I had been told the Barcelona team spirit was something special. This was clear evidence that it was. The players sat there for 30 minutes, laughing and joking, before giving Pique a standing ovation when his conference was over.

I remember turning to Gout as the players were leaving and saying “this is bonkers”, but the press conference we attended the following day made that one look positively dull. If you want to read about that, as well as a tale of cancelled flights and a bizarre interview with Charlton and Cruyff, you’ll have to come back next week.

Barcelona is a wonderful and peculiar club. Lots of people seem to think it’s a framework for others to follow but history and local politics have provided a special bond in Catalonia – a bond that is centred upon the Nou Camp. Support comes not only for the brand of football but for what Barcelona represents. I am not sure it could, or would, work anywhere else. As always, your comments and thoughts are most welcome.

You can follow me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

On a ferry in Belfast

The volcanic ash cloud has delayed my return from Ireland so a boat to Stranraer beckons. Then I am hitching a lift to London with a methodist minister called Mark and a primary school teacher from Cambridge called Heather.

We have enough fig rolls to keep us going until Carlisle and I have already eaten a famous Ulster Fry. Soda bread, potato bread, scotch pancake, egg, sausage, beans, bacon, mushrooms and tomato might represent coronary carnage, but it is definitely the breakfast of champions!
The breakfast of champions

Anyway, this blog is all about the second half of our pre-volcano trip to Barcelona. If you remember, last week we had just been to a news conference where the entire Barca squad turned up for Gerard Pique’s book launch.

We walked out of the training ground knowing that the rest of the day was going to be pretty tight. We were due to interview Barca president Joan Laporta at 4. 00pm local time at the Nou Camp before catching a 7. 00pm flight to Milan for AC Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf’s charity ball.

After demolishing a slightly odd Spanish pie thing, we headed to the stadium. Everything seemed to be going well. We were filming in the chapel, the trophy room, dressing room and at the side of the pitch, but then came the phone call we’d been dreading.

Laporta wasn’t going to turn up. The best he could do was Friday night. It was Wednesday afternoon! A local journalist was with us at the time and he just rolled eyes and told me this was a regular occurrence. Apparently, Senor Laporta can be a little hard to pin down on occasions.

At that exact moment, the journo spotted Laporta’s right-hand man, who looked remarkably like PC Tony Stamp from The Bill, in the car park. What followed was 10 minutes of gesticulating, frantic phone calls and shoulder shrugging. Eventually we reached a compromise – we would interview Laporta on Thursday after yet another news conference.

The flights to Milan were cancelled and we headed out to down more tapas and watch Manchester United lose to Bayern Munich. The next morning, we were back at the Nou Camp, where there was noticeably more security around place.

It wasn’t long before it became clear why. Johan Cruyff was strolling through the grounds.

To say they love Cruyff at Barcelona is a huge understatement. The Dutch master helped the club win La Liga for the first time in ages as a player and turned the whole club around as manager, winning 11 trophies in eight years.

Anyway, he was there to be unveiled as the new honorary president. As we entered the room when the unveiling was to take place, the Barca press officer said: “I think you’ll enjoy this. You’ll be happy you stayed an extra day. ” He was right.

Inside were about 300 guests and 100 journalists. When Cryuff entered, he was followed in by Eusebio, Sir Bobby Charlton and Ronald Koeman. Cameramen were climbing over each other to get a clean shot. It was impressive to watch because no-one jostles like a Spaniard – I’m sure they practice at school.

At the height of the madness, Carlos Puyol, Victor Valdes, Andrei Iniesta and Xavi came in through another door while Pep Guardiola and Hristo Stoichkov strolled in via a third entrance. I half expected Pele and Diego Maradona to descend on a platform from the ceiling smothered in dry ice. Sadly, that bit didn’t happen.

After an hour of speeches, everyone was off in different directions again. We decided to follow the big guns down a thin corridor towards the president’s suite. If we wanted any interviews, it was time to show how the Brits jostle. Cameraman Jon Gout and I elbowed our way through the crowds and somehow managed to blag our way into the party.

What followed was a conversation that I never expect to be repeated in my life. One of the press officers approached and said: “Excuse me, Eusebio, Stoichkov and Koeman can speak to you now. ”

“I’m really sorry,” I replied, “but I’ve got Sir Bobby Charlton and Johan Cruyff waiting just up there. ”

Here’s the best of the interview with them. . .

