‘I Am A Transsexual Sportswriter’: Jacqui Oatley Meet Mike Penner
WHEN JACQUI Oatley, 32, covered the Premiership game between Fulham and Blackburn on BBC TV’s Match of the Day football review, she proved to be every bit as sick as a parrot/over the moon as the show’s male commentators.
No comment on players legs. No comment on which two teams’ kits look best together on the pitch. No comment on getting grass stains out of nylon. Just the usual commentator stuff - game of two halves, rocket shots and crowds in raptures.
No big deal. And certianly no big deal compread to the news that LA Time staff writer Mike Penner will be from now on using the byline Christine.
Says Mike: “During my 23 years with The Times’ sports department, I have held a wide variety of roles and titles. Tennis writer. Angels beat reporter. Olympics writer. Essayist. Sports media critic. NFL columnist. Recent keeper of the Morning Briefing flame.
“Today I leave for a few weeks’ vacation, and when I return, I will come back in yet another incarnation.
“As Christine.
“I am a transsexual sportswriter.”
And Penner can do the job as well as ever he could. As Mike says: “Everyone who knows me and my work will be transitioning as well. That will take time. And that’s all right. To borrow a piece of well-worn sports parlance, we will take it one day at a time.”
Twat! Liquid football…
Over to you, Gary Lineker…
Posted: 28th, April 2007 | In: Back pages Comments (3) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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April 29th, 2007 at 5:51 pm
You could at least comment on Miss Oately’s shapely legs! Or how cute she would look in a Fulham uniform. Must be a guy who wrote this low end piece of journalism. By the way, what is the best way to remove grass stains from nylons?
Excellent tongue in cheek! I loved it.
Barb
April 29th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
It’s the sniggering chauvenism of Match of the Day - why should Oatley be any different to the male commentators? why was this even a story? better to have just let her get on with the job
April 29th, 2007 at 1:46 pm
“Twat! Liquid football…
Over to you, Gary Lineker…”
No idea what this means. Are you saying “good on you Christine” and well done or are you being phobic in your response.
Whatever I say well done and well done for being you and I’m sure it will make not a jots difference in you ability to report on sports.
Claire P