By Elliott West
“I was wagging my finger at Trevor East of ITV Sport, a good friend. He was with me for every session of the tournament except the first session of the final, when I lost all seven frames.”
Dennis Taylor remembering the 1985 World Championship final.
Introduction
Trevor East is a name that is fondly remembered for his association with snooker. Appointed ITV Executive Producer for snooker in 1983, Trevor spent several years at the helm on a channel that was the main rival to the BBC coverage, broadcasting a number of tournaments outside the Triple Crown tournaments. Such was his drive and ambition that he tried to bid for the broadcasting rights for the World Championship but sadly failed in his negotiations with the WPBSA. A man who had been ranked 27th in The Guardian’s “Media 100” most influential people in the industry.
Career
Born in 1950, Trevor James East spent most of his early life in Derby, going to the local school, Bemrose Grammar School. His first work in television was as a sports reporter for Lou Grade’s television channel, ATV, a break from his previous stint as a disc jockey in the clubs around Derby in the mid-1960s. Although this wasn’t to last long as due to a doubling up in the presentation team on the second series of the programme Tiswas from two to four, East was hired to work on the show that usually ended with the crew covered in foam, cream or whatever the Phantom Flan Flinger could conjure up. A programme that he spent several series working on.
However, it is probably in snooker coverage that he will be best remembered. A good friend of Dennis Taylor, East was watching all bar the first session of the 1985 World Championship final and was one of two inspirations that helped Taylor fightback from a commanding 8-0 lead by Steve Davis to force the match to a deciding frame and ultimately a black ball finish. The other influence was the recent departure of his mother who has sadly passed not long before the tournament. A title that he was determined to win for his mother’s memory.
East was crucial in that final as much as Barry Hearn was Steve Davis when he won the title in 1981. Although Trevor wasn’t as animated as Barry when Dennis won and certainly didn’t do a rush onto the stage moment. He helped Dennis maintain that belief, one that all champions dig deep for but whatever is thrown at them, including the kitchen sink, they can still just about manage to hold the nerves at bay and kick on. A good friend and someone who gained a wealth of knowledge from his friendship with Mike Watterson, the man who brought the World Championship to the Crucible in 1977.
His Love of Football
Trevor is a massive Derby County fan and has been since his childhood when his Uncle Ted used to take him to matches. This happened largely due to his father, Ralph not having the time to take him due to his long hours of work. This was definitely the spearhead that drove East into sport and he rarely missed a game, watching through Brian Clough stint at the helm, working then as a trainee journalist for Raymond’s News Agency. He would go on to form a close friendship with the families of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, being invited to serve on the Derby County board of directors.
Later Life
Trevor went on to work as head of ITV football broadcasting, later moving to Sky Sports and was an important player in the creation of Sky as the major football broadcaster. He went on to work for Setanta as their director of sports and joined the board of directors on Plymouth Argyle football club in 2019. East still has family ties to television with his son Jamie East working as a television presenter. Trevor now lives in Cornwall.
