It's no, no, no for Beeb listeners baffled by Walker's radio daze

It is, to be frank, an uninspiring proposal. Take a commentator renowned, if revered, for unintentional errors and statements of the blindingly obvious, watch him retire, wait six years and then bring him back for a single race at the age of 83 and see how he does.

The good news is that Murray Walker has lost none of his old magic. The bad news is that listeners to Radio Five Live spent long periods of yesterday's European grand prix in total confusion. Before the first lap was over the veteran broadcaster, dragged back into action because the network's usual commentator, David Croft, selfishly preferred to watch the birth of his child, warned that "it's going to be an incredibly difficult race to follow" - and unlike his listeners he actually got to watch the thing.

At one point during what were admittedly a manic first few laps, Walker seemed close to giving up. "It's changing so much now there's no point telling you what is happening," he said. This really is not what you want your commentator to tell you. Still, he at least appeared to be having fun as cars skidded wildly around, and frequently off, the track. "I'm looking at three cars! They're flying off! There's another one! And another! I've lost count, Maurice. I don't know if you've been counting how many cars have gone off."

Maurice Hamilton, Walker's co-commentator, had not. Someone suggested there might be eight, but then Lewis Hamilton was winched back on to the track by a large crane and drove off in a hurry, prompting further bafflement. "I'm not laughing at them, I'm laughing with them," Walker said with a chuckle. A few seconds later he reconsidered: "It's no laughing matter, this."

Fortunately, Walker is not afraid of the odd error. "I don't make mistakes," he once said. "I make prophecies which immediately turn out to be wrong." Shortly before he launched the race with his trademark "go, go, go" he predicted "a two-stop race". Fernando Alonso made four visits to the pits.

Like the cars he describes, Walker seems to have no reverse gear. When the rain eased Lewis Hamilton changed to dry-weather tyres, with little initial success. "It looks like the gamble isn't paying off," Walker said, sadly. Less than two minutes later he was back: "And Lewis Hamilton is scything his way through the field! He is the quickest man by a very considerable margin!"

In the end Britain's young hope finished ninth, one place outside the points. As Walker brilliantly surmised towards the end: "If only he were further up the field, he would be looking extremely good indeed."

Drivers often emerge after a race shaking and dripping with sweat, and Maurice Hamilton must have been in a similar condition last night. Walker would let nothing stem his stream of wild hyperbole, least of all the truth. For example, though Alonso may have squeezed past Felipe Massa in the end it did not happen quite when Walker announced it. "He's going for it," he screamed. "He's ahead!" Hamilton butted in: "No he's not."

At least there might be one man who welcomes Croft back.