Daily Star

Footie stars reveal personal own goals

TALES BANG ON TARGET

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peter.dyke@dailystar.co.uk

A HOST of Premier League stars will be tuning into new soccer comedy The First Team.

Many offered up embarrassi­ng stories about their own private lives which have ended up in the show.

Now there will be a guessing game for viewers to link the player to the cringewort­hy tale.

The BBC Two comedy – by

Inbetweene­rs writers Iain Morris and Damon Beesley – is about a fictional football team whose players...

● Bed a ‘‘kiss-and-tell girl’’ but she later confesses no paper wanted to buy her story as they are “nobodies... not even a Cameroonia­n Beckham”.

● Post photos of themselves on Tinder but change their name thinking that will “hide their true identity’.’

● Are so shy they refuse to go to the shops to buy toilet rolls in case someone takes a photo of them.

Writer Damon revealed: “We tried to make the show as authentic as possible so we chatted to lots of current Premier League stars. Through our research basically we could nick stories.

“The research was fun and you get all the material!

“But the show is actually sympatheti­c to footballer­s.

“Many think it’s all about ‘massive wages, easy life’ but it’s not.”

The comedy stars Disney’s Jake Short as Mattie, Star Wars Story’s Shaquille Aliyebuah as Benji and Waterloo Road’s Jack Mcmullen as Jack. ● The First Team launches on BBC Two tomorrow at 9.30pm.

edward.gleave@dailystar.co.uk

CLASSIC shows are pulling in bumper ratings during lockdown.

The UKTV network has seen a spike for viewers aged 16 to 34 for favourites including The Vicar Of Dibley, Only Fools And Horses, The Bill, Eastenders, Casualty

and Birds Of A Feather.

UKTV boss Marcus Arthur said: “Television can bring great comfort in these troubled times.

“We’re staying at home and the news is bleak, but escapist, entertaini­ng and comforting TV can bring great joy.

“It’s heartening to see younger viewers discoverin­g iconic shows that have stood the test of time and are just as funny and engaging today as they were years ago.”

EUROVISION being cancelled didn’t stop it being a ratings hit.

A special show aired on May 16 in its place, Shine A Light hosted by Graham Norton.

And it’s emerged it was watched by 73million viewers around the world.

Eurovision boss Jon Ola Sand said: “Our show this year proves that the light that Eurovision shines into millions of hearts remains undimmed.”

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