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As soon as that was over, we were ushered outside to speak to Laporta. He was as charming as I expected and very proud of what the club had achieved during his seven years in charge.

It looks as though he’ll move into politics when he steps down in June and – judging by the silkiness of his answers to us – he won’t struggle. We finished with Laporta, thanked the various press officers and headed for the airport and the first flight home.

Our trip had produced a unique insight into one of the biggest clubs in the world. As impressive as they are, I do think people are getting a little carried away with Barcelona at the moment.

Yes, they hammered Arsenal, won the treble last season and embarrassed Manchester United in the Champions League final, but they do play badly on occasions and they won’t win everything.

That said, they will continue to be the envy of many fans across the world.

Well, that’s it from Barcelona and with only three shows left this season, let’s have your suggestions for manager and player of the season. We’ll do a few awards each week in the run-in, but that should keep us all going for a while.

See you on Saturday but in the meantime you can follow me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Bonjour everybody. Can you believe there are only two programmes and three blogs – including this one – left this season? Thankfully we have the World Cup to keep us entertained and this week’s effort will be largely focused on the BBC’s recent World Cup press day.

You will also find the latest ‘Behind the Scenes’ from our interview with actor and comedian Rik Mayall if you scroll down far enough.

The World Cup press day is something of a logistical beast. Everybody who is going to South Africa with the BBC this summer was summoned to TV Centre in Shepherd’s Bush to speak to the assembled representatives of her majesty’s media.

New Match Of The Day 2 presenter Colin Murray only knew 24 hours beforehand that he would be part of our BBC coverage in South Africa, so he couldn’t make it, Mick McCarthy, Emmanuel Adebayor and Gordon Strachan were all busy training, while Clarence Seedorf and Jurgen Klinsmann, our new World Cup pundits, were overseas. Having everyone in the same place at the same time gives you the perfect opportunity to get things done. First up, photographs. We did these in groups and I was bunged in with Garth Crooks, Martin Keown and Mark Bright, who was wearing a lovely red leather belt.

I grinned inanely for the individual shot and then inexplicably put my arms around Keown and Bright for the group one. I’m not sure it will ever see the light of day.

After the photos were done, I made my way back to the main room for food. Alan Hansen, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Mark Lawrenson were tucking into bacon rolls, strange shaped cakes and these weird chicken skewer things.

As the big hitters were all called in for their pictures, me, producer Jase and cameraman Martin set up to film our pundits making their World Cup picks. I haven’t used a flipchart for years but it all came back to me pretty quickly. If you missed them choosing their England 23-man squad, or would like to see it again, here it is.

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Once that was done, we were all ushered upstairs for two hours of gentle questioning by the media. There were several tables laid out in a big room and two or three members of the BBC football team seated at each of them, along with four or five journalists. Every 10 minutes, the journalists moved on to the next table. It was a bit like speed dating.

Lineker and Hansen were on one table, Shearer and Lee Dixon on another, while I was with Keown and Damian Johnson. Keown was subjected to 95% of the questions, understandably, but I vaguely remember saying something about Spain and revealing my earliest World Cup memory – Lineker missing that header against Argentina in 1986.

I felt a bit sorry for Keown because he was repeatedly asked what it was like to go to two World Cups and not play. He dealt with it like a true pro. The story about him almost throttling John Gorman after being told he would have played in the next game had England not lost to Argentina in 1998 will live long in the memory, mainly because I heard it 15 times during the course of the day.

My final two acts of the day were to listen to a security briefing on South Africa and get my jabs. A lovely, chatty lady made sure I won’t catch the lurgy this summer. In return, I gave up the use of both arms for two days.

For those of you who may be interested, most of my time at the World Cup will be spent on the BBC bus. We start in Cape Town on day one and will travel the whole of the country, bringing you a heady mix of football, culture and history. I am presenting a few matches here and there, too, but the bus will be my home for five weeks.

We also filmed with Rik Mayall last week. He may have a World Cup song out, but the following snippet of conversation should tell you everything you need to know about his knowledge of football:

Me: “What do you make of Capello?”
Mayall: “I’ve never met her!”

He was a fascinating bloke and our latest ‘Behind the Scenes’ footage should give you an idea of how it all came together. . .

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If you want to let me have your own England 23-man squad or have any questions, fire away. Also, we did top manager and player last week so let’s go for your worst moment of the season so far.

