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1954: The Year Willie Mays and the First Generation of Black Superstars Changed Major League Baseball Forever
by Bill Madden1954: Perhaps no single baseball season has so profoundly changed the game forever. In that year-the same in which the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled, in the case of Brown vs. Board of Education, that segregation of the races be outlawed in America's public schools-Larry Doby's Indians won an American League record 111 games, dethroned the five-straight World Series champion Yankees, and went on to play Willie Mays's Giants in the first World Series that featured players of color on both teams. Seven years after Jackie Robinson had broken the baseball color line, 1954 was a triumphant watershed season for black players-and, in a larger sense, for baseball and the country as a whole. While Doby was the dominant player in the American League, Mays emerged as the preeminent player in the National League, with a flair and boyish innocence that all fans, black and white, quickly came to embrace. Mays was almost instantly beloved in 1954, much of that due to how seemingly easy it was for him to live up to the effusive buildup from his Giants manager, Leo Durocher, a man more widely known for his ferocious "nice guys finish last" attitude. Award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Bill Madden delivers the first major book to fully examine the 1954 baseball season, drawn largely from exclusive recent interviews with the major players themselves, including Mays and Doby as well as New York baseball legends from that era: Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford of the Yankees, Monte Irvin of the Giants, and Carl Erskine of the Dodgers. 1954 transports readers across the baseball landscape of the time-from the spring training camps in Florida and Arizona to baseball cities including New York, Baltimore, Chicago, and Cleveland-as future superstars such as Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and others entered the leagues and continued to integrate the sport. Weaving together the narrative of one of baseball's greatest seasons with the racially charged events of that year, 1954 demonstrates how our national pastime-with the notable exception of the Yankees, who represented "white supremacy" in the game-was actually ahead of the curve in terms of the acceptance of black Americans, while the nation at large continued to struggle with tolerance.
1954: The Year Willie Mays and the First Generation of Black Superstars Changed Major League Baseball Forever
by Bill Madden1954: Perhaps no single baseball season has so profoundly changed the game forever. In that year-the same in which the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled, in the case of Brown vs. Board of Education, that segregation of the races be outlawed in America's public schools-Larry Doby's Indians won an American League record 111 games, dethroned the five-straight World Series champion Yankees, and went on to play Willie Mays's Giants in the first World Series that featured players of color on both teams. Seven years after Jackie Robinson had broken the baseball color line, 1954 was a triumphant watershed season for black players-and, in a larger sense, for baseball and the country as a whole. While Doby was the dominant player in the American League, Mays emerged as the preeminent player in the National League, with a flair and boyish innocence that all fans, black and white, quickly came to embrace. Mays was almost instantly beloved in 1954, much of that due to how seemingly easy it was for him to live up to the effusive buildup from his Giants manager, Leo Durocher, a man more widely known for his ferocious "nice guys finish last" attitude. Award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Bill Madden delivers the first major book to fully examine the 1954 baseball season, drawn largely from exclusive recent interviews with the major players themselves, including Mays and Doby as well as New York baseball legends from that era: Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford of the Yankees, Monte Irvin of the Giants, and Carl Erskine of the Dodgers. 1954 transports readers across the baseball landscape of the time-from the spring training camps in Florida and Arizona to baseball cities including New York, Baltimore, Chicago, and Cleveland-as future superstars such as Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and others entered the leagues and continued to integrate the sport. Weaving together the narrative of one of baseball's greatest seasons with the racially charged events of that year, 1954 demonstrates how our national pastime-with the notable exception of the Yankees, who represented "white supremacy" in the game-was actually ahead of the curve in terms of the acceptance of black Americans, while the nation at large continued to struggle with tolerance.
