Here’s an idea for an entertainment show. Take two teams of sports stars from different disciplines, put them in front of an audience and lob sporting questions at them – questions that are likely to lead to discussion, banter, ferocious competition and general merriment.

You will need an umpire, of course – someone with a sense of humour but also the ability to keep order and command respect. A slight ‘headmistress’ vibe wouldn’t be a bad thing. Oh, and if they have a contacts book filled to the brim with famous sporting pals who can be roped in as guests, even better.

It’s the format for a brand-new live sporting quiz show touring the country next year – one fronted by Sue Barker, with teams led by Matt Dawson and Phil Tufnell. The show title? A Question Of… Live. Or rather it was until very late in the day – announcements had been made in the press, tickets were on sale – it was changed ‘for legal reasons’. It’s now called Sue, Matt & Phil Live! The Reunion Tour.

A brand-new live sporting quiz show will tour the country next year, fronted by Sue Barker, with teams led by Matt Dawson (left) and Phil Tufnell

How very cheeky that original title was then. ‘I didn’t come up with it,’ points out a smiling Sue who, few will need to be reminded, fronted the iconic A Question Of Sport on the BBC for 24 years before she was dropped in 2021, and her teams, captained by Matt and Phil, relegated. There was quite the kerfuffle at the time, with fans aghast that the tried-and-tested format was deemed so in need of an overhaul that the revamped version [which dropped the ‘A’ from the title] was almost unrecognisable.

As Sue, Matt and Phil – all legends in their respective sports of tennis, rugby and cricket – quietly slipped away, their seats were filled by the comedian Paddy McGuinness, GB hockey star Sam Quek and former England rugby union player Ugo Monye. Critics said the new line-up would never work, and took particular exception to McGuinness’s lack of sporting credentials. The reimagining of the format – opening it up to guests who weren’t sportspeople, and introducing new rounds – was greeted with horror from viewers too. Ultimately, they voted with their TV remotes.

Last year, as it emerged that ratings had dropped from four or five million towards the end of Sue’s tenure to below the million mark, the unthinkable happened: the entire show was shelved, with the BBC announcing production would halt for the foreseeable. A BBC spokesman said ‘it was not the final whistle’ and a return may be possible in future. How sad, though, given the show’s long history and status.

But what is this? Has someone nabbed the ball and run off with it? Sue, Matt and Phil are way too polite (and savvy) to say such a thing, but the fact that they are limbering up, about to take their familiar seats (albeit on a live stage rather than in a TV studio), says it all. They admit viewers will find some of this stage show familiar – although Matt, 51, is swift to stress that it’s a generic sports quiz rather than a carbon copy (which might have had the BBC lawyers screeching about ‘intellectual property’).

‘The format is replicated in pubs, clubs and at home. It’s certainly not reinventing the sports quiz, but it’s a chance for people to catch up with the three of us.’ He says the show was born out of fans of the TV show asking what they’d been doing, making it clear they were missed.

And that cheeky title that Sue, 68, says was nothing to do with her? Well, for fans wondering just how close this show might be to the original, it now has that new title and the format is different, with rounds having alternative names. Plus there are stories you’d never hear on TV, and an audience interaction element too.

Whatever the show’s called, how glorious it is to have the three back together. The chat between them today is warm, hilarious – and oh so familiar. Phil, 58, likens it to dressing-room banter. Although their diaries haven’t been empty in the last few years (they all have sporting commentary and charity commitments), A Question Of Sport filled a void. ‘It’s what I miss most about sport,’ says the former spin bowler. ‘I don’t miss getting smashed by the Australians, but I do miss messing about in the dressing room with mates – this replicates it.’

Tuffers, as he is known, says the BBC show was irrefutably revered in sports circles. ‘I knew I’d made it in sport not when I was chosen to play for England, but when I was asked to go on A Question Of Sport,’ he says.

So who can blame them for wanting to serve up that winning formula? They did dip their toes back in the sports quiz game before – there was another live tour called Extra Time last year – but this one seems closer to the original, although perhaps even funnier, given there are no concerns about family content, broadcasting watersheds or BBC content guidelines. Will it be more risqué?

‘Yes. There is no filter,’ says Sue. ‘We used to do out-take shows – anyone who watched those will know it was a laugh. This will be totally unedited; everything is out there.’

They do promise much reminiscing about funny moments in the TV show – but they come with a caveat. ‘We have loads of stories, but obviously can’t use anything ever broadcast on the BBC.’ Did they ask? Would permission ever be granted in such a situation? Sue shakes her head. ‘I’m thankful that’s not in our job description.’

