Noel Edmonds was generally regarded as TV and radio's Mr Nice Guy in the 1970s - but an incident reported in the Chatham Standard 32 years ago appeared to blast that image into a new dimension.
The chatty presenter, known for his cosy pullovers and singular hairstyle, found himself in the news after sending a rude letter to a Rochester man who rescued him when his power boat got into trouble off Sheppey, in July 1978.
Edmonds had been competing in a power boat race when he got into trouble and had to be rescued by David Allen, of Wallace Road, Rochester.
Mr Allen told the Standard Edmonds was very badly shaken, prompting the star to send him a letter "Badly shaken eh! I hope they paid you well!"
Mr Allen said he was "angered and upset" by Edmonds' response, prompting the star to laugh the whole thing off as a joke.
His publicity agent Peter Thompson said he did not think the DJ would have sent such a note. But less than a week later Noel said: "I did send him the note, but it was meant as a joke. The reports said I had been badly shaken. This just wasn't true.
"It worried members of my family, especially when it said I was recovering at home. And it made me look ridiculous in the eyes of the other power boat racers.
"When I said I hoped they paid him well, I really meant it. After all, he gave the newspapers what they wanted. What happened was that we were in the lead in the race and the engine failed.
"Mr Allen came along and suggested to the boat owner, Ray McEnhill, that he could give us a tow to the Isle of Sheppey.
"We gratefully accepted. There was no drama. The guy was super, he made coffee and we chatted.
"At the end of the trip I discussed how we should thank Mr Allen, and decided that Ray would send him a case of wine. I thought he had done so."
from - http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/medway-news-chatham-uk/mi_8146/is_20100722/sea-rescuer-angered-djs-letter/ai_n54547445/
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