We’re used to announcers telling some pretty random stories during sporting events to pass the time. But we’ve never heard anything quite like Danny Murphy’s tale, while calling the Norway-Ivory Coast World Cup game for the BBC, about his poor lost cat.
Murphy was a longtime Premier League star as a central midfielder. He is most well-known for his time at Liverpool from 1997-2004, but also spent time at Charlton, Tottenham, Fulham, and Blackburn Rovers. He earned nine caps for England and, since his playing days, has been a longtime commentator.
During Monday night’s game, a bit of Murphy’s commentary went viral around the world and not just in England. When talking about Norway’s Oscar Bobb as he was being substituted onto the pitch, the former player was reminded of his childhood cat. And nobody could have been prepared for where the commentary went from there, as the BBC even provided the world with the booth view of the story.
We’re still thinking about Danny Murphy and Bob the Cat.
Commentary camera just dropped. 🫡 pic.twitter.com/pGVRHtz9vJ
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) July 1, 2026
“I used to have a cat called Bob,” Murphy said.
Broadcast booth partner Steve Bower immediately interjected that the game wasn’t that bad to be going on this tangent. But thankfully, Murphy didn’t let him or the nation of viewers down.
“He jumped in the back of a Royal Mail van and lost him. Sad, really. Anyway…,” Murphy deadpanned.
The commentary camera view shows that this was the most incredible attempt at dry, macabre humor. The fact that he stared down Bower the entire time is hilarious. And the “anyway” at the end was the icing on the cake.
But now we’re left wondering what happened to the Murphy family cat. Hopefully, it eventually found a good home. At least we can rest assured that he didn’t get lost in the BBC’s AI-imposed mountains of Houston, Texas.
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