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

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

commentator for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

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

Life and career

Born in

Lambourn Lambourn is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It lies just north of the M4 Motorway between Swindon and Newbury, and borders Wiltshire to the west and Oxfordshire to the north. After Newmarket it is the largest centre of r ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, 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 Raymond Carl Glendenning (25 September 1907 – 23 February 1974) was a BBC radio sports commentator and occasional character actor. Early years Glendenning was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales, son of Robert James Samuel Glendenning, a c ...

, 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 2 weeks. Causes Laryngitis is cat ...

. 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 ''Pot Black'' was a snooker tournament in the United Kingdom broadcast on the BBC. Each match was contested over a single , where other tournaments were significantly longer. The event carried no ranking points, but played a large part in th ...

'' in 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 Steve Davis (born 22 August 1957) is an English retired professional snooker player who is currently a Sports commentator, commentator, DJ, electronic musician and author. He dominated professional snooker in the 1980s, when he reached eight ...

and

Dennis Taylor Dennis Taylor (born 19 January 1949) is a Northern Irish retired professional snooker player and current commentator. He turned professional in 1972 and won the 1985 World Snooker Championship, in which he lost the first eight frames of 1985 W ...

in the 1985 World Snooker Championship. Lowe occasionally uttered a gaffe on air; 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 final, although he briefly joined in the commentary for the

2005 World Snooker Championship The 2005 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as the 2005 Embassy World Snooker Championship for the purposes of sponsorship) was a professional snooker tournament that took place at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. The tou ...

final, where

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 and has completed the Triple Crown (snooker), Triple Crown. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murp ...

defeated

Matthew Stevens Matthew John Stevens (born 11 September 1977) is a Welsh professional snooker player. He has won two of the game's Triple Crown events, the Masters in 2000 and the UK Championship in 2003. He has also been a two-time runner-up in the other t ...

. He also came out of retirement to commentate on the 1997 Pot Black Seniors tournament. Lowe died, aged 90, following a short illness, in

Bexhill-on-Sea Bexhill-on-Sea (often shortened to Bexhill) is a seaside town and civil parish in the Rother District in the county of East Sussex in South East England. It is located along the Sussex Coast and between the towns of Hastings, England, Hastings ...

, 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. Recalling Lowe after his death, seven-time World Champion

Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and a current Sports commentator, commentator and pundit. One of the most successful players in snooker history, he turned professional in 1985, ag ...

, 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 English sports broadcasters Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Lambourn Snooker commentators