Ian's all Wright for Clarets

News that the former Arsenal and England goalscoring machine was on his way to Turf Moor from Celtic was the talk of the town.

There was near jubilation as word spread that Wright would end his playing career in a Burnley shirt - bringing real hope that Wright's last hurrah would bring promotion success to the club.

Fans predicted the signing would send the Claret and Blue Army on the march to Turf Moor on Saturday, with the gate for the Wigan match expected to soar well beyond the season's best.

Season ticket holder Bernadette Pickles, of Briercliffe, said she and her family will be on the Turf to welcome the new striker: "It is fantastic - everybody is just so excited."

Alan Beecroft, treasurer of Colne Clarets supporters' club, said: "Provided he does the business and gives 110 per cent on the field he will be well received by fans.

"I think he will give us the lift we need. He will put the crowd up by an extra couple of thousand on Saturday and if we do well it will snowball.

"It is a bit of a concern about how committed he is. We don't want another Waddle who wasn't committed to the club.

"I think Wright will do the job. He's got a lot of experience and what he has to do is carry that on to the pitch on Saturday to convince the fans he means business."

Karen Longden, secretary of Earby Clarets, added: "It's brilliant news. I couldn't believe it when I first heard, I thought it was a wind-up. "I think he will do well for the club, particularly with Payton out. I think coming to a new club he should be prepared to give it all he's got."

Sixteen-year-old James Short, of Harle Syke, said: "I think he will be really good to replace Payton when he is injured as he is really something in the air.

"He gives us another option and I don't think you get much better than him outside the premiership."

Amanda Holdroyd, of Accrington, thought it was wonderful news. She said: "It's brilliant. He is a cheeky character and hopefully will turn Burnley around before the end of the season and take them into the first division."

Andrew Carter, of Harle Syke, said: "It has definitely come at the right time.

"I bet the rest of the second division are panicking now."

"Absolutely brilliant" was how Lindsay Duerden, of Burnley, described the move, "I am amazed that he wants to finish his career at Burnley.

"We can't deny his scoring abilities and he will finish off our promotion push."

Chris Wiseman, of Skipton, said: "We could do with a good striker and I think our promotion is automatic now. He should score a few."

A Clarets fan for 30 years, Denzil Roberts, of Oswaldtwistle, said: "I think he will do well to play up front instead of Payton as long as he stays free from suspension and injuries."

Hectic double life of TV host with the most

BURNLEY FC are getting a media star as well as a footballer with the signing of Ian Wright, MBE.

The former England international has seen his TV career take off as he reaches the twilight of his playing career.

Friday Night Is All Wright, his ITV chat show, took off after its first series and has allowed him to mix with some of Europe's A Grade celebrities. Last year the programme was one of the most talked about chat shows on TV, boasting guests including Sir Elton John, Will Smith, Kathy Burke, Lauryn Hill, Sir Trevor MacDonald, Spice Girl Mel G, Mariah Carey and Dennis Rodman.

Supermodel Caprice and World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Lennox Lewis are among his friends.

And it was during filming for the show that he was presented with the famous Red Book by This is Your Life host Michael Aspel, for a show which was said to be one of the most successful programmes in This is Your Life's history.

The ace footballer joined an elite group of soccer legends when he was awarded the MBE in the New Year's Honours list this year.

Wright was successful off the field even before his TV career - his singing taking him into the charts in August 1993 with his single Do The Right Thing, which got to number 43.

That singing voice allowed him to take to the stage to sing with Diana Ross on ITV's An Audience with Diana Ross and he made such an impact that the legendary Motown singer took a shine to him.

The man with the golden tooth also has the midas touch when it comes to TV adverts, appearing complete with padded dressing gown and cravat in an advert for Chicken Tonight sauce.

His ardent belief in black equality has seen him have a fictitious "One 2 One" with Martin Luther King in an ad for the mobile phone company.

And his most recent acting role on an advert for coffee sees him savouring a cup of Nescafe in the home of an Arsenal fan after his car breaks down. Behind his controversial on-pitch image, Wright works hard for charity .

And football runs in the family - his son Shaun Wright-Phillips plays for Manchester City, who played Nottingham Forest earlier this season while Wright was on loan at the City Ground.

But his ability to juggle his dual careers is known to have taken its toll. At Celtic he only trained on certain days and spent most of the week in London preparing for his TV show. But the 820-mile round trips between Glasgow and the capital were clearly beginning to rankle with the Celtic hierarchy.

His sudden move to Burnley will cut the commuting by more than half - but how will manager Stan Ternent, assistant manager at Wright's old club Crystal Palace between 1987 and 1989 - react to the absences from the training ground of his new star?

Despite the conflict between his TV career and his football, the stars still flock to join him on the sofa on Friday Night's All Wright.

This Friday Wrighty will be joined by a galaxy of stars including All Saints who will be performing their new single Pure Shores from the blockbuster Leonardo diCaprio film The Beach.

And he will also be chatting with comic Julian Clary, Paula Yates, and top club DJ Pete Tong, while Aston Villa manager John Gregory will be showing off his "hidden talent" in a slot where celebrities show off skills you never knew they possessed.

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