1966: My World Cup Story
by Bobby CharltonFifty years on, the ultimate football and World Cup legend Sir Bobby Charlton looks back on England’s greatest sporting triumph Wembley, 1966. England wins the World Cup to roars of a euphoric home crowd.Sir Bobby Charlton, England’s greatest ever player, was there on the pitch. Now, half a century on, he looks back on the most glorious moment of his life and England's greatest sporting achievement. In 1966, he takes us through the build-up to the tournament and to the final itself - what he saw, what he heard, what he felt. He tells us what it was like to be part of Sir Alf Ramsey’s team, his memories of his teammates, the matches, the atmosphere; the emotion of being carried on the wave of a nation’s euphoria and how it felt to go toe-to-toe with some of the foremost footballers to ever play the game. His life has been forever defined by a single moment: one day when a man stood side-by-side with his best friends, united in a single aim in front of a watching nation. This is his story.‘It’s gripping stuff… This is a mellow book, the product of many years’ contemplation, and emotional in a way that may surprise you…He has a wonderful story to tell’ Daily Mail
1966 And All That
by Bob BondA unique cartoon celebration of England’s greatest football achievement with on-the-spot memories from some of the greatest writers in Fleet Street . Reports on EVERY match from the tournament plus special insights into Alf Ramsey’s dilemma over Jimmy Greaves or Geoff Hurst; the systematic butchering of Pele, the world’s greatest player; the romance of North Korea beating the mighty Italians; and the full drama of the final and Hurst’s hat-trick.
The 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games: Assessing the 30-Year Legacy (Sport in the Global Society - Historical Perspectives)
by Matthew Llewellyn John Gleaves Wayne WilsonThe 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games stand as the most profitable and arguably the most important event in the history of the modern Olympic movement. Fresh off the back of the financially disastrous Montreal Games of 1976 and the politically controversial Moscow Games of 1980, the Olympic movement returned to the United States for the sixth time in an attempt to salvage the economic viability and global prestige of the Olympics. The Los Angeles Olympics proved to be both provocative and polarizing. On the one hand they have been heralded as an overwhelming, transformative success, ushering the Olympic movement into the modern commercial age. On the other hand, critics have repudiated the Games as a manifestation of commercial excess and a platform for western political and cultural propaganda. In conjunction with the 30th anniversary of the Los Angeles Olympics, this volume examines their legacy. With an international collection of contributing scholars, this volume will span a range of global legacies, including the increasing commercialization of the Games, the changing participation of women, the Communist boycott movement, nationalism and sporting identity, and the modernization and California-cation of the Games. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of the History of Sport.
The 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games: Assessing the 30-Year Legacy (Sport in the Global Society - Historical Perspectives)
by Matthew P. Llewellyn, John Gleaves and Wayne WilsonThe 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games stand as the most profitable and arguably the most important event in the history of the modern Olympic movement. Fresh off the back of the financially disastrous Montreal Games of 1976 and the politically controversial Moscow Games of 1980, the Olympic movement returned to the United States for the sixth time in an attempt to salvage the economic viability and global prestige of the Olympics. The Los Angeles Olympics proved to be both provocative and polarizing. On the one hand they have been heralded as an overwhelming, transformative success, ushering the Olympic movement into the modern commercial age. On the other hand, critics have repudiated the Games as a manifestation of commercial excess and a platform for western political and cultural propaganda. In conjunction with the 30th anniversary of the Los Angeles Olympics, this volume examines their legacy. With an international collection of contributing scholars, this volume will span a range of global legacies, including the increasing commercialization of the Games, the changing participation of women, the Communist boycott movement, nationalism and sporting identity, and the modernization and California-cation of the Games. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of the History of Sport.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Reader (Classic Starts®)
by Jules VerneAfter a mysterious sea monster damages an ocean liner, the US government assembles a team in New York City to track down the creature and destroy it. French marine biologist Pierre Aronnax receives a last-minute invitation, as does Canadian harpoonist Ned Land. They leave aboard the Abraham Lincoln, bound for Cape Horn and then the Pacific Ocean.But all is not as it seems. When they find the monster and attack, the Abraham Lincoln is damaged and Aronnax and Land end up thrown onto the monster's hide. Except where there should be flesh there is metal. The monster is in fact a submarine called the Nautilus, captained by a mysterious renegade named Nemo, who swiftly takes his former pursuers captive aboard his impossible vessel and then dives deep beneath the waves. So begins the adventure of a lifetime for Aronnax and Land, as Nemo refuses to ever let them leave in case they reveal the truth about the Nautilus. Nemo is on a mission to seek out scientific knowledge and wreak revenge on the civilisation that destroyed his family, a mission that sees the Nautilus explore shipwrecks, hunt sharks, visit the real Atlantis, get attacked by a giant squid and end up stuck in a terrible whirlpool. With Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne can rightly be considered one of the founding fathers of science fiction. This special edition is based on the original translation that popularised the novel in the English-speaking world, and features an insightful Foreword by naturalist, television presenter and diver Miranda Krestovnikoff.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
