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Frank Skinner on Muhammad Ali

Frank Skinner goes on a journey to explore the life of boxing legend Muhammad Ali, meeting Ali's family and friends and visiting key locations in his life.

Frank Skinner goes on a journey to explore the life of boxing legend Muhammad Ali, meeting Ali's family and friends and visiting key locations in his life.

To discover more about his idol, Frank travels around the UK and US, visiting key locations and people in Ali's life. In Ali's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, he meets the neighbour who witnessed the teenage boxer's single-minded dedication to his craft. He meets Ali's younger brother Rahaman, a key figure in the boxer's entourage and his closest confidante, and Ali's wife Khalilah, who was alongside Ali during the turbulent years when he was banned from boxing for refusing to fight in Vietnam and which saw him become an icon of the civil rights movement.

Frank pays a visit to Ali's training compound in Deer Lake, Pennsylvania, somewhere he has always longed to see. This is where Ali and his team prepared for one of his most famous fights of all time - the Rumble in the Jungle. From Ali's business manager, Gene Kilroy, Frank learns how Ali's unshakeable self-confidence and ability to manipulate the crowd were powerful weapons against his opponent George Foreman. He finds out what it was like behind the scenes in the Ali camp by talking to Ali's old sparring partner and friend Larry Holmes, who later faced him in the ring.

Frank also delves into some of the lesser-known aspects of Ali's life, meeting the bare-knuckle boxer from an Oxfordshire council estate who became one of Ali's dearest friends and the actor who played alongside Ali in a little-known musical on Broadway.

58 minutes

Last on

Sun 27 Feb 2022 23:00
±«Óãtv Two except Northern Ireland & Northern Ireland HD

Clips

See all clips from Frank Skinner on Muhammad Ali (4)

Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:02

    Pete Drake

    Forever

  • 00:10

    Buddy Guy

    Black Night

  • 00:14

    The 8th Day

    It's Instrumental To Be Free

  • 00:18

    Richie Havens

    Handsome Johnny

  • 00:31

    Edwin Starr

    War

  • 00:32

    The O’Jays

    Give the People What They Want

  • 00:37

    James Brown

    The Boss

  • 00:44

    The Best Ever & Muhammad Ali

    People's Choice

  • 00:44

    Kool & the Gang

    Jungle Boogie

  • 00:45

    Johnny Wakelin & The Kinshasa Band

    Black Superman- 'Muhammad Ali'

  • 00:57

    The Joe Tex Band

    Chocolate Cherry

Credits

Presenter Frank Skinner
Interviewed Guest Nicola Adams
Interviewed Guest Paddy Monaghan
Interviewed Guest Tyrone Monaghan
Interviewed Guest Lawrence Montgomery
Interviewed Guest Violet Montgomery
Interviewed Guest Karen Montgomery
Interviewed Guest Rahaman Ali
Interviewed Guest Khalilah Camcho-Ali
Interviewed Guest Larry Holmes
Interviewed Guest Lynda Schiffer
Interviewed Guest Gene Kilroy
Interviewed Guest Charles Weldon
Director Mary Crisp
Executive Producer Jo Sargent
Executive Producer Yvonne Sellins
Production Manager Iona Ramsay
Editor Claire Guillon
Production Company King Bert Productions

Broadcasts

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