Keith Quinn is part of the fabric of Kiwi TV and sporting history. On hand to commentate and write about many of our key sports moments – rugby and otherwise – over almost four decades, Quinn called his first rugby match for TV in 1973, and is part of the 2011 Rugby World Cup team for Maori Television.

In this ScreenTalk interview, the long-time Beatles fan talks about:

• His sport-obsessed childhood, including imagining he and his brothers were All Blacks
• How his passion for rugby likely began with his Canadian father
• His first television appearance, involving an unfortunate mix-up between the motor-racing commentary and the women’s netball
• His most difficult commentary to date: the last test of the 1981 tour, when he feared the plane buzzing the field might take out the commentary box
• The full story behind that legendary Keith Quinn and Jonah Lomu moment, when Lomu scored a try at the 1995 World Cup
• Travelling the world as presenter of landmark 1999 documentary series Legends of the All Blacks
• His thoughts on changes in commentary styles over the years, as the game has got faster and more commercial

This video is available on YouTube to embed and distribute via a Creative Commons licence.

NZ On Screen: Direction & Interview - Ian Pryor, Camera & Editing - Alex Backhouse