What sort of memories are we talking here? Some of Sue’s favourite moments involve the discussions among the teams when the ‘mystery guest’ clip (a stalwart round in the original show) involved someone receiving a massage. So vehement was one argument that Phil’s teammates turned their backs on him. Today, they confide that some of their funniest moments happened off camera, which may be revealed in the show. Phil refers to a boozy lunch where he was egged on to do an animal impression. ‘I can’t give much away, it will spoil the story, but let’s just say there were drinks at lunch, and we got carried away, and nearly cleared a well-established restaurant.’

What is obvious is that these three were already close work buddies, but when they were given the heave-ho from A Question Of Sport, they became even closer. ‘There was a real friendship and camaraderie,’ says Sue. ‘Even when we stopped the show, we’d meet up for lunches, and we have a WhatsApp group.’

Which must have been on fire when they were actually fired. But did they help each other through the very difficult – and very public – process? ‘We did,’ says Sue. Matt adds, ‘We were absolutely there for each other, good, bad or indifferent. When things went brilliantly we would all celebrate. Unfortunately, when it all came to an end we had to look after each other, like all close friends do.’

Sue, Matt and Phil – all legends in their respective sports of tennis, rugby and cricket – appearing on A Question Of Sport

How their exit was handled was appalling. It’s a matter of public record that Sue was told first that the show would be refreshed, and a younger team brought in. And she was asked to say it had been her choice to go. She refused. Three years on, she insists there are ‘no hard feelings’, but the way it was handled still rankles. ‘We were employees doing a job. If they wanted to make a change – and rightly so, TV needs to evolve – they have the right. None of us had a problem with being told, “Your time is up, that’s it.” But the one thing we wouldn’t do is say that it was our decision.’

To Sue, that would have been a disservice to viewers. ‘The three of us loved the show, and the last thing I would want anyone to think was that we wanted to walk away from it because I wouldn’t have. I would have loved to have done it forever.’

She continued to work for the BBC, although when she was offered a new contract fronting Wimbledon she turned it down. She has said since she wanted to ‘go out at the top’ and be in control of deciding when her career ended. Today she is sanguine. ‘No job is forever. You’ve got to make room for the next generation. It’s just a question of when is the right time to go. I did A Question Of Sport for 24 years. I did Wimbledon for 30. There are no complaints. With Wimbledon it just felt like the right time.’

But she was lured back this year for Andy Murray’s send-off, which she laughs about. ‘Never say never,’ she warns. ‘Never say it is all over.’

The question of how they now feel about their former employers must be asked. The original appropriation of (part) of the BBC’s title did make this venture seem like a big two-fingers-up to the Beeb. A Question Of Revenge, perhaps? Sue insists not, and seems more sad than furious that the show she adored – which had been on the air since 1970, and was part of her childhood – is no more.

Sue says, ‘It’s incredibly sad that a wonderful show has been shelved. We’d never wish it harm. We hoped it would go on forever. We hope they bring it back.’ With them at the helm? Or would Sue turn the job down? ‘It would be a no for me.’

What did these three think of the show their version was replaced with – one that haemorrhaged viewers? Matt has sympathy, pointing out that in the lockdown era the lack of a studio audience hit the show badly. ‘Just as in sport there are things, like the weather, you can’t plan for, things that are beyond the coach’s control.’

Sue says it is ‘too difficult for us to answer. TV is a tough job and when the ratings go, panic sets in. I wasn’t around to know who was making the decisions and I wouldn’t want to put a finger on what went wrong.’

Then she makes a candid admission. ‘It was too painful for me to watch. I saw the ratings and, in the end, they didn’t have much choice.’

Do audiences still want the show? They firmly believe so, and ticket sales for this live show will be the proof of the pudding. Has she signed Andy Murray up yet? ‘Not yet, but I’m working on it. I need to get him off the golf course,’ she says. ‘Getting him and Tim Henman on opposing teams would be good, no?’

The bigger question is whether we will ever see Sue back on the telly. You are left with the sense it would have to be one hell of a job offer. ‘I’m never going to retire officially,’ she says. ‘I’ve been offered jobs back on TV, but I don’t think I could better the ones I had, and you always have to be climbing up.’

Sue, Matt & Phil Live! The Reunion Tour begins on 1 March 2025. Tickets are on sale now from MyTicket.co.uk.