A former Leicestershire sports reporter has published his second book in a trilogy about an ageing rock band.Dennis Coath, 78, who worked as a sports presenter for regional news programmes on both BBC and ITV for more than 40 years, has released The Band That Time Forgave, the second in a series of books about a rock band that outsells The Beatles.The first book in the series entitled The Band That Time Forgot came out in 2014 and will be followed by The Band That Turned Back Time later this year.The books are the fictional story of a band called The Dogs from Derby, who miss out on stardom due to the presence of The Beatles.Dennis Coath with two of his books about fictional band The DogsHowever, 50 years later an impromptu reunion propels them into the spotlight as septuagenarians and octogenarians, where they face up to the rigours of sex, drugs and rock and roll.Explaining his inspiration for the series of books, Dennis told the Harborough Mail: “My trilogy about the aged ‘crock and roll band’ came from watching bands and acts like the Rolling Stones, The Who and Rod Stewart in London clubs.“It gave me an idea about how they worked and they provided inspiration by their longevity.“When he first saw The Stones on TV my father famously remarked ’Look at that horrible lot. They’ll only last a few weeks.’”The books have been described by BBC Films as ‘a dynamic project’ and are the latest in a series of writing projects for Dennis.After achieving a master’s degree in history from Bristol University while in his seventies, Dennis is set to publish a history novel entitled The Boys of 66, featuring a long account of the Battle of Hastings, in 2027.Reflecting on his career covering sport, Dennis said a personal highlight was interviewing one of his sporting idols, West Indian cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers, who died earlier this month aged 89.Dennis said some of his favourite memories from his career included when things did not go quite as planned while he was broadcasting live on TV.Recalling one such instance on ITV from a stables near Market Harborough, Dennis said: “I was patting this huge horse on the head, and it leant forward and bit through my left bicep.“There was a terrible crunch. I gasped in pain and managed to carry on.“I didn’t realise a horse could bite so hard. It was a cold day, and I was wearing a thick jacket and anorak.“When I took them off my left arm was soaked in blood with a large purple and blue swelling.”The Band That Time Forgave is published by Olympia Publishers and is available now on platforms including Amazon.Have you got a story you want to share with our readers? You can now send it to us online via YourWorld at https://www.yourworld.net/submit/ It’s free to use and, once checked, your story will appear on our website and, space allowing, in our newspapers.Continue Reading
Former Leicestershire sports reporter publishes second book about geriatric rock band
