Having first taken on the role 27 years ago, Simon Nash, otherwise known as Deepdale Duck, has retired from Preston North End .
He was also a hugely important figure in the local community, regularly paying visits to local schools and community events within the greater Preston area, to help inspire the next generation to get themselves down to Deepdale, as well as bringing smiles to faces of people of all ages.
He was also a hugely important figure in the local community, regularly paying visits to local schools and community events within the greater Preston area, to help inspire the next generation to get themselves down to Deepdale, as well as bringing smiles to faces of people of all ages.
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SportsTranscript
00:00 It came about, the Vice Chairman phoned me up and said, "We've got a new costume."
00:11 We used to have an old, horrible look, but, "We've got a new costume and we're looking
00:17 for somebody stupid to wear it."
00:19 He said, "And we've come up with you."
00:22 [Music]
00:44 I think I'm the only mascot that doesn't dance, doesn't sing.
00:48 I've got no move, they go, "Oh, give us a move."
00:52 I haven't got any moves.
00:54 I'm the only mascot that speaks.
00:57 So that way, I've spoke to hundreds and hundreds of people here.
01:03 It's just, well, they're memories, my memories as well.
01:07 When times are good and, yeah.
01:11 Does the duck have a voice or is it just your voice?
01:13 It's my voice.
01:14 I've tried one of those quacking things, but the only decoy is the gun for people who
01:20 shoot ducks.
01:24 But it only quacked and I nearly swallowed it anyway.
01:28 So...
01:29 [Duck quacking]
01:30 [Music]
01:48 When the fans are freezing to death in January, I love it.
01:55 I must be the warmest person, apart from the players.
01:57 I must be the warmest person in the club.
02:01 In summer, it's quite horrendous.
02:07 [Music]
02:12 So highlights from a career, Simon, what do you remember most?
02:16 I remember the year 2000, just because we went up and it was party time all over Preston.
02:25 It was fantastic.
02:27 To be part of the club, then it was tremendous.
02:33 Lots of highlights, some for the right reasons, some for the wrong reasons.
02:39 Lots of people think I've been sent off many times and I haven't.
02:45 I've been escorted off by the club stewards and once by the police.
02:54 That's when I knew I was in trouble.
02:56 I went, "Oh Lord, it's Tim Flower.
02:59 We were losing 6-0 in two-legged league cup.
03:06 First leg at Ewood Park, we battled us 6-0.
03:10 Second leg here, we're 6-0 down.
03:14 So I wandered down to Tim Flower's goal in the second half and I put my arm on his goalpost
03:20 and he told me to go away in no uncertain terms.
03:24 You can imagine, and he was shouting at me and I thought, "Oh, I've got him riled."
03:30 So I started jumping up and down and he's going, "Go away, go away."
03:37 And we scored.
03:39 And he went berserk.
03:41 He got the referee, the referee went off.
03:45 I was like, "Oh."
03:48 And four policemen started walking round and I thought, "Oh no, I am in trouble now."
03:56 Next morning I was in the boardroom at 9 o'clock.
04:06 An Arsenal game, 1999.
04:12 We must have been in the FA Cup that we drew them in and obviously they're flying high.
04:20 We're in Division 3 and we scored.
04:26 Well at the time, when I was still quite a young spring duck, I used to do the dine fly
04:35 on the floor.
04:37 And Curtin Owen jumped on top of me, then somebody else, and then they all piled in.
04:46 I was going, "Blammy, this hurts."
04:52 They were suffocating me basically.
04:54 And then I thought, "Oh, it's live on Sky, carry on lads."
04:59 Yeah, just it.
05:02 This is brilliant.
05:04 That picture went all over the place.
05:08 And it's like, I have 15 minutes of fame every now and again.
05:14 And that was one of my 15 minutes of fame.
05:27 So troublemaking is definitely high up on the...
05:30 Only for fun.
05:32 Yes.
05:33 If you think it's funny, have a think about it, then go for it.
05:38 Just think, "How much is this going to get me into trouble?"
05:41 And then go for it.
05:42 You were going to tell me about managers.
05:44 Any favourites?
05:45 Simon Grayson, mainly I think just Wembley 2015.
05:54 But he was very approachable.
05:57 Oh, Craig Brown.
06:00 He was lovely.
06:01 He was a really nice man.
06:04 And of course, David Moyes.
06:07 John Beck, for not football reasons, off the field, community-wise, John Beck was fantastic
06:15 for the community.
06:18 The players will do whatever the community department wants.
06:22 As long as it's after training.
06:25 I got a phone call.
06:35 Would you please bring the duck to my brother's funeral?
