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Ian Wright was close to tears as he remembered his ‘amazing’ teacher who changed his life during an appearance on The One Show.
The former footballer talked about Mr Pigden, the man who helped shape his life as a young man and started him on the road to success in football.
Ian watched back a famous clip of the time he was reunited with his teacher years after leaving school, where he was deeply shocked to see him again.
‘I can’t believe it. Someone says you was dead,’ Ian says in the footage.
A visibly emotional Ian then talked about Mr Pidgen, and spoke about how he influenced him as a young man.
Speaking to One Show hosts Alex Jones and Amol Rajan, Ian said: ‘I met him when I was seven, so we’re talking about 50 years ago, and it was because I wasn’t being particularly good in class.’
‘I wasn’t able to learn as quickly as the rest of the kids were… He gave me responsibilities, like a registered a milk monitor, you know, things like that. Then when I started playing football, he really backed me.’
The former I’m A Celebrity star continued: ‘He was one of the pilots who flew over Buckingham Palace when they won the Second World War. He said he was more proud of me playing for England than him doing that flyover… It’s something I think about every day.’
The emotional story made a big impression with viewers, who were in tears as they took to social media to show their appreciation for Ian’s honest words.
‘Stop making me cry.. absolutely brilliant interview very inspiring and thought provoking,’ one said.
@IanWright0 stop making me cry.. absolutely brilliant interview very inspiring and thought provoking.. ðŸ‘
— denis okeeffe (@denis_okeeffe) February 24, 2021
Watching that beautiful moment when @IanWright0 meets Mr Pigden after many years will always make me cry, however many times I see it . This to me is why we are teachers.Why I work with the C and YP I do. Teachers can inspire and change your life. We do it because we love it â¤ï¸
— jo w 💙 (@sablet72) February 24, 2021
‘[Ian Wright] making me cry talking about his teacher,’ another said.
Ian was on the programme to talk about his new Everyday People podcast, which celebrated the heroic efforts of ordinary people.
The One Show airs weekdays at 7pm on BBC One.
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