The whole programme comes live from Valley Parade this Saturday to commemorate 25 years since the Bradford fire. You can stay up to date with preparations for that one by following me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

The idea of a live show from Valley Parade – or the Coral Windows Stadium – was first suggested at the start of the year. I remember it going down well in our Tuesday planning meeting because people were keen that not all of our outside broadcasts came from Premier League clubs.

We wanted to do something a little different at Bradford to mark the 25th anniversary of the fire, when 56 people went to watch a football match and never came home.

Focus editor Mark Cole was also faced with the difficult issue of slotting an exclusive interview with John Terry into the emotionally-charged show. I know some people were angry it was in there at all, but I think – editorially – it was right to include it.

I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t know much about the Bradford fire before working on last week’s show. I vaguely remember my mum being upset at what she was watching on the TV and telling my dad how awful it was. The more I read about 11 May, 1985, the more I realised how deeply tragic it really was. I spoke to a guy in our hotel on Friday afternoon, who told me that Heysel and Hillsborough will never be forgotten because Heysel had a global reach and the sense of injustice about what happened at Hillsborough continues to drive people on.

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Bradford was very different, a terrible accident caused by widespread ignorance about safety at football grounds. There were piles of rubbish under an almost entirely wooden stand, which was due to be demolished as soon as the game was over. Sadly, it is thought that one stray cigarette led to disaster.

It was meant to be a day of celebration. The team were presented with the old Third Division championship trophy before the game. It did become a day to remember. . . but for all the wrong reasons.

We’ve done some big shows this season but we were all feeling the pressure last Saturday. We wanted to get it right and make sure we hit the right tone. It might seem stupid, but I felt – I think we all felt – that we had a responsibility to do the very best show we possibly could to honour the memory of those who died.

On the morning of the show, we got to the ground about 0930 BST. We rehearsed as usual and I recorded the opening few links outside the stadium.

My wife will testify that it doesn’t take much to get me emotional when it comes to sport. Chuck a bit of music over a medal ceremony and I’m finished. The montages at the end of any major sporting event also leave me leaning for the tissues. But last Saturday was different. This wasn’t about achieving against the odds or doing what you’d always dreamed of, this was about an unfathomable human tragedy that affects anyone who has ever been to a football match.

Fifty-six people – some as young as 11 – went out that day to support their team. They ended up dying by the side of the pitch. Bill Shankly was a great manager but his quote about football being more important than life and death has always made me sit uneasy. On that point, the great man was wrong.

At about 1030 BST last Saturday, I watched the opening piece to the programme with a few others in the truck. For seven minutes, we all watched in stunned silence as Terry Yorath, John Hendrie, John Helm and others gave their accounts of that tragic day. I was already in tears by the time we got to the radio commentary as the stand started to burn.

Lee Dixon arrived shortly afterwards and Stuart McCall just after 1100 BST. I spoke to McCall about the programme we were about to do and he seemed in good spirits. We even had a laugh about how ginger his hair still was. Then, just before going on air at 1215 BST, we took our places in the main stand, exactly at the spot where the fire had started.

McCall wanted to watch the opening piece so I lent him my earpiece. I had to stand quite close to him and, every now and again, heard him sigh heavily or just whisper a knowing ‘oh dear’ as the memories came flooding back.

Halfway through, Yorath was unable to continue when he was trying to describe the scene at the ground when he returned later that day. It was too much for McCall as well. He spent the next few minutes wiping away the tears, but I thought he was excellent and gave us a real insight into what it was like on that day.

I’ve had loads of emails, texts and tweets from people since the show aired, saying how little they knew about the Bradford fire. One guy said he was shamed by his lack of knowledge and went away afterwards to read more .

I suppose he hit on the key point. We cannot forget what happened that day and we need to make sure that every time we sit and watch our team in safety, we remember the price paid by 56 fans at Valley Parade on 11 May, 1985.

If you’ve got any questions or comments about last week’s show, or Football Focus in general, then ask away below.

And don’t forget, you can see the second part of our interview with John Terry on Saturday. You can also follow preparations for our final show of the season on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

So that’s it. There are still a few cup finals and play-off games to look forward to but we have had the last Football Focus of the 2009/10 season.