06:41 I drove down there and I parked further away from the house.
06:46 And the person behind me, his brother's sister came.
06:49 "Oh, fantastic you're here.
06:51 Oh, that's really good."
06:54 I said, "You have told your mum and dad, haven't you?"
06:56 He said, "No, we're going to make it just a surprise."
06:58 I went, "No, get back in that house and tell them."
07:03 The last appearance I made with the costume on, I walked a bride down the aisle of the
07:16 church.
07:17 Well, I don't know any other mascot that's ever done that.
07:21 And of course, you famously did the ice bucket challenge as well, didn't you?
07:27 The ice bin challenge, yeah.
07:30 There's no way that was an ice bucket challenge.
07:32 How was that?
07:36 Wet.
07:39 And also, quite nice.
07:41 No, it was a nice day.
07:44 It was like, oh, that's...
07:45 There's talk about them not replacing you, but they're replacing the duck with something
07:56 else.
07:57 Any ideas what it should be?
07:59 I've been putting them behind me actually.
08:03 I always...
08:04 Perhaps Sir Tom the Plumber.
08:08 So you've got to do the phone character costumes with Sir Tom's head.
08:14 He can have a bag full of sweets instead of jewels.
08:19 And he can carry a wrench around with him that he can hit the kids over the head with.
08:24 And yeah, that's a big good one.
08:27 How did you get on with Sir Tom?
08:31 I've done some appearances with him, and he could never quite get his head around me.
08:38 We opened a supermarket, and as we're walking around, I'm putting whole cheeses in people's
08:47 trolleys.
08:48 And if anyone turned their back, I was loading more stuff in trolleys.
08:52 And he just couldn't...
08:54 He was just walking around shaking his head.
08:58 Last year, I found myself in intensive care in Liverpool.
09:15 I hadn't got any oxygen.
09:19 I got a fan visit in the morning.
09:22 This young lady said, "Oh, they've told me you're here.
09:27 Is it OK to go and tell me mum and dad?"
09:30 "You can tell them what you like."
09:33 "That's bloody nil!"
09:56 Tell me, Simon, what you'll miss most about your job here.
10:01 The fans.
10:03 The banter.
10:04 I really...
10:05 I like to get stuck into people.
10:06 You know, like, say to some kids, for instance, "Oh, is that your dad?"
10:12 "Yeah, yes, yeah."
10:13 "Isn't he ugly?"
10:14 "Oh, where do we go and tell mum?"
10:15 "Oh, I don't know.
10:16 I don't know."
10:17 "Oh, I don't know."
10:18 "Oh, I don't know."
10:19 "Oh, I don't know."
10:20 "Oh, I don't know."
10:21 "Oh, I don't know."
10:22 "Oh, I don't know."
10:23 "Oh, I don't know."
10:24 "Oh, I don't know."
10:25 "Oh, I don't know."
10:26 "Oh, I don't know."
10:27 "Oh, I don't know."
10:28 "Oh, I don't know."
10:29 "Oh, I don't know."
10:30 "Oh, I don't know."
10:31 "Oh, I don't know."
10:32 "Oh, I don't know."
10:33 "Oh, I don't know."
10:34 "Oh, I don't know."
10:35 "Oh, I don't know."
10:36 "Oh, I don't know."
10:37 "Oh, I don't know."
10:38 "Oh, I don't know."
10:39 "Oh, I don't know."
10:40 "Oh, I don't know."
10:41 "Oh, I don't know."
10:42 "Oh, I don't know."
10:43 "Oh, I don't know."
10:44 "Oh, I don't know."
10:45 "Oh, I don't know."
10:46 "Oh, I don't know."
10:47 "Oh, I don't know."
10:48 "So, you're saying you're not going to carry on with the duck, so I presume the uniform's
10:51 yours, the costume's yours, what are you..."
10:54 "I would like to think so, yes."
10:55 "What are you going to do with it?"
10:57 "When I get buried or cremated, I want to wear it in an open cask.
11:03 Well, you won't see the dead person inside it, will you?
11:06 You'll just see the duck."
11:07 "It's a fantastic club and fantastic fans to be a part of, and I just hope that over
11:32 the years I've given the fans what they want."
11:36 "Thank you."
11:37 "Thank you."
11:38 "Thank you."
11:39 "Thank you."
11:39 "Thank you."
11:45 "Thank you."
11:46 "Thank you."
11:47 "Thank you."
11:48 "Thank you."
11:49 "Thank you."
11:49 "Thank you."
11:50 "Thank you."
11:50 "Thank you."
11:55 [BLANK_AUDIO]