Met a good few great people from finding this channel and all that followed. I thank those involved for the entertainment provided and the experiences that resulted.
What a sad day used to love 861 when the channel was on I think from 7 till midnight where Tikay could waffle on....... sorry would give us some enlightning stories from his past and Rich would do his best to pull him down at every opportunity, James Anna and Sarah all very good presenters and the experts who would give there advice sometimes especially with me it was light bulb stuff where I would go Oh Yeea that makes sense. At times it was the funniest thing on TV I will miss it immensely.
Thanks guys for your lovely words! Yes it is an absolute bummer losing your job, especially one you have had for quite a long time, I have moved house, got engaged, got married, met so many of you at SPTs, made some life long friends in my crew, moved studios about 4 times, and as mentioned I have even presented a last show before! I have been proud of working on this show for the past 6 years and I have really enjoyed the last year on Skysports. I am going to miss being a part of SkyPoker, but I am super grateful for all the laughs the show gave me. Oh and of course I would never had met Teaks and had so many chats about motorway services (which secretly I love, although not so much the concrete chat)
I have alreasy presented my last show, but will back on the show on Tuesday as the recreational player, so I hope you are able to watch, and wish us luck!
lots of love, and wishing you all the best Christmas
I was lucky enough tobe invited on to one of the shows on 861 a few years back with tikay and James, it was a blast from start to finish, but the thing I took back from that show was the amount of work that went on behind the scenes both prior to and during the show. Non stop professionalism shown by one and all throughout, but it was obvious that each and every person involved enjoyed their jobs..... that is I think the main reason for it's success.
I would like to wish all the team every success in their future projects, I'm sure you won't be looking around for work for too long.
I used to switch over to 861 behind my Mrs back when she went upstairs for anything and switch back when i heard her heading back. Getting my poker fix. The channel definitely brought me to Sky.
Its tragic that something so good and genuinely warm natured cant stay for good.
Its a shame there isnt a low budget way of bringing something to some screen .
The Master Class tables with the TV icon will have to go.
Only got to watch the show sparingly but whenever I did watch I always enjoyed it. More so it really boosted the community feel of sky poker.
You saw the names on the show you were so used to seeing playing against, the presenters would give details about how they knew them, recent good results etc, then you would come on to the forum and see more of those names talking about whatever was going on at the time.
Sadly with the ending of the show along with the sense that the forum is seeing less traffic and even the end of garys results thread that community feel to Sky Poker I feel has taken another major blow and is trending towards being like the other "faceless" sites out there. Real shame.
Just like to say to all the guys involved in the show that I hope, and I'm sure, you'll all land on your feet wherever else your careers take you. You put together a great show and wish you all the best!
Absolutely gutted. Sky Poker has been a huge part of my life for a decade and I've thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it.
I've come to know so many of you, either in the chatbox, on the shows or on the tours and this will take a lot of getting over.
Thank you though for the heartwarming response on the forum and for your stories of how the TV channel brought you here and how much it enhanced your enjoyment of the site.
Although I've really enjoyed the Sky Sports shows, it will be the heady days of Sky Poker TV Channel 861/865 that I will treasure most. The enormous interaction we used to get from you on the forum and via email and the cult following where for a time it was essential to play on the site whilst watching the action live on TV and the banter throughout the night.
Thanks for all your goodwill messages about the future, I'm sure I'll survive- but I doubt I will ever find a presenting job again that I dedicated so much to, and got so much enjoyment from. So for that I am grateful.
And ten years! They said it wouldn't last 12 months!
Thanks to everyone I've worked with over the years, all the faces that have since moved on, and in recent years the likes of Ryan, Stuart, Neil, Ian, the two Kevins and all the guest pundits we've had on.
Thanks to Anna- although we didn't work together much, I was a great admirer of her presenting and was proud to host the show alongside her.
Thanks to all the crew- especially Dan, Chan and Louis. The first two in particular have also been there since the beginning-or not long after- and feel like a part of my extended family.
Thanks to Tikay for not only being my terrific comedy foil for ten years but also managing to survive that long. Not in terms of being on the show, but survive in real life. A true miracle at his age. We had a good double-act and natural chemistry without ever having to discuss it or rehearse it. It just happened.
Thanks to Sky Betting & Gaming for the opportunity in the first place.
And finally, thanks to you guys. I've always said it, and I'll say it one final time. I genuinely couldn't have done the shows we did in the 861 days without your amazing message contributions, which were often quite brilliant and gave me a lot of material to bounce off and a lot of laughs. I always sensed from the community during those years there was a lot of goodwill and sentiment towards the TV show, that our viewers thought of the show as their own, and it was a big part of their reason for playing on Sky.
One last show then- this Tuesday 6th- hope you can make it. Will be emotional.
I wish you all the very best in life and on the poker tables and to sign off I will say what I've said at the end of every show for many, many years now:
'Thanks for watching, good luck at the tables, and good night'.
Like most have not watched since the move but this must be hard to take from the tv team, and horrible time of year too.
I am sure the tallented on screen and behind the scene guys will do great in the future.
Best of luck and thank you to everyone who made it happen and brought me to this poker site! May have lost a few £ over the years but is great fun! Getting mentioned on tv was always a great feeling, winning a comp even better and still have my recording of my first and only ever tv interview at STP Birmingham by Rich himself!
i wish you all well have so many memories,laughter learning and wonderful people from 861,never watched on sky sports but i wish all the team the very best and mr orford did you have to make me cry with your post still love you paige55 xx
Gutted to say the least. Sky Poker TV and the sense of community is what sets Sky Poker above all other poker sites for me.
You've all done a fine job of creating a show over the 10+ years with such a genuine warm feel to it. All the best to you all for the final show on Tuesday. I'll definitely be watching. Hope its a belter!