For those of you expecting a passionate manly embrace at the end of Saturday’s show, I’m afraid it was only a power handshake with Lawro and Lee Dixon followed by fish pie. Can there be a better way to say goodbye?A few days on, I am sitting in my living room eating a Curly Wurly. There is also a piece of apple strudel in the fridge that is calling me. I always write better when there is food involved.

We have got through a lot over the past 10 months. I’ve had some rather fruity criticism on here (mostly for talking about Curly Wurlys and apple strudels) but I have to say that I have really enjoyed the interaction over the course of the season. The Focus team certainly appreciates some of the nice things that you have said about the programme.

The show itself has changed a lot since last August. We started with a new editor, new director, new presenter and plenty of fresh ideas. We have gone on the road eight times, attempted a few new bits and bobs in the studio and tried to give you an insight into how things work behind the scenes.

That was my plan with this blog as well – to open a few televisual doors that would otherwise be slammed in your face. Right from the start it was meant to be a bit of light-hearted fun looking at everything from how we got an exclusive interview to the best filling for a jacket potato.

Robinho was not as permanent a resident as planned at Eastlands

We heard Robinho tell us he was going to stay at Manchester City for five years (he left five weeks later) and we learned that Prince Charles was a Burnley fan (sort of). I told you about a shambolic meeting with Jordan (the model not Simon) and we came together to discuss the merits of revisiting a chocolate bar from one’s youth (Toffee Crisp).

You shared your attempts to win over friends to the beautiful game (most of them useless) and we embarked on a scheme to find the 20 nicest men in sport (and then I got hammered for not including any women). Wayne Rooney popped up a few times and I scored an overhead kick while training with Kevin Davies – something that inspired a list of our greatest sporting achievements.

We went to the Nou Camp and bumped into Johan Cruyff and Sir Bobby Charlton, discovered the delights of press box food and listed the top five Christmas nuts (the humble cashew came out on top).

On the serious side, Emmanuel Adebayor spoke at length about the reality of staring death in the face while (most recently) you shared your harrowing memories of the Bradford fire after our live programme from Valley Parade.

It has been the best 10 months of my career so far and I have really enjoyed working with our pundits and the numerous guests to have taken their seat on the sofa.

While consuming my fish pie last Saturday, Lawro reminded me of the most random moment of the season when Dixon decided to shout “Saha!” in the middle of the programme. I seem to remember the outburst came after a discussion about a game between Manchester United and Everton. I had just started introducing the next item when Dixon shouted “Saha!” at the top of his voice.

He explained that he had forgotten to mention the striker during the chat and, rather than do what most humans do and keep quiet, decided to put it right. It might have interrupted the flow of the programme but I really hope Dixon throws in a few more random footballers next season. “Ian Woan” would go down particularly well but I cannot see it happening.

Apart from the shouting, we have some grand plans for next season’s Focus. Hopefully the show’s boundaries will be stretched a little more and this blog will return when the season kicks off again in August (if they still want me to do it, that is).

There might be some blog-based fun from South Africa over the course of the World Cup as well so make sure you keep an eye out for that. I will be on a double-decker bus for most of the tournament, travelling around the country to gather as much football-related stuff as humanly possible.

Hold on please. . . strudel break.

So South Africa will be upon us soon and for the next few weeks I will be involved in planning meetings and briefings. I might even manage a trip to the golf course.

But before the World Cup takes over I want to take this opportunity to thank you for all your comments, questions and ideas over the season. It means a lot that many of you enjoy this blog. For those who aren’t so happy, please feel free to come on and unleash the rage.

So let’s finish off in style with a random prediction for something that will happen between now and August. Dixon reckons Arsenal will buy a £20m-plus player, while Lawro has tipped Chile to do great things at the World Cup. Anyone whose predictions come true enters a draw to win a Wham bar and an apple strudel!

If you want to know what I’m up to between now and the World Cup you can follow me on Twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

I love you all, apart from Joel in Swindon who sent me an e-mail saying I had a head like a brazil nut!

Faster

World Cup blog 1: Cape Town

My World Cup warm-up has been an interesting one: last Wednesday I was sitting on a stool with Rio Ferdinand in London talking to him about captaining England.

The event at Niketown ended with the crowd giving a rapturous send off to Ferdinand, Ashley Cole and Wayne Rooney – the other two popped in for the grand finale.

Rio spoke with real understanding about how Theo Walcott would be missing out on the World Cup and as he left (just after I had awkwardly spat some flapjack on his tracksuit) he said ’see you in six weeks’.

