Icons of Football: Was Champagne Charlie Nicholas more Basil Fawlty or Bono?

Charlie Nicholas is one of the most beloved, talented and lively characters to have played in Scottish football.

The hair, the fashion, the skills and the goals made for a potent combination that saw 'Champagne Charlie' become one of the first players to make the leap from the back pages to the front pages. A true rock-star footballer.

He is the first of six great figures from the Scottish game to be featured in Icons of Football, a new BBC Scotland documentary telling the stories of their lives and careers both on and off the pitch.

To whet your appetite, here are some of the tales about Nicholas that didn't make the final cut…

The time he made someone's day

Simple Minds singer and Celtic fan Jim Kerr:

The last time I saw Charlie, my dad was with me and we were in the airport in Glasgow. My dad was seriously ill and Charlie recognised it. He just couldn't have been lovelier.

My dad was like a wee boy, I hadn't seen him as happy in months. He was like, 'There's Charlie Nic!' And we had a great chat.

I didn't have to tell Charlie, he just saw it and he knew. He had empathy and I never even spoke to Charlie about it, but this is a chance to say it now, I'll never forget him for that.

Football connections from the start

Long-time friend and former team-mate Jim Duffy:

We were brought up together, first in Cowcaddens and then the Barracks, as they'd always call it in Maryhill. We lived next door to each other.

Our families got together a lot. It was a bit like the Billy Connolly story of the parties and hearing people singing from the open windows. These parties were for the adults and the kids. Charles and myself would hate it as we'd be all embarrassed about our parents' singing.

Both our dads were huge Celtic fans and we'd always travel to games together in the back of a van with the family that stayed across from us, the Robertsons. That was Andy Robertson's grandparents and his dad!

'You'd need one question as he'd go on - and on'

Former Sky Sports colleague Hayley McQueen:

I think Charlie maybe had one of his first Soccer Saturdays with my dad [Gordon]. Often, I'd see them after the show, but then they'd disappear off to a bar somewhere to celebrate. It was still like a post-match celebration.

If I was ever interviewing him, you'd have all of your pre-arranged questions and sometimes you'd just need one as he'd go on and on - and on. He'd be off on a tangent and you'd be trying to rein him in.

You get that same enthusiasm from him as I guess you did when he was a player. He's a big kid.

'The pub landlord gave Charlie the keys'

Arsenal team-mate and England defender Viv Anderson:

My first day at Arsenal, I get told I'm staying at a hotel and that Charlie is staying there too and we end up going to a place called the Orange Tree on a regular basis - it was a pub about 50 yards from the hotel.

The landlord ended up giving Charlie the keys so he could lock up anytime he wanted. That's the sort of guy he was.

He was a loveable rogue. It was like Fawlty Towers and he was like Basil Fawlty. He knew everybody, he knew everything.

'He styled himself on Bono'

Former Celtic team-mate Pat Bonner:

When Charlie was a young boy, I was in the first team, he was an apprentice that did the boots and all the wee jobs at the time. Cheeky Charlie didn't have any apprehension about going in [to the first team], but he knew his place.

He fitted into our group fantastically well. We all loved him and I think it inspired the likes of Danny McGrain and the older ones when you can see this young kid coming on the scene who was going to be a fantastic striker.

He had that long hair and styled himself on Bono a little bit. He loved Bono.

'He nicknamed me Buffalo'

Aberdeen and Scotland colleague Willie Miller:

He turned up at Aberdeen Airport with his boots on, the long leather coat down to his ankles, the fedora hat and we knew right away we were getting someone special.

He's a really down to earth person. I know him really well, but at the time you're looking at someone coming into Aberdeen that we don't normally see. Charlie turned up and kind of lit up the city. He brought with him hope.

His personality was huge and, within the dressing room, he was that bubbly person you need. He nicknamed me Buffalo. How that came about I've got no clue, but he liked to give you a mark that only Charlie could.

All episodes of Icons of Football will be available on BBC iPlayer from 16 June