When Sid won the Olympics

Bevis O’Neill was rake-thin, with big kind eyes and a penchant for waistcoats. Never far removed from a pint of lager and a packet of fags, he had a flair for flowery language (“dear boy” etc.) and when he laughed (which was often) it was almost impossible not to laugh with him. 

Back in 1993, Haymarket Publishing (as it was then called) launched a weekly magazine for the planning profession. Bevis was production editor, I was news editor, and Anna Minton was our star reporter. The three of us hit it off immediately – mainly over pints of Fuller’s London Pride in the nearby pubs of Teddington.

Bevis was an old-school sub-editor. He was curious about words and language but also pragmatic – he knew how to get a publication ready for press, and then get down the pub.

There was often laughter in our office but one particular incident stands out. It happened when the news broke that Sydney had been chosen to host the 2000 Olympic Games. Sniffing a news angle, we decided to run a cover story on the planning issues relating to major sporting events.

As often happened on press day, I was still putting my final touches to the story as the working day came to a close. With everything else in place, Bevis decided to slip out to the pub for a couple of pints and then return to get the issue off to the typesetters/press. I completed my story, left it for Bevis to write a headline for the cover, and went home.

We thought nothing more of it until the finished magazine arrived back from the printers. A copy was handed out to each member of the team sitting around the office – and we all stared at the headline that Bevis had written on his return from the pub:

‘Sidney wins the Olympics’

I remember a moment of silence, followed by a ripple of confusion. And then someone said what everyone else had been thinking. “Who the hell is Sidney?”

And then… we laughed. Quite a lot. Bevis included.

Of course, it was embarrassing. Apologies for the typo had to be made and we’re all professionals, so a mistake like that isn’t clever or funny. Except that it is funny – especially a few years later.

It’s also a reminder that we’re all humans, and we all make mistakes. So well done Sidney, and well done Bevis. You wrote a lot of excellent headlines too, and you were a great friend. I’m raising a glass to you today, dear boy.

•Sadly, Bevis headed up to the great pub in the sky on 12 February, 2013. Best wishes to his family and many other friends.