John was one of the best known personalities in sports broadcasting. His contributions to Match of the Day, Grandstand, Football Focus and Five Live were regular and varied. From 1979 to 2008 he was the BBC's voice on major cup finals - FA Cup, European Championship and World Cup, including his record-breaking sixth World Cup Final in Berlin in 2006 and his 29th FA Cup Final in May 2008, an achievement not reached by any other commentator. John published his autobiography, Motty - Forty Years in the Commentary Box, in 2009 and was the narrator of Footy Pups on CBeebies. He retired from the BBC in 2018 after 50 consecutive years at the corporation and worked for talkSPORT during the 2018/19 season. John died in February 2023.

Image supplied courtesy of the BBC
Audio clips supplied courtesy of Octagon CSI