Getting to Know Simon Crosskill
Wed, Mar 10, '04
As the West Indies prepare to take on England in Jamaica for the 1st Test at Sabina Park, one could imagine the dilemma an English-born Jamaican might face when asked where his allegiance lies. However, Simon Crosskill is not one of those caught in a quandary for "never has it been with England". Crosskill, the Group Sports Editor for the Radio Jamaica Group has had a chequered life and we pick up his story in England.
Crosskill's father, Hugh Snr, was serving in the R.A.F. and as
Simon recounts, met his wife "at a time when a black man and a
white woman weren't supposed to get together, especially the white
woman being the only daughter of two Scottish parents". The union
produced four sons ? Daryl, Vaughn, Hugh and the 'washbelly' Simon
Mark Anthony, who was born in 1960. The family relocated to Jamaica
five years later and young Simon was first enrolled in Mrs
Robinson's kindergarten in Mona where they lived. Next, Crosskill
moved on to Mona Primary before attending secondary school on Old
Hope Road in St Andrew. 
Simon has the 'distinction' of being kicked out of Jamaica College in 4th form. He reasons it out like this. "There were plenty of other things to be concerned with other than school work like St Andrew High School girls, and parties. School work was relegated to the back burner, so I was ordered out of Jamaica College just like our beloved Prime Minister, Michael Manley, absolutely great company". The rudder-less Croskill was marched off to Gaynstead High School, then the destination for outcasts where he says "we were looked after pretty well by Mr Gaynair".
First, his mother had to deal with him smoking from age 12 (he had somehow kept Hugh Snr in the dark about that vice). Now, there was the issue of expulsion from an esteemed institution. How did his parents react? "They got together and had that serious look that parents have when you get into trouble, but my father and mother had split up so it was really down to my mother and she couldn't really handle me in that sense. There was the disappointment but life wasn't coming to an end and they had to get me into another school". It was as simple as that. But perhaps for the next few years in young Crosskill's life, things were not so simple.
Married at age 18, and after doing some odd jobs for approximately two years, the still rudder-less Simon took his young bride 'across the pond' to his birthplace, accompanying his mother who had decided to relocate. Oddly enough, despite a bit of culture shock, Crosskill had a not-so-difficult time adjusting. He partly attributes that to the English traditions that were maintained in the Jamaican household. Said Crosskill, "all the discussions would have been not centred around England, the humour was English humour, you had tea right throughout the day. No cucumber sandwiches, but bully beef. It was an English household planted here in Jamaica".
As part of a grand plan, their first child came along 5 years after they married. The next chapter was a move back to Jamaica in 1985. Bad idea, as Crosskill explains, "It was just hard to live. I couldn't quite understand why I was leaving a country of 58 million people and I could simply go into a post office and tax my car and get everything sorted out and I would come here and I would have to line up outside the tax office and there were 2 million people here. The pace here was then now a little too slow so it took a little while to readjust". A little while equalled 10 months. The Crosskills, disappointed, packed their bags and returned to England in 1985.
This time, instead of jobs working for other people, the intention was to start up a business with a friend. Unfortunately it never panned out. So what did Simon do to support his family, by which time had grown to 2 offspring? "I worked with a dry cleaning establishment and another business which had dry cleaning as part of its establishment and then I went off and bought my own dry cleaners in Bromley and stayed there until I came back to Jamaica in 1994".
Would the return be for good the third time around? It was. But what was different from the previous move in 1985? Surely Jamaica had got worse, hadn't it? Was it maturity that helped ease the adjustment? Says Crosskill, "I think there is an element of that, and coming into the media certainly made it easier".
Simon offers up an interesting story about how his career in the media started. After working in Chemical sales with his father-in-law for a year, Crosskill felt that there were differing views as to how the business should move forward. His wife then turned out to be the catalyst. "One day I really got fed up and my wife kept saying to me, as she has done right throughout my existence 'you've always wanted to get into media why don't you call RJR'". The yearning he had shown for the media was perhaps ignited by his older brother, the late Hugh Croskill Jr, widely considered a champion in Caribbean journalism.
If you call up the Programmes Manager at RJR for a job, and your last name is Crosskill, chances are you're going to land an interview. But Simon had always been hesitant about approaching the radio station, not wanting to ride on his brother's fame. "When I was here before (in 1985) I wanted to go into media but I never wanted to go in while Hughie was here, because of the name". This time, though, Hughie was at the BBC in London, so the perfect opportunity presented itself. "I called RJR and I asked for Don Topping who was an icon as far as I was concerned. I said 'I'm interested in joining RJR as a sportscaster'. So he says 'what experience do you have?' I said 'none'. He said 'what sports do you like'. I said 'well I like cricket, golf, football tennis, you name it I'm into it' ". That apparently was enough for Topping.
Simon Crosskill called RJR on Wednesday, auditioned on Thursday and was employed on the Friday. To prepare for the audition, "I walked around my house, I was reading magazines, newspapers, reading out loud and Hughie wasn't here for me to even ask him what to do". He did alright, and managed not to "fluff" anything on that 10:00pm sportscast in November 1995.