by Jules VerneAfter a mysterious sea monster damages an ocean liner, the US government assembles a team in New York City to track down the creature and destroy it. French marine biologist Pierre Aronnax receives a last-minute invitation, as does Canadian harpoonist Ned Land. They leave aboard the Abraham Lincoln, bound for Cape Horn and then the Pacific Ocean.But all is not as it seems. When they find the monster and attack, the Abraham Lincoln is damaged and Aronnax and Land end up thrown onto the monster's hide. Except where there should be flesh there is metal. The monster is in fact a submarine called the Nautilus, captained by a mysterious renegade named Nemo, who swiftly takes his former pursuers captive aboard his impossible vessel and then dives deep beneath the waves. So begins the adventure of a lifetime for Aronnax and Land, as Nemo refuses to ever let them leave in case they reveal the truth about the Nautilus. Nemo is on a mission to seek out scientific knowledge and wreak revenge on the civilisation that destroyed his family, a mission that sees the Nautilus explore shipwrecks, hunt sharks, visit the real Atlantis, get attacked by a giant squid and end up stuck in a terrible whirlpool. With Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne can rightly be considered one of the founding fathers of science fiction. This special edition is based on the original translation that popularised the novel in the English-speaking world, and features an insightful Foreword by naturalist, television presenter and diver Miranda Krestovnikoff.
2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup: Media, Fandom, and Soccer’s Biggest Stage
by Molly Yanity Danielle Sarver CoombsThis book examines the most prolific international women’s football tournament—the FIFA Women’s World Cup—through media, fandom and how mediated women’s soccer can improve on a global scale. Women’s soccer has exploded in terms of media exposure, television audiences and live spectatorship. This book explores those macro-level issues, while also digging into micro-level topics such as Megan Rapinoe’s celebrations and political activism, VAR reviews, LGBTQ imagery, and cultural obstacles for women’s football in Central-Eastern Europe and Nigeria. Using an interdisciplinary approach, scholars look at issues through the lenses of feminist theory, cultural studies, rhetorical criticism, political economy, performative sport fandom, autoethnography, and more. Thus, the book is important reading for students, researchers and media practitioners with interests in women’s soccer, gender in sports media, coverage of women’s sport, and sport fandom.
The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup: Politics, Representation, and Management (Women, Sport and Physical Activity)
by Adam Beissel, Verity Postlethwaite, Andrew Grainger, and Julie E. BriceThis book offers a critical examination of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, being held in Australia and New Zealand. Drawing on perspectives from sociology, history, political science and management, it sheds new light on the development of women’s soccer and on women’s sport more broadly. The book examines the politics of the build-up to the tournament, including the bidding process, as well as how the tournament has been represented in the media, the governance structures of the tournament itself, and policy proposals designed to leave an enduring legacy for women and girls in sport. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is the first Women’s World Cup to be held in the Southern Hemisphere and the first to be held with an expanded 32-team format. This book shows why the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup represents a unique opportunity to enhance our understanding of women’s football, gender-oriented sport development initiatives and strategies, national sport policy and programming, and the management of international sporting events. This book is fascinating reading for any student, researcher or practitioner with an interest in sport development, sport management, sport policy, sport sociology, event management, gender studies, political science, or the relationship between sport and wider society.
The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup: Politics, Representation, and Management (Women, Sport and Physical Activity)
This book offers a critical examination of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, being held in Australia and New Zealand. Drawing on perspectives from sociology, history, political science and management, it sheds new light on the development of women’s soccer and on women’s sport more broadly. The book examines the politics of the build-up to the tournament, including the bidding process, as well as how the tournament has been represented in the media, the governance structures of the tournament itself, and policy proposals designed to leave an enduring legacy for women and girls in sport. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is the first Women’s World Cup to be held in the Southern Hemisphere and the first to be held with an expanded 32-team format. This book shows why the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup represents a unique opportunity to enhance our understanding of women’s football, gender-oriented sport development initiatives and strategies, national sport policy and programming, and the management of international sporting events. This book is fascinating reading for any student, researcher or practitioner with an interest in sport development, sport management, sport policy, sport sociology, event management, gender studies, political science, or the relationship between sport and wider society.
