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Boxing Life Stories

Season 4: #45 James Cook

Boxing Life Stories

Tris Dixon

Sports

4.91.6K Ratings

🗓️ 23 September 2022

⏱️ 111 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Former European super-middleweight champion and two-time British champion James Cook is one of the most-respected figures in British boxing. He was the first man to defeat the excellent Michael Watson, lost to Herol Graham, wanted to fight Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn and he had one tough assignment after another on the road, almost always in the away corner. He worked with Mickey Duff, Harry Holland, Frank Warren and others, talks about moving to the UK from Jamaica, racism in England and, in his decorated role as a youth worker, crime and poverty in London and in the UK. Cook is the conscience of British boxing and universally loved, known as The Guardian of the Streets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

When I was at school in Peckham,

0:03.0

I went to Peckham and in the 70s,

0:05.0

I used to be running around telling people

0:08.0

that guys like me would never meet the Queen.

0:10.0

You know, I remember, you know, very clearly,

0:13.0

and taught you how to say, you know,

0:15.0

come on, meet her, speak to her,

0:17.0

shake her hand, you know what I mean?

0:19.0

Listen, the only time I have a sweatlight

0:21.0

that is when I know I'm in trouble with my mom.

0:23.0

And tea, we'll be in the class

0:25.0

with our friend White, Black Turkish, whatever.

0:29.0

And we'll be happy.

0:30.0

We'll be playing in school.

0:31.0

But the minute we come out of school,

0:33.0

you could be in the wrong part of Peckham,

0:35.0

wrong part of Earth,

0:36.0

wrong class, the wrong part of Burmese.

0:38.0

This is your friend in school,

0:39.0

but if you're in the wrong part of London,

0:41.0

we'll be fighting inside even.

0:43.0

I remember, like I said, I come to Hackney,

...

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