By Richard Wright
A legendary motorcycle racer and TV commentator has included South Yorkshire on his latest tour.
Steve Parrish’s M.A.D tour pulls into town this month, hosted by his daughter Frankie at The Civic in Barnsley.
According to the organisers, the evening with the man known as “Stavros” promises to be entertaining. Parrish will tell stories about his long extensive career in motorsport and his life as a well-known prankster.
Parrish raced at the highest level of motorcycle racing. He was teammates with Barry Sheene in 1977, who became World Champion that year. Sheene is famously quoted talking about Stavros, saying: “If he was to set up his bike as well as his victims and had put as much effort into the bike as he did the intricate pranks he pulled on people he would certainly be a World Champion.”
Yorkshire has a close connection with motor-cycle racing – James Toseland, Jamie Whitham and Tom Sykes are just some of the Yorkshiremen to have made a name in the sport, each winning multiple championships.
Parrish said: “We chose Barnsley, as firstly the theatre was keen on us having the show there. Secondly, we had a number of requests via our social network system, complaining we had not been to that area, where it seems there is a popular biking fraternity.”
Mary Swinden, sales and marketing manager at The Civic, said: “Sales are currently on track for a decent size audience and we’re really pleased with the response we’ve had so far.”