Edwin Charles Ernest Lowe (1 November 19201 May 2011) was an English

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sports, cue sport played on a Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets, one at each corner and o ...

commentator for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

and

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

. His husky, hushed tones earned him the nickname "Whispering Ted".

Life and career

Born in Lambourn,

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

, Lowe was general manager of London's Leicester Square Hall, the home of professional billiards and snooker. He got his break one day when the BBC's regular commentator, Raymond Glendenning, was suffering from

laryngitis Laryngitis is inflammation of the larynx (voice box). Symptoms often include a hoarse voice and may include fever, cough, pain in the front of the neck, and trouble swallowing. Typically, these last under two weeks. Laryngitis is categorised ...

. Because there was no commentary box, Lowe spoke in a whisper, which became his trademark. Lowe became the commentator for the snooker television show '' Pot Black'' from 1969 and went on to become the "voice of snooker" and led the commentary in many tournaments. He also commentated in what is generally regarded as snooker's greatest final, that between Steve Davis and Dennis Taylor in the

1985 World Snooker Championship The 1985 World Snooker Championship (also known as the 1985 Embassy World Snooker Championship for the purpose of sponsorship) was a ranking professional snooker tournament that took place from 12 to 28 April 1985 at the Crucible The ...

. Lowe uttered the occasional on-air gaffe, one of his most famous quotes being, "and for those of you who are watching in black and white, the pink is next to the green." He once told viewers that Fred Davis, struggling to rest one leg on the edge of the table in order to reach a long shot, "is getting on a bit and is having trouble getting his leg over". Lowe retired after the

1996 World Snooker Championship The 1996 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as the 1996 Embassy World Snooker Championship for the purposes of sponsorship) was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 20 April and 6 May 1996 at the C ...

final, although he briefly joined in the commentary for the 2005 World Championship final between Matthew Stevens and

Shaun Murphy Shaun Peter Murphy (born 10 August 1982) is an English professional snooker player who won the 2005 World Snooker Championship, 2005 World Championship. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murphy is noted for his straight Cue stick, cue action and his lo ...

, which Murphy won. Lowe died, aged 90, in

Bexhill-on-Sea Bexhill-on-Sea (often shortened to Bexhill) is a seaside town and civil parish situated in the county of East Sussex in South East England. An ancient town and part of the local government district of Rother, Bexhill is home to a number of arc ...

, on the morning of the first session of the

2011 World Snooker Championship The 2011 World Snooker Championship (officially the 2011 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship) was a professional snooker tournament that took place between 16 April and 2 May 2011 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It was the 35t ...

final. He was survived by his wife Jean, daughter Margaret and son Michael. Recalling Lowe after his death, seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, who was once described by Lowe as the "wonder bairn of Scotland", said: "I remember playing ''Junior Pot Black'', I was only 12 and he was a complete gentleman. Me and my father were down there and he was so nice to us."

References

External links

*
Obituary in ''The Independent''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowe, Ted 1920 births 2011 deaths BBC sports presenters and reporters British sports broadcasters Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Lambourn Snooker writers and broadcasters