Rio Ferdinand could not have envisaged the injury that would end his World Cup captaincy of England

Less than 48 hours later he – just like Walcott – was getting used to the idea of spending the summer watching his country rather than playing for them.

I am also carrying a knee injury – a grade-three tear of my medial collateral ligament. Thankfully it didn’t stop me boarding a plan for South Africa this week.

The highlights of the 10-hour flight were witnessing Garth Crooks spill an entire cup of tea on his ivory shorts and watching Denzel Washington’s antics in the post-apocalyptic movie The Book of Eli.

I spent quite a bit of the flight reading the BBC World Cup ‘bible’ – a staggering tome put together by a group of statistical legends.

It’s essential for all commentators, pundits, presenters and reporters but sadly not available to buy. Its near 500 pages will tell you everything from the goal tally of Uruguay’s Luis Suarez to the name of the Nigerian president! If you’re interested, it’s Goodluck Jonathan.

This book is absolutely vital for commentators at the World Cup

Talking of stats. . . I have given the one about Suarez scoring 49 goals for Ajax this season to both Alan Shearer and Lee Dixon. They are now involved in a battle to see who can use it first during our coverage of France v Uruguay on Friday so keep an eye on them.

When we touched down in South Africa we received the vuvuzela welcome. The hotel receptionist told me that the instrument was originally used to scare off baboons but was so loud it actually killed some of them!

It sounds a bit like the noise who would expect an elephant to make if you had it in a really tight headlock. They’ll be plenty from the squealing pachyderm throughout the summer because everyone in South Africa seems to have one.

I am only in Cape Town until the weekend because the BBC bus leaves early Saturday morning. I have now met all the bus brothers and I can’t wait to hop on and bring you some fascinating stories from all over South Africa.

My first job on arrival was to get Fifa accreditation. I think they are having a problem with their printers because my head looks a lot wider than normal. I’ll take it though because my cranium normally looks like a bit like a cashew nut in real life – thin at the front and getting wider as you approach the rear.

The accreditation centre is around the corner from the BBC Cape Town studio on top of the Somerset Hospital and the view of Table Mountain in the background is a bit special.

Just below the studio is the media centre where much of the hard work is done. I will give you a little look around later this week which also gives me some time to sort out the biscuit collection. Of all the beauties they could have gone for they’ve opted for lemon puffs! What a disappointment. I consider it my mission to service my colleagues with some fig rolls before the bus leaves Cape Town.

Despite the biscuit news, I can’t wait for the World Cup to start. There will be so many compelling stories to tell from a complicated but fascinating country. I shall try and keep you up to date through this blog and if there’s anything you’d particularly like to see then bung it down below.

If you want to know more about BBC Sport’s World Cup bus then follow me at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

Well, we’ve been in South Africa for a few days now. Not long until we head out on the BBC bus, which I got a glimpse of for the first time earlier this week.

Many people have asked me if we are sleeping on it. The answer is ‘no’. We are staying in B&Bs and little hotels along the way.

I reckon it is the greatest bus in history. That might be a bit strong but it must be in the top five, along with the one from Speed, the one Clint Eastwood drove in Where Eagles Dare, Cliff Richard’s Summer Holiday love machine and the beauty from The Italian Job.
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I have been filming some behind the scenes stuff for the website and also planning the first Football Focus show for BBC World. You will not be able to watch it in the United Kingdom but it goes out to millions of people all over this globe of ours.

We have been to a township just outside Cape Town called Khayelitsha. Hundreds of thousands were forcibly relocated there back in the 1980s and it now has a population of 1. 3m – bigger than Birmingham. It is the second biggest township in South Africa behind Soweto but the fastest growing.

Some of the houses are just two pieces of corrugated iron resting against a beam while others are far more substantial. Staggeringly, it is estimated that 20% of the residents are HIV positive.

We visited a scheme funded by Football for Hope and run by a company called Grassroot Soccer. The organisation offers a programme that teaches kids football skills and educates them about HIV and Aids.

The guy in charge says ignorance levels are incredible. Some of the local young men think that sleeping with a virgin will cure them of the virus while children can be ostracised if someone in their family is HIV positive.

We heard about Siya, a young lad whose mother and father both tested positive. His friends immediately stopped talking to him and playing football with him. For months, he spoke to no one.

