[8] He scored the winning goal on his debut as Bradford defeated Ipswich Town 2–1,[9] and became a favourite among fans,[10] players,[11] and the board.

[12] He scored a total of four goals in 12 games during his two-month spell, including a late equaliser as nine-man City drew 2–2 with Burnley,[13] but he returned to Sunderland when manager Howard Wilkinson blocked another month's extension to the loan.

[15] One unfortunate claim to fame occurred whilst playing for Sunderland in 2003, in a 3–1 defeat to Charlton Athletic, where Proctor scored two own goals within just five minutes.

[20] He was best remembered by Hartlepool fans for scoring twice in a 3–1 over local rivals Darlington in a League Cup tie early in his Pools' career.

From the start of the 2014–15 season, Michael began to work as a co-host for Sun FM's into The Light football show, discussing all things Sunderland with the duo of Stephen Goldsmith and Gareth Barker of the Wise Men Say podcast; Proctor added expert opinion to the comments of Goldsmith and Barker.

[29] This isn't an area of work Michael had intentionally planned on getting into after retiring, as he had previously been involved in coaching at East Durham College.