EX-MATCH of the Day presenter Adrian Chiles has gone from fearing fictional witches to believing in real ones.
The Beeb star claims wand-wielding women are “only a force for good”.
Chiles, 57, was traumatised as a kid by The Wizard of Oz movie – featuring the spindly-fingered, hook-nosed Wicked Witch of the West.
But the West Brom fan was transformed after popping into a shop selling witch goods.
Now the Brummie wants to buy crystals and explore the magical world further – perhaps hoping to help his beloved Baggies conjure some pointy hat-tricks.
Chiles was on MOT2 from 2004-2010 then worked for ITV Sport for six years.
And a well-established, mainstream broadcaster, he also presented The One Show with Christine Lampard and currently works on BBC Radio 5 live.
The Brummie father of two revealed how enchanted he’s become with witches in a column for The Guardian.
Chiles said he did a “double take” when, nestled in the Black Country village of Cradley, he spotted “The Wicklow Witch. Candles, Crystals, Witchy Supplies”.
Friends were amazed when he checked with them – so he even “wondered if I’d dreamed it” and went back to look again.
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He explained that, once there, he met someone who changed his beliefs.
Chiles wrote: “Behind the counter, was the witch herself. I asked her if there were many witches, here in the Halesowen area.
“‘You’d be surprised,’ she said. Actually, I wouldn’t. I don’t think anything is ever going to surprise me again.
I’ve been decidedly anti-witch ever since I was scared half to death 50 years ago by that nasty piece of work in ‘The Wizard of Oz’.
“I’m thankful to this witch, the delightful Juliet O’Brien, for putting me right on a few things, not least that proper witches don’t do bad things because they know such behaviour will only come back and haunt them.”
Chiles stressed: “Witches are a force only for good.
“I’ve been reading up on them in a book I bought from Juliet called ‘Basic Witches’ and I’m liking what I’m finding. I’m going back soon to pick up some crystals, seriously.”
So it seems he wouldn’t be scared if he suddenly discovered there was a Wicked Witch of the West Brom.
But it might be a bit much to expect him to transfer allegiance to Crystals Palace.