21 Days to Glory: The Official Team Sky Book Of The 2012 Tour De France
by Team Sky BrailsfordThe official, illustrated, insider story of the 2012 Tour de France was won, from Team Sky. With stunning photos from Scott Mitchell and exclusive interviews with the main players this is a must-have for all cycling fans.
21 Miles
by Jessica HepburnAfter a decade of trying to become a mother – eleven rounds of unsuccessful IVF, multiple miscarriages and a pregnancy which proved almost fatal – Jessica Hepburn knew it was time to do something different.So she decided to swim the twenty-one miles across the English Channel – no easy feat, especially for someone with an aversion to exercise who couldn't swim very well. As the punishing training commenced, Jessica learned you need to put on weight to stave off the cold. This then led to another idea: what if she wrote to a collection of inspiring women, asking if they would meet and eat with her to answer the question: does motherhood make you happy?The response was overwhelming. From baronesses and professors to award-winners and record-breakers, amazing women from different walks of life – some mothers, some not – all with compelling truths to tell about female fulfilment and the meaning of motherhood. On 2 September 2015, Jessica set out from Dover beach in the dark, taking the words that each of the women had given to sea in her bid to answer the question.
21st Century Jocks: Sporting Men And Contemporary Heterosexuality
by E. AndersonDrawing on hundreds of interviews with 15-22 year old straight and gay male athletes in both the United States and the United Kingdom, this book explores how jocks have redefined heterosexuality, and no longer fear being thought gay for behaviors that constrained men of the previous generation.
21st Century Sports: How Technologies Will Change Sports in the Digital Age (Future of Business and Finance)
by Sascha L. SchmidtThis book outlines the effects that technology-induced change will have on sport within the next five to ten years, and provides food for thought concerning what lies further ahead. Presented as a collection of essays, the authors are leading academics from renowned institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Queensland University of Technology, and the University of Cambridge, and practitioners with extensive technological expertise. In their essays, the authors examine the impacts of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and robotics on sports and assess how they will change sport itself, consumer behavior, and existing business models. The book will help athletes, entrepreneurs, and innovators working in the sports industry to spot trendsetting technologies, gain deeper insights into how they will affect their activities, and identify the most effective responses to stay ahead of the competition both on and off the pitch.
21st Century Sports: How Technologies Will Change Sports in the Digital Age (Future of Business and Finance)
by Sascha L. SchmidtDiscover the exciting future of sports in the digital age with "21st Century Sports: How Technologies Will Change Sports in the Digital Age." This thought-provoking book, now in its second edition, delves into the transformative power of technology on the world of sports within the next five to ten years and beyond. Written by esteemed academics from prestigious institutions like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Queensland University of Technology, and the University of Cambridge, alongside seasoned practitioners with extensive technological expertise, this collection of essays offers profound insights. Through their comprehensive analysis, the authors explore the profound impacts of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain, web3 and robotics on sports. Uncover how these technologies will revolutionize not only the nature of sports itself but also consumer behavior and existing business models. Athletes, entrepreneurs, and innovators working in the sports and other industries will find invaluable guidance to identify trendsetting technologies, gain deeper insights into their implications, and stay ahead of the competition, both on and off the field. In this new edition, a special focus is given to technology convergence, featuring chapters on the future of fandom, sports in the third connected age and in new digital worlds like the Metaverse. This book is your gateway to the dynamic world where technology and sports intersect, offering a compelling vision of what lies ahead.
23 Days in July: Inside the Tour de France and Lance Armstrong's Record-Breaking Victory
by John WilcocksonTaking place over twenty-three days in July and across more than 2,100 miles of smooth blacktop, rough cobblestones, and punishing mountain terrain, the Tour de France is the most grueling sports event in the world. And in 2004, five-time champion Lance Armstrong set out to achieve what no other cyclist in the 100-year history of the race had ever done: win a sixth Tour de France.Armstrong had four serious challengers who wanted nothing more than to deny the man the French call Le Boss from achieving his goal. The major threat among them was the only other former Tour de France champion in last year's race, Germany's Jan Ullrich- The Kaiser. But when the race was over, Lance Armstrong once again wore the yellow jersey of victory.