Thanks to the scheme, Siya’s friends were convinced he had done nothing wrong and was not contagious. Now he is back playing football with his mates everyday.

The place was packed with kids because South African schools have closed for six weeks in an attempt to reduce World Cup traffic. We drove past a high school in Khayelitsha that was covered in bullet-proof glass. There was a room on the ground floor with a massive yellow dot on the door.

Our guide told us it was a safety room just in case there was gunfire in or around the playground. The kids who cannot read are told to run to the yellow circle. It is a very different existence.

During our visit, there were smiling faces everywhere. Speaking to the children, it is clear the scheme is making a real difference. The assembled crowd went wild when the American who funds the programme turned up. I could not shake off the fact he was a dead ringer for Hulk Hogan. Even the accent was spot on.

Meet the Hulk Hogan lookalike

I half expected him to launch into a speech about the “26-inch pythons”. For those of you who are not au fait with the American wrestler, Hogan used that phrase to refer to his impressive biceps.

On a serious note, I think Khayelitsha highlights the real challenge for this World Cup. Many people say that unless a lasting difference is made in places like this, then the tournament cannot be considered a success.

As I was walking back from the supermarket this week, there was a poster on the wall with the following quote from Nelson Mandela: “Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is a protection of fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life. ”

South Africa is ready for the World Cup. Yes, there are dissenters, but the vast majority of people are excited and desperate for Bafana Bafana to do well. Many also hope that – as well as enjoying the football – the world will see that something needs to be done to address the country’s growing problems.

If you want to follow the BBC bus this summer, then let me gently prod you towards Twitter. You can get regular updates and pictures at danwalkerbbc.

Faster

The BBC bus is making its way across South Africa and our journey is going very well. We’ve had a few issues but managed to get everywhere we need to be at the right time.

We started in Cape Town last week and so far have been to the southernmost point of Africa, seen the world’s first post box in Mossel Bay, watched some big units in Addo Elephant Park and felt the chill wind in Port Elizabeth.

The bus gets driven around by Roger while the rest of us travel in two little vans. I was in one of those when we got a call about a tyre blowout on our generator while we were on our way to Mossel Bay. We all had to turn back, leaving security guard John and editor Rob to guard the generator for two hours in the rain while searched for new rubber.

The bus has also suffered some bird damage, with some sort of feathery friend going straight through the windscreen. The ever impressive Roger fixed it with some wood before it was replaced properly. The only man more resourceful then Roger is Micky, our rigger. He can fix anything and is our very own version of MacGyver. He also looks like a combination of Ray Winstone and Sinbad from Brookside.

I have been to many incredible sporting events during my career but it was pretty amazing to be up close and personal with some massive elephants at the Addo Elephant Park.

We were told by our guide, Darlington, who, despite the name, supports Manchester United, that there was very little chance of seeing anything because it was so cold. But we managed to lock horns with five elephants, plenty of zebras and some creatures that looked like antelopes. Maybe they were antelopes.

You should have seen the face of producer Stevie Lyle when he was told there were lions in the park. He spends much of his time in South Africa worrying about shark attacks so the prospect of being lion lunch was enough to bring about a mild panic attack. He sat in the middle of the truck hoping that if there was a hungry maneater around it would use one of the guys nearer the edge as a starter.

We have also seen our first game of the World Cup – Ivory Coast’s goalless draw with Portugal. The Ivorian fans were truly amazing. Their football association paid for 100 of them to come to South Africa to support the team – and it is easy to see why. They are only supporters capable of drowning out the vuvuzelas!

Visualise three conductors and an army of singers who bang two pieces of wood together with immaculate timing. Throw in some crazy moves and a bloke in a massive padded suite called ‘Papa Elephant’ and the result is impressive.

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My job after the match was to do what they call the ‘flash’ interviews. These take place with the players as they walk off the pitch. They do a ’super flash’ with the host broadcaster first and then come down the tunnel.

Each broadcasting team puts their interview requests to the press officers from and hopes for the best. We asked for Didier Drogba, Sven-Goran Eriksson, Carlos Queiroz and Cristiano Ronaldo. We ended up getting the first three, but Ronaldo didn’t fancy it.

You get around 90 seconds with each interviewee. After the third question, someone from Fifa usually gives you a poke in the back to let you know it is time to wrap the interview up. If you ask another question, the Fifa person gives you grief because the players have up to four flash interviews and sometimes a press conference as well.

