The Proclaimers know the exquisite delight of your songs being sung in football stadiums

The Proclaimers know the exquisite delight of your songs being sung in football stadiums

Author: Mark Ellen, David Hepworth and Alex Gold August 25, 2026 Duration: 27:37

The Proclaimers have only had a handful of hits but they’re songs that have kept expanding for nearly 40 years. And the World Cup was a reminder of how far they’ve reached. Craig and Charlie Reid talk to us here about first adventures onstage, talent shows, the tour circuit, the new album ‘You May Offend’ and …

 

… the moment the Proclaimers took off

 

… first records bought in Woolworths in Fife (including the less-than-prophetic World Cup anthem Easy Easy)

 

… the fraternal voices of the Everly Brothers

 

… seeing Joy Division supporting Buzzcocks and feeling “the heat and charisma” of Ian Curtis

 

… the unique way they write songs

 

… getting royalties when your hits are sung in televised football stadiums

 

… their first gigs playing Stones, Kinks, Clash and Pistols covers plus a Talent Show in ’77 on a bill with “a lassie singing Scottish ballads and possibly a performing dog”

 

… recording at Rockfield and the ghost of Bohemian Rhapsody

 

... their new video imagining John & Yoko as they might be today

 

… how easy it is to offend Gen-Z

 

… and hitchhiking 60 miles to see Hibs and writing ‘The Joyful Kilmarnock Blues’ about it.

 

Order ‘You May Offend’ here: https://proclaimers.lnk.to/youmayoffend

Help us to keep The Longest Continuous Conversation In Rock'n'Roll going: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear


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There’s a particular kind of conversation about music that happens between friends who’ve spent a lifetime immersed in it-not as distant critics, but as participants in the culture. That’s the atmosphere you’ll find in Word In Your Ear, a podcast from Mark Ellen, David Hepworth, and Alex Gold. With a collective eighty years of writing and broadcasting for titles like Smash Hits and Mojo, and shows from "The Old Grey Whistle Test" to VH-1, they don’t just recount history; they unpack the stories behind it with the ease of a shared laugh. This podcast grew naturally from their work on the late, great magazine The Word, where they began recording over thirteen years ago, building a dedicated following who found something genuinely special in the mix. Each episode weaves together music, commentary, history, and interviews, moving seamlessly from deep-dive analysis of a seminal album to a frank chat with a surprising guest, all delivered with the warmth and wit of a late-night chat. It feels less like a formal show and more like you’ve been invited to pull up a chair in a room where the anecdotes are plentiful and the expertise is worn lightly. The result is a consistently engaging listen that treats music not as a museum piece but as a living, breathing part of our lives.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

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