The 24 Hour Dating Agency: A Hilarious Romantic Comedy That You Won't Want To Miss!
by Mary Jayne BakerTinder, Hinge, Bumble – thirtysomething journalist Saffie has tried them all. Now she's wondering whether it's time to throw in the towel and give up on love for good – and she's not alone... Saffie's boss Tamara has been single since her divorce four years ago, but at forty-five, running her own magazine and with three kids at home, she doesn't feel she has the time, energy or confidence to go through the dating mill again. Meanwhile, Saffie's best friend Milo has just been dumped – again. A hopeless romantic with terrible taste in men, this is his fourth break-up in six months. There must be a secret to finding Mr Right, surely – but what?Step forward The 24-hour Dating Agency, a matchmaking service with a difference. Instead of wasting months on casual dates, they promise to send you on an intense twenty-four-hour date with your perfect match – like speed-dating but in reverse. And even better, the agency offers a soulmate guarantee: meet The One or your money back.Figuring they have nothing to lose, the three friends sign up. But when their matches turn out to be not what they were expecting, it seems like even the soulmate guarantee can't find them what they're looking for. Or can it?Perfect for fans of Mhairi McFarlane, Kristen Bailey and Beth O'Leary.Readers love The 24 Hour Dating Agency! 'RUN to go read this book!!!! It was so stinkin cute, I loved every minute of reading it!!!!' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Lovely, light, funny story with a very feel good ending and just a touch of magic making it a perfect summer read. I loved it' Goodreads Reviewer, ????? 'Couldn't put it down... Read the whole book in 2 days... Definitely worth a read and so well written' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Loved this one! Enjoyable from start to finish... Compelling and addictive characters and I found it such an easy read' NetGalley Reviewe, ????? 'Loved this book! The characters, the pacing, the storyline... All of it. A perfect beach read and I highly recommend it' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Light and fun with quirky characters and a cute premise... I highly recommend the adventures of this trio of underdogs' Goodreads Reviewer, ????? 'Fantastic book. I love the humour in Mary's books and her quirky, fun characters... A brilliant summer read for sure' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Wonderful, heart-warming story that made me smile' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Perfect summer beach read!!!! Add to your summer reading list, you won't be disappointed' NetGalley Reviewer, ????? 'Another absolute winner from Baker... A lovely book... I enjoyed it very much!' NetGalley Reviewer, ?????
25 Kites That Fly
by Leslie HuntWith this book by Leslie Hunt, kite-maker for the United States Weather Bureau, you can make your own, personalized kites that will fly in all degrees of wind, from the most imperceptible breeze to a gale. All that you need are some light wood (or substitute), glue, wire, hammer, and nails — plus the clear, concise explanations offered in this book.Twenty-five basic kites are covered in constructional details: standard two-stick kites; six-point stars; figural kites such as imps, fishermen, elephants, owls, shields; balloon kites; tetrahedral kites; various kinds of box kites with and without wings; really strong military kites; and many other varieties. Nor are you limited to the kites that are presented in detail: the carefully thought-out, complete instructions are meant to encourage you to experiment with more unusual effects, since they explain important points of design and operation that make all kites fly well.The author explains materials and methods quite thoroughly, with consideration of sticks and surface, types of glue, stringing, making composite sticks, tails, bridles, and many other elements, He also gives information on many of the fascinating accessories and concomitants to kites; messengers (or elements that move between ground and kite), parachutes, time releases, special effect releases, tandem kites, and kite photography. He also explains very clearly the method of getting a kite to fly, reeling and stringing, and determining altitude.
250 Days: Cantona's Kung Fu And The Making Of Man U
by Daniel StoreyAn incredibly entertaining and perceptive look at the most controversial moment in Premier League history.
26.2 Miles to Happiness: A Comedian’s Tale of Running, Red Wine and Redemption
by Paul TonkinsonThe hilarious trials and tribulations of stand-up comedian Paul Tonkinson as he attempts to beat the much lauded 3-hour mark at the London Marathon. With a supporting cast of fellow comedians, this is a warmly written and wonderfully honest adventure-through-sport that will both entertain and inspire.Along the way, we are introduced to the characters helping Paul with his quest. Celebrity names such as Bryony Gordon, Russell Howard, Roisin Conaty and Vassos Alexander pop up with wit and wisdom, alongside an alpine adventure to the Mayr Clinic with Michael McIntyre that pushes Paul to