Queiroz was quite keen on talking about Drogba’s broken arm and questioning whether Fifa should have allowed him to play at all. Eriksson dismissed that view and started every answer with his trademark “well”.

We even managed to grab a word with Eusebio. You will be able to see him talking about the four goals he scored in the quarter-final against North Korea in 1966 next week.

The only downside to being in a stadium city on match day is that all the restaurants are packed. I opted for a trip to the garage given the queues, some an hour long.

The wine gums and muffin were allied to a new culinary sensation for me. . . the Piemans Pieburger. I asked what was in it and was told a “combination of pie and burger”. Stupid question really. It had an interesting taste but is one of the few disappointments of our trip so far.

If there is anything you would like to know about the bus, then please get in touch. You can chart our daily progress by following me on twitter at twitter. com/danwalkerbbc

Faster

“Give it a few weeks and Africa will get you,” was one of the first things colleague Rob Walker said to me after we met at Heathrow two weeks ago.

Last Saturday, his words struck a real chord as the BBC Sport bus visited the Zenzele orphanage in the township of Finetown, about 50km outside of Johannesburg. We were going to show a group of 60 kids their first football match on a TV rigged up to our bus.

I hold my hands up and admit that I went to South Africa with preconceived ideas about what I would see and the people I would meet. Saturday was an absolute game-changer. It was the day that Africa got me. When we arrived at Zenzele, the children were all outside waiting for us. They sang us a song and some of the children read us a script they had written.

A lady called Winnie Mabaso was the founding mother of the orphanage. She used to feed more than 1,000 children a week out of her own kitchen before fundraisers in England bought the building that is now run by a remarkable lady called Miriam.

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All of the children in Zenzele are HIV positive and have lost their parents as a result of the virus. They are happy, vibrant and full of life. Much of that is down to Miriam and her team, who care for them, feed them three times a day and take them to the clinic when they show any symptoms of the virus.

The heartbreaker for me came when Miriam said she too was HIV positive and lost her mother to Aids. The emotion we all felt listening to her is hard to describe – it was a mixture of anger, frustration and guilt at the life we have back at home.

The overriding feeling is one of helplessness. When I held a little lad called William, who was the same age as my eldest daughter, I knew there was very little I could do.

The kids at Zenzele are the lucky ones. Statistics will tell you that those with Aids who live outside the gates are far more likely to die before they reach adulthood. That explains why – during the day – there were children jumping the walls to get in.

When we finally rigged the TV up, all the children gathered on a crop of rocks in the driveway. With no running water and limited electricity, this was a totally new experience.

Miriam showed them how to cheer if a goal went it – and they soon had the opportunity to practise when Australia took the lead. They were happy when Ghana equalised but the highlight was when they saw the advert for Doctor Who at half-time. “What was that?” said El Rico. “I want to see that show,” added Thabiso.

Once the game had finished and our piece on the orphanage had been broadcast, we showed it to them on the screens. Imagine seeing yourself on screen on the first day you had ever seen a TV. Dancing broke out and the occasional yelp was followed by pointing at the faces they recognised. Miriam broke down when she was told how many people were watching them back in the United Kingdom.

The children watch the Ghana v Australia game

We left just after dark with warm hugs all round and promises that we would never forget the people we had met and the friends we had made. I have been more surprised by South Africa than any other place I have ever visited.

We all know it is a complicated country with huge social problems but we have met some remarkable people with incredible stories to tell.

The World Cup is warming up nicely and the bus rolls on but what we saw at Zenzele puts football very much into perspective.

I’m finding it very hard to write this blog and feel that I lack the words to explain the situation. My intention was just to describe what we saw and the effect it had on us.

Maybe I should leave you with the words of a guy called Michael who I met in a Soweto church on Sunday. As a South African, his opinion carries far more weight than mine and strikes at the heart of it. . .

“I have lived in South Africa my whole life. Over the last 40 years, I can barely remember a day when I haven’t felt frustrated by what I see around me. I love this country. At times, it makes me laugh and cry in equal measure but I am confident that, before I die, I will live to see a better South Africa because there are so many people desperate to make a difference and change it. ”

Miriam is one of those people.

If you would like to know more about the Zenzele orphanage, information can be found at www. winniemabaso. org.

The best way to follow our journey on the BBC bus is via twitter. com/danwalkerbbc or the facebook page of Match of the Day.

Faster