Next was the 6:45pm sports news and he continued as a freelancer until 1999 when he was made Sports Editor. Of this appointment, Simon said "I spent four years freelancing and oddly enough, Hughie then came a couple of years after I did to RJR and there was a recommendation whilst he was there for me to be Sports Editor and he said 'No no no, he's not ready for that yet . He still wants to sow his oats as it were in doing commentary and so on. He's not ready to be Sports Editor'. So in essence the name was a deterrent at that time, but then in 1999 I assumed the role".
Most people would know about the tragic death of Hugh Crosskill Jr in 2002, by then a destitute addict, at the hands of a security guard. Of that tragedy, Simon said "It was very very difficult to deal with because you saw him slipping away into this abyss and you could do absolutely nothing about it. You'd try and take him out of the environment, he goes right back in. You get elevated slightly when he tells you he's going to be alright now and they go right back in as everybody who's been associated with an addict will tell you. In the end, this man that was on the pedestal that you put him on, he never asked to be put there admittedly, but that I put him on, he slipped off".
Simon Crosskill has made a name for himself in Sports Media but that may not be the reason the children at the Alpart Sports Club in St Elizabeth kept on calling out to him. Appearing with good friend Neville 'Bertis' Bell on Television Jamaica's (TVJ) Smile Jamaica, and by himself on Mantalk, Crosskill has branched out into non-sporting journalism.
How did Smile Jamaica come about? " "Having been involved in sporting coverage for the better part of my time at RJR, there was just a thought because maybe the personality is such, that they figured there was room for some 'tom foolery'. If you've ever watched, that is certainly what Smile Jamaica is about.
He describes himself as "one who likes a good laugh, likes to be around people who can make me laugh. It is a fairly aggressive personality, fairly temperamental, not moody but certainly quick to temper. I get angry fairly easily at things that I don't think should happen because they are simple things and I'm fairly outspoken".
On the other side Crosskill notes that "there is a touch of arrogance there as well, not necessarily based in any talent, just arrogant for the sake of being arrogant but you know, it's part of who I am and I recognize the failings and I'm comfortable with them, even if other people aren't". He says that unapologetically.
On Simon's personality, co-presenter Neville Bell concurs by saying "He's the funniest person I know. He has a tremendous, almost stupid sense of humour. It's amazing some of the things he comes up with. Sometimes you wonder where he gets it from. The public doesn't see everything. He finds funny things in everything you can think of".
Adds Bell, :
"He's very aggressive and if you don't know him, you won't understand him. We've had some really strong arguments because he's very opinionated and he sometimes doesn't give you too much time to get across your points if he thinks he's right...and he thinks he's right probably 99.9 percent of the time. What is also very good about him, unlike most people I know, is that 2 minutes after you have that fight ? almost kill each other ? we are friends again".
At nearly 44 years of age, Simon Croskill has found his calling in the sports media. If he had not made that call to RJR in 1995, what else might he be doing at this point in his life? He ponders, but only for a few seconds. "I'd probably go back to owning a couple of dry cleaners I actually enjoyed that business. I think I might be involved in the hotel industry, something where you would interact with people. I like doing that".
For now, Croskill's interaction, apart from with the listeners who follow his commentary on Radio 2, is with his family ? wife of 26 years, and coincidentally 4 children as well. Simon had high hopes of his first born playing for the West Indies team, he having picked up a bat at age 2 and amazingly started hitting the ball back straight. This son is now 20 and although played competitively for his high school, decided to concentrate on academics. His daughter is 18 and in 6th form and the last two boys, aged 13 and 11 are in secondary school. Thankfully, as Simon says "the children like watching cricket and they will go to matches, they will watch it on television, and they will listen to commentary".
Come Thursday, they will hear their father's commentary, described by Tony Cozier as "crisp and informed descriptions of cricket". Ironically, Simon considers Tony Cozier as his hero. "I still watch him now with awe at his knowledge base, it is absolutely huge and he has got fantastic recall. A superb commentator. Yeah, doing what he does wouldn't be bad. That's always what I wanted to do, to follow in the footsteps of a Tony Cozier".
How would he manage with all that travelling? Not a problem. Simon loves experiencing different cultures and different cuisines. He says he can cook, his favourites being shrimp with pasta or a good 'Steak au Poivres', which to the uninitiated, is Steak with Peppercorns. His other domestic skills include ironing. "I will be ironing away and I will be having an argument with somebody in my head just arguing away at them and arguing their point and my point". For him, ironing is therapy.
Other ways to relax are having a good laugh, watching lots of television, and fast but careful driving. His Golf GTI is off limits and although a spare key is left when he travels, it is only for the turbo-charged vehicle to be moved in the event of a hurricane! "I just don't want anybody to come and apologize to me for the big bang. So when I go off on tour, the car is parked and you don't even look inside".
As passionate as he is about his car, so is Simon Crosskill about his career. Somewhat of a perfectionist where that is concerned, his friend Neville Bell says that the annoyance Crosskill shows sometimes is because he wants to be as best as the best can be. Mediocrity is not in Crosskill's vocabulary. It is all or nothing.
That's certainly something Crosskill's West Indian team can take into the 1st Test from 11 ? 15 March. He'll be there to call it. Crisp and informed, and of course with a touch of humour.