Hi guys, Absolutely gutted. Sky Poker has been a huge part of my life for a decade and I've thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. I've come to know so many of you, either in the chatbox, on the shows or on the tours and this will take a lot of getting over. Thank you though for the heartwarming response on the forum and for your stories of how the TV channel brought you here and how much it enhanced your enjoyment of the site. Although I've really enjoyed the Sky Sports shows, it will be the heady days of Sky Poker TV Channel 861/865 that I will treasure most. The enormous interaction we used to get from you on the forum and via email and the cult following where for a time it was essential to play on the site whilst watching the action live on TV and the banter throughout the night. Thanks for all your goodwill messages about the future, I'm sure I'll survive- but I doubt I will ever find a presenting job again that I dedicated so much to, and got so much enjoyment from. So for that I am grateful. And ten years! They said it wouldn't last 12 months! Thanks to everyone I've worked with over the years, all the faces that have since moved on, and in recent years the likes of Ryan, Stuart, Neil, Ian, the two Kevins and all the guest pundits we've had on. Thanks to Anna- although we didn't work together much, I was a great admirer of her presenting and was proud to host the show alongside her. Thanks to all the crew- especially Dan, Chan and Louis. The first two in particular have also been there since the beginning-or not long after- and feel like a part of my extended family. Thanks to Tikay for not only being my terrific comedy foil for ten years but also managing to survive that long. Not in terms of being on the show, but survive in real life. A true miracle at his age. We had a good double-act and natural chemistry without ever having to discuss it or rehearse it. It just happened. Thanks to Sky Betting & Gaming for the opportunity in the first place. And finally, thanks to you guys. I've always said it, and I'll say it one final time. I genuinely couldn't have done the shows we did in the 861 days without your amazing message contributions, which were often quite brilliant and gave me a lot of material to bounce off and a lot of laughs. I always sensed from the community during those years there was a lot of goodwill and sentiment towards the TV show, that our viewers thought of the show as their own, and it was a big part of their reason for playing on Sky. One last show then- this Tuesday 6th- hope you can make it. Will be emotional. I wish you all the very best in life and on the poker tables and to sign off I will say what I've said at the end of every show for many, many years now: 'Thanks for watching, good luck at the tables, and good night'. :-) Posted by RICHORFORD
It's a sad to see the channel close completely. Back in 2007 it converted me from someone who dabbled on a couple of sites, to a regular viewer and player. I hope there will be something extra (Twitch? A podcast?) which could accompany the action on the tables in future, but I understand completely why TV side had to come to an end.
Many thanks to Tikay, Rich, Anna, the crew, and the original presenters from back nearly ten years ago for hours of entertainment and teaching me a bit of the game.
Any chance you can break out the original 3D table on Tuesday for old times sake?
sad news this especially to all involved in the production and the presenters good luck all in the future
life goes on tho im sure all involved have their heads screwed on and will find work , i was laid off 5 times last year , imagine that , but being determined where work is concerned i always find summut but thats the life of a self employed person
pity you dont shut the hole site down. answer this how many people have left this site this year. bet it was more than joined ...and the reason is the amazzzzzzzzzzzzzzing river cards if u dont have any luck in life this is the site for you
What a sad day used to love 861 when the channel was on I think from 7 till midnight where Tikay could waffle on....... sorry would give us some enlightning stories from his past and Rich would do his best to pull him down at every opportunity, James Anna and Sarah all very good presenters and the experts who would give there advice sometimes especially with me it was light bulb stuff where I would go Oh Yeea that makes sense. At times it was the funniest thing on TV I will miss it immensely. Posted by DoyleBrun
It's a sad to see the channel close completely. Back in 2007 it converted me from someone who dabbled on a couple of sites, to a regular viewer and player. I hope there will be something extra (Twitch? A podcast?) which could accompany the action on the tables in future, but I understand completely why TV side had to come to an end. Many thanks to Tikay, Rich, Anna, the crew, and the original presenters from back nearly ten years ago for hours of entertainment and teaching me a bit of the game. Any chance you can break out the original 3D table on Tuesday for old times sake? Posted by IRONZ
Unfortunately, that's not possible, it needs a special "green studio" which they no longer have access to, & the Show is obliged to address the Sky Sports audience.
As Anna mentioned earlier, we are currently in our 4th different Studio. The first was in Feltham, & the last three in Osterley. The current one is adjacent to Sky News, though they have now moved to a plush new Studio across the road. Things move on......
For those not around in those days, this was what that "green studio" looked like to the viewer. It appears to be blue, with those card graphics, in fact the studio was bright green & completely empty apart from the Presenter & Analyst.
Really enjoyed the 865/861 shows, never seen the sky sports format. Good luck to all involved, best wishes for the future. Just a suggestion to sky, Can you make the last show a free pass, so all of the community can get involved? Posted by Red_King
That won't be possible, but there will probably be a You Tube Video of the entire Show, & if so, I'll post a link to it.
Comments
Its tragic that something so good and genuinely warm natured cant stay for good.
Gutted to say the least. Sky Poker TV and the sense of community is what sets Sky Poker above all other poker sites for me.
You've all done a fine job of creating a show over the 10+ years with such a genuine warm feel to it. All the best to you all for the final show on Tuesday. I'll definitely be watching. Hope its a belter!
Onwards & Upwards!
As Anna mentioned earlier, we are currently in our 4th different Studio. The first was in Feltham, & the last three in Osterley. The current one is adjacent to Sky News, though they have now moved to a plush new Studio across the road. Things move on......
For those not around in those days, this was what that "green studio" looked like to the viewer. It appears to be blue, with those card graphics, in fact the studio was bright green & completely empty apart from the Presenter & Analyst.