We reckon the BBC missed a trick when it picked its commentary team for its F1 coverage – yes it’s got Martin Brundle and David Coulthard, yes Murray Walker is involved somewhere in there, but where is Leigh Hobden?
Who, you ask?
Hobden is the spiky-haired host of motor sport memorabilia retailers Grand Prix Legends‘ regular diecast models webcasts, a surprising YouTube treat hewn from the most unpromising of material and filmed in a cargo container on a budget that makes shoestrings look lavish.
A sort of bastard lovechild of Jonathan Ross and Adam Carroll, in this week’s episode Hobden gives a guided tour of his “studio facilities”, demolishes a scale model McLaren nosecone with a hammer, and demonstrates a diecast championship-winning Ferrari with the words “for those of you new to the sport of Formula One, yes, Kimi Raikkonen did used to be good once”.
At nine minutes long, the act does stretch a bit thin at times – but the webcast remains informative and detailed throughout despite the clowning, and works considerably better than it ought to thanks to its host.
We say: why is this man not in a pit lane with a microphone in his hand?