成人论坛

A man of letters - Eamonn Holmes fronts a unique 成人论坛 event

Spelling, one of the building blocks of life, is put to the test in a new 成人论坛 ONE event for the nation's schoolchildren.

And Belfast-born broadcaster Eamonn Holmes, who is fronting the Hard Spell campaign, is ebullient about what this brand new initiative could achieve.

"I like the idea that an event such as Hard Spell will be so different it will change people's perceptions of spelling," he says.

After a series of regional heats, the Hard Spell campaign reaches its climax in the final on Sunday 5 December, when the 2004 champion of letters will be crowned.

The campaign won't be as easy as ABC for the youngsters, aged 11 to 14 - but Eamonn is determined to put them at their ease as they aim to clear the alphabetical hurdles in their path.

"I'm certainly not there to be stern with the children, or mock them," says the father of four. "I'm there to say, 'You've got this talent, let's see it. We wish you well. Go out there and do your best - you can do no more than that'.

"Then I'll congratulate them when they cross the finishing line, or comfort them, whichever it may be."

Talking in his dressing room at GMTV, Britain's longest-serving breakfast host is passionate about spelling.

"In this age of text messaging, it's a very important quality to reinforce and build on," he stresses.

"I had a love of, and an interest in, English when I was at school. I was absolutely useless at mathematics, so it even more determined the direction I was going to go in."

He recalls, as a grammar school pupil in the mid-Seventies, being told horror stories of science pupils who could produce complicated formulae, but were unable to explain their theories.

"They couldn't actually write the English to tell you how they did it because their command of the language was so bad," he explains.

Consequently, he warns: "I think whatever natural weakness would exist with people who are more science-orientated, is totally compounded in today's text-messaging age, where youngsters become adults who believe that words are spelt the way they are abbreviated.

"I think the whole foundation of English language is going to change over the next few years, so maybe what we're trying to do is stop the rot a bit - to create an interest in it and make this an attractive thing to do for youngsters."

Eamonn left school with A-levels in English language and literature, and O-levels in Latin and Ancient Greek.

"I was always told that Latin and Greek would be a foundation of all the other languages that we would go on to do and so it has proved to be," he says.

He confesses, though, that while correct spelling normally comes naturally: "I do get rocky when I start thinking about it.

"But these kids [in Hard Spell] are different - they just machine-gun it off, this is their forte. This is what they're trained in - they're like athletes or prize-fighters."

The passionate Manchester United fan, who hosts the 成人论坛's Lottery programme Jet Set and the Eamonn Holmes Saturday morning show on 成人论坛 Radio Five Live, began his broadcasting career at Ulster Television as a farming reporter, before moving to work across both news and sport.

At 21, he became the youngest-ever anchorman in regional television, hosting the hour-long early evening programme, Good Evening Ulster.

He's competitive by nature, so it follows that he doesn't entirely agree with the modern-day theory that competition is bad for children because there shouldn't be any losers.

"All I can say is it wasn't the way I was brought up, which was in a very competitive school and era," he explains.

"All my thrills today come from competition, no matter where you finish. It's the joy of competing against people and I think that when you don't have a rivalry, whether it's playing Trivial Pursuit, or in your job, or supporting your team, I reckon life must be pretty dull."

The father of Declan, 15, Rebecca, 13, Niall, 11, and Jack, two and a half, adds:

"I see my children doing course work that exhausts them but guarantees them marks. They don't have to compete at the end of the day when they walk into an exam, and say, 'I'm going to score more than you today'.

"They've more or less passed the exam before they go in."

He adds reasonably: "It's just a different way of doing things. I'm not saying it's right or wrong - I'm just saying that the competitive side appeals to me and probably to people of my generation."

But how can Hard Spell be woven into a web of fascination for children who have no interest in their A-Z?

Says Eamonn: "When you look at this year's Olympics, very few people knew the personalities taking part before the events, but at the end of it, we all knew who the rowers were, we knew who the equestrian people were, we knew the people who were in archery or cycling, or whatever.

"For those couple of weeks they were all the centre of our attention, because the contest was the centre of our attention and the sports and the competition won through.

"My kids were absolutely engrossed in the Olympics, which really amazed me. It became like a soap opera - they identified the characters and they followed them through."

He continues: "I think a good programme makes you care about those who are taking part and you will be excited by the competitive element of it as well.

"I think you'll say, 'I like the look of that boy or that girl' or 'I don't like the look of him, I hope he doesn't win'.

"So it becomes like a soap opera and it's gladiatorial and it makes you think. It will either restore your faith in the education system or it will make you realise how stupid you are yourself," he laughs.

And he believes the appeal of Hard Spell will span generations.

"We love quizzes and competitions and it's one of those events where children can compete against their parents and the parents can compete against their parents. Everybody can have a go at this at home."

It's a challenge the nation's wordsmiths are unlikely to resist.