I remember the good old days when I had to listen to the stare out matches on radio. You used your imagination in those days. Now it's all HD TV coverage and fancy graphics. A bit flashy for my taste.

This was the golden age of staring, Spatsky in his prime! Much better than the crap that passes for staring nowadays. The sport has really gone downhill in recent years...

Brilliant commentary by Barry Davies. The "Voice" of Staring.

I mentioned Giggles Clifton to a colleague and he hadn't even heard of him. He's 32... Made me feel really old.

Thanks so much for uploading! I remember watching the 43Rd with my Dad, who recently passed. Like a lot of men of his generation, for him the staring came before anything else. He stared for the local club every Thursday and Sunday, never missed a match! That is, until the eye strain got him. He'd already lost my mum and once he couldn't stare anymore I think he just lost the will to live. I don't often get emotional but watching this made me cry because it's probably the last happy memory I have of him. I don't know why I decided to shared this with bunch of strangers in the internet instead of my wife but reading the other comments it just seemed like there is a lot of people here who take the game seriously like he did, which is rare these days.. So yeah, thanks!

John Duran. What a legend. I remember when he broke Lee Hurst's nose on They Think It's All Over in 1999 after a particularly frosty round of feel the sportsman.

I was there for the finals that year. Incredible stuff. I was only 9 but I still remember my Dad talking a little how he bumped into Kampagnola in the toilets just before the warm up. He was washing his hands next to him and caught a quick glimpse of his eyes in the mirror glass. It was just second or two but I could tell that my Dad was visibly shaken by the experience. The TV coverage can’t do justice to just how hard that stare is in real life to deal with. That year was the last of the great “unlimited” matches era. Now they are time limited to 2 hours in order to avoid major injuries , which I understand , because there were too many deaths back then, but I still yearn for the old days of the black and white TV coverage and ambulances.

RIP Benny Kiang (23 January 1967 - 12 December 2022). Just heard the devastating news that Kiang has passed away, and I'd like to be the first to register my mawkish and cliché-ridden condolences. I know he divided opinions, and I'm certainly not here to condone his violent misdemeanours, the politically incorrect statements he uttered, or THOSE allegations. Today I'd like to pay tribute to, IMHO, the greatest stare-outer of all-time. For me above even Spatsky and Giggles; he was the best counter-attacker I've ever had the pleasure to watch, a crowd-pleaser, and an innovator who could turn a match with one stare. Yes, he was a flawed genius, yes he had his demons, but his foibles were what attracted the supporters, they gave him a human quality. If there is a heaven, I think Kiang is staring down on us. RIP big man and thanks for all the memories.

Funny to look back now and see how revolutionary Duran's technique really was, so many players now favour that style - it really does put those with the classical setup on the defensive.

Showing my age now, but can anyone remember the first Andrew Dudley's World Stare Out Champion game? I had it on the Acorn Electron. I got the board game the same year. What a Christmas that was!!

Takes me back to the time when I got stuck in a lift with John Duran and Andrew Dudley. Think it was the 1991 British Championships in Peterborough. Both lovely fellas - knew Dudley would go far when he didn’t bat an eyelid as we plummeted three floors!

I remember attending a charity pro am tournament and had the pleasure of seeing Ted 'The Head' Stead go up against Terry Wogan. Old Tel kept talking and tried to use his soothing tones to put the great man off, he didn't stand a chance. Speaking of soothing tones I got to meet the legendary Raymond Sledge there too. Top commentator and a real gentleman.

When I was I boy, I remember my Dad and I watching the staring on World of Sport, so surprised to see others remember it on the BBC. Different era, perhaps. Dickie Davies was certainly a great fan of the sport and competed himself well into his 20s, but following his very visible injury was forced to retire. My Dad reckoned it was all fixed anyway, and Giggles Clifton would always win. But you didn’t question it in those days.

Anan Nanak's loss to Kampagnola was heartbreaking in the semi finals, but I'm glad he was a good sport about it. He fought hard to make to the semi-finals, and even through the wind delay, he didn't break his stare. I met him in 2002 a few months before he passed, the sweetest old man I ever met. My sister still has his signature on her prosthetic!

I honestly don't understand why anybody would prefer to watch American Eyeballing when classic staring is so much more skilful and entertaining. My dad was a Navy staring champion in the 70s and I used to do a bit of staring myself - even made it as far as county championships one year! But this level is something else. It makes my retinas dry up just thinking about it!!

I met Raymond Sledge once. He'd retired by then, but kept a group of us fans entertained for hours at a local convention. Signed loads of books without blinking an eye lid. Top man!

Benny Kiang is just a wonderful human being, I met him once back in 1986. He was already a local legend at the time, just a natural stare-out champion that climbed straight to the top, without even breaking a sweat.

I hear the BBC have recently reacquired the rights to the Staring highlights. Great to have it back. That's my Saturday nights sorted!

I'm blown away by the standard of comments on this video 😚👌🏻👏👏👏

The great Bing Sharples, very underrated. The sultan of stare, as my grandad used to call him.

Brilliant. Getting the great Barry Davies on board was a genius move.

5:21 is such a good parody of Aggers ‘couldn’t quite get his leg over’ commentary 😂🤣😂

The recent introduction of the 48 hour limit for the duration of the match really put a lot of strain on the players, as they have to deal with time pressure and have to adjust their game accordingly.

This 43rd tournament certainly was historic,but does anyone else remember how exciting the regional qualifiers were? My grandad took me to any and all we could attend,all the way through the mid 70's,when I was just a lad,raised on spam and a drip feed of brown ale. Many a breathlessly tense stare battle was witnessed through those thin strata of stale cigarette smoke. Truly a golden era.

The introduction of VAR into the stare out championships has been an absolute disaster. The technology simply isn't good enough to properly assess whether the eye has fully closed.

I was a member of the Annan Nanak "Maniaks" fan club back in the day. Happy memories..

I was at the 1968 amateurs, what a battle that was. The crowd was electric and Raymond Sledge was the real voice of WSO!

Big Train is a largely forgotten masterpiece of British TV comedy. The Staring Competition is just so funny. Also beautiful animation. The technical term for the technique is ‘boiling’. You can see why.

Ahh yes I remember going to the staring matches with my Dad as a child. Just as he did with his father before him. Dad had a few pints with the chaps before the match. Me sat in the corner with an orange juice and packet of crisps. Singing along with the crowd to stareway to heaven. Ahh great memories, Great! Great memories!

Forgot all about staring! Ever since it disappeared from terrestrial TV it really slipped off the radar. Haven't got SKY myself.

Watching this, you just know that Spatsky could have any of the modern starers for breakfast; even under 20-20 rules, where they're allowed a break every 20 mins (probably to update their TikTok accounts), Spatsky would be wiping the floor with them; he probably wouldn't even actually take the break, lest it upset his concentration...

one of the best British skit comedy shows ever!

I work in law and learned a lot of tips and techniques from watching these for when I attend hearings at the Royal Courts of Justice in London. I could out stare any Judge...so much so , one year, I made it to the semi finals only to be knocked out by Paddington Bear. Pure... ruvian genius.

My claim to fame is that I was mates with the son of a taxi driver who once drove Mr Jobby to Blue Peter in '71. The taxi driver, who has to remain anonymous because of GDPR, said that Mr Jobby was always alert even in the car. He drove past one hedge, and Mr Jobby gave out a large, piercing yelp. Frank O'Shea, Mr Jobby's agent, told the taxi driver to stop. Mr Jobby and O'Shea jumped out of the car, Mr Jobby had a good sniff, and found an old bag of fish and chips in the hedge. Mr Jobby sadly died a year later whilst on a world tour, getting run over outside the Libreville Auditorium in Gabon just before an "Audience With Mr Jobby" show. There were so many people in the auditorium, and there was a fear of rioting, that O'Shea replaced Mr Jobby with a stand-in, and the audience didn't suspect a thing.

They always used to say that Campagnola was such a charming man. I crossed paths with him one sunny day in 1991 in Stratford On Avon. He passed me in the street, walking with his then wife, Esperanza Del Mar (this was before his well publicised fling with the young Kelly Brook) I said to him, smiling "have you blinked today, Alessandro?" To which he stopped, turned, and spat on the floor at my feet. I was so taken aback that I just carried on walking, in a daze. I never did go and see him compete again. A legend died for me, that day.

Shocking to look back at these now that we know about Spatsky's drug use. Don't think the sport will ever be the same again.

My gosh i'm sweating! These Finals were the golden era of my stare career. I was one of the few who didn't stop staring even when i became a boarding director of my dad's agricultural company here in Russia...i still think that staring made me who i am. I'm proud of it and sometimes we stare with my elder son a few hours when women are away for a high-heeling marathon.

It was so close at the end there, but I knew he could pull it out. Such a legend. Thanks for preserving this bit of Staring history. 👀

OMG I have tears running down my face! You guys on these comments need to write comedy shows. Hilarious, truly genius.

I normally watch *"The Premier League: Best Stare Outs"* on Sky Sports 2. Memories. Brilliant stares.

Oh as a stareout enthusiast I remember that final like it was yesterday. Kampagnola had had a great tournament, including the classic semifinal against Nanak. But he was no match for Spatsky. It was a quick match as most of Spatsky's are. He's a very aggressive starer and tends go all in on his ruthless attacks. It's a risky tactic, sure, but with his talent there's not much anyone could do. Not quite on the same level anymore, but still always a tough one to beat.

Eastern Europe has always produced incredible staring talent

Ohhh look he's done it again!!! This is really staring out of the top drawer.

Barry Davies. The "Voice" once visited my School to give assembly the mans voice was a total pleasure and made many of my pals and i take up the Mic and have a go ... none of us turned pro but what a memory

I've watched this so many times and it's genuinely enthralling!

Thanks for bringing back so many happy memories. I could never aspire to these dizzy heights but l was an avid enthusiast back when it was on Grandstand. My dad took me down to his local when l was fifteen and introduced me to the amateur game. I think l lasted about six minutes which l suppose wasn't bad for a starter. But kids these days just can't stare for toffee. Too many staring sims on the PlayStation, l suppose...

Wow, the great tournament of 1998! Really takes me back to my misspent youth on the young amateur circuit - really eating, sleeping and breathing staring. Of course Giggles Clifton used to hang around all the time in his retirement, especially in the changing rooms. Obviously it was before everyone knew, but I can tell you they didn't call him 'the tall man' for nothing.

I wish they hadn't banned the "Stare At Girls" who would escort the competitors into the arena. They bought a little glamour to the game, which it sorely needs right now.

I used to record this on cassette tape from the radio but having to pause it whenever the blinking rest began in the beginners contest. That little white card would come down and I’d hit that pause button. Those were the days 😊 Salovka posters were all over my bedroom until i heard Ted ‘the head’ Stead’s staring. That was it. I’ll alway be a Salovka fan, but Stead is the man for me…him and his huge knockers.

Who else remembers where they were during the final? I was listening to it in a stench packing factory in Saigon. Commentary by Timmy Mallet and the late, great Brian Johnston.

"Well, you're going to need some very big knockers in order to do that." I chuckled, but the laughter that ensued over the following minutes had me rolling.

I met John Duran in a Camden bar once, absolute legend, me and mate we pushing each other to go and say something to him, he noticed and came over and offered to buy us a drink, sat with us for about an hour chatting, so down to earth, really happy he got through the other side of his alcohol problems in later life. Will never forget that day.

9:34 - can't believe the commentators missed this! You'd never get away with it in the age of VAR.

Never gets old. What a match. Massive heart and no little skill.

Back in 1980's 2 years of evening classes, taught me all I needed in life, still wake up every day with that I want to stare zeal.

absolutely LOVE the little childish giggle after "well you need absolutely big knockers for that" 😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Giggles Clifton ? How ironic is that ? I bumped in to him after an Exhibition Stare event in Berwick upon Tweed. A more miserable bloke you are unlikely to meet.

To think they only got 10k for exhibition games back then. The amount professional starers get now is ludicrous but when you consider how much the TV rights go for it's not surprising. I just wish the BBC still had the rights to show the full tournament and not just the qualifiers.

Absolutely brilliant. I watch this over and over again and I stll laugh out loud!

Met ted the head stead in a garden centre just outside Rochdale. What a gent.

Haven't seen this in years. I loved staring, spent thousands of hours of my youth practicing trying to make it competitively, but I eventually realized it came at such a cost to my life and mood I had to hang up the staring belt and leave the sport. I do miss it though.

One of the finest comedy sketches known to humanity!

Back when staring was a real man's game. Of course, after the relentless aggression demonstrated by Spatsky's during the final, the rules where changed and the referees given better guidance on when to stop matches. I guess it's much safer now but it really took some of the excitement out of the later tournaments.

Duran was my uncle. He'd sometimes eat his meals crouching without a chair to remain match fit.

Man, Popstopolous is a warrior, truly an inspiration for the whole staring comunity!

I met the Russian in 1976 when he came to the UK for a series of exhibition matches. They were open to all-comers and he was relentless, one poor chap had a stroke after 35 mins of action. Another had fainted, unforgettable.

Sad to hear of the death of Solowka earlier this week due to symptoms or Covid19. A starring legend. He was 87 and leaves a wife and 3 children.

Back in the days when even the commentators ridiculed Popstopolous for his 'boring game'. After ventilation standards were taken seriously, circa WSOC-68, he went on to dominate, even in the European trials.

I find it sad that the younger generation are so clueless about the staring greats like Solowka, Ted 'The Head Stead' Stead and of course the great Spatsky. I think it's the instant gratification culture we now live in, epitomised by the introduction of 20-20 staring.

Who’s here for Spatzky in 2020? Oh that beautiful match is literally couple blinks away and yet so many years have passed.

I've just discovered that this sketch is based on a comic strip which was called 'The World Stare-out Championship Final' created and published by Paul Hatcher. Apparently Graham Linehan came across it in a newsagent. I believe the TV sketch was made with Hatcher's approval and participation, which is always good to hear (or see, ha ha).

I remember as far back as the 15th world champs. Going to the pictures with my old mum , god bless ‘er. Obviously I only went for the Pathe news reel to see if Scottish hero, Finn McKerron at the ripe old age of 32, could ever be beaten. Of course that was in the black & white days (which is still my preferred way of viewing there was none of this new fangled ultra slow motion 3d,4k nonsense then). Anyway old stager, McKerron (“the Starey Highlander”) won again in that famous & controversial“dry eye” final against Steve “deadeyes’ Anderson, a final which is still mulled over today by fans - some of whom weren’t even born back then - amazing. But what’s sometimes overlooked in all the excitement is that that was the year we saw the beginnings of what would become the Yoshi Nakamoto era that changed the face of the sport forever. The unheralded Nakamoto won the juniors that year…….imagine that! . Heady days indeed.

I watch a lot of snooker and this is exactly what the commentary is like. "Perhaps not the most naturally talented player, but you never know what can happen when he's at the table"...

My grandfather got Giggles Clifton's autograph in the 70s when he met him in Buxton high street.

Classic from Barry Davies. Clifton was a legend, I remember being introduced to him just before the UK Championships in 1961 in Kettering. He said he had a migraine and I said stay in your dressing room in the dark for a couple of hours. It seemed to work as he went on to win against a young up and coming Kiang.

Staring was very popular, back in the day. Lost it's way when they found out that the Lithuanian guy (can't remember his name), was stripped of the world title having found out he had two glass eyes. How it was never picked up on, I'll never know.

i miss the halcyon days of staring before money (and drugs) flooded in and ruined the sport. If I remember correctly it was the 1976 olympics in Montreal when the unseeded Pantyboom Joonathanagarn from Thailand sensationally beat the favourite Pavel Zrwtcthcky in the quarter finals before being mercilessly dispatched in the semis by the Brazilian master Herculinho. Great memories

Richard Gere was a massive fan of staring. In fact he set up a 'Staring Academy' in Los Angeles. But all the years staring has made him go blind. Damn shame,great actor.

Sad to see lots of Keyboard Starers in the comments section as usual. Have a bit of respect for the competitors of this noble art

At 3:12 you can actually see Solowka dropping his guard for a second, but he consolidated his defense quickly.

The sport is too corporate now. It was pure in the 90s. Now it's all about the sponsorships from companies like Specsavers.

25 years of staring, man and boy. Hardest game in the world.

My Grandad always spoke to me about the 1937 'Hitler games'. To think that most of the staring competitor's lost their lives. Lest we forget.

Proper staring back before health and safety ruined it all!

We must never forget staring at grass roots level, professional staring and the premier league has diverted much needed support to the up and coming youngsters...

Tourette syndrome prevented me from progressing far in this sport.

A intimate gaze into the heady days of world-class professional staring.

2023 and still funny. Those youngsters will be fully experienced Starers by now

"He's done again John, he's done again" - Brilliant !!!

I saw a man who looked very like Benny Kiang on an Esso Forecourt a few years ago. I was tempted to approach him but I thought better of it.

It's not the same now. Back in the 70s and 80s I could name every single starer in the competition. I hardly know any of them now. All the characters have gone.

Some of the finest staring I have ever seen!

Classic, this inspired me to take staring more seriously 😅😅😅

5:19 "Stead, knocking in on Hartha's door..but can he get in?" "Hmm..you really need big knockers for that" 😂 Uncontrollable giggles follow 😅

Shame it’s no longer franchised on BBC TV, those were the days.

I’m so jealous! I grew up in America. So, no staring for us 😢. We had the quiet game though. So, it wasn’t so bad growing up here, I guess.

Interesting fact. The referee on the John Duran quarter final (Jacob Microberg) is the uncle of the head masseuse of Workington Town FC of the Northern Premier League.

Ever since sky bought the rights to the world staring championships, youngsters just haven't had access to staring of this high standard.

I went to an underground starout competition, I couldn't resist it, covid has ruined the sport for us at the moment, but the police and government will never stop me staring !

I caught a match at the Paralympics in London. Not WC level, but still great. There they were, eyeball to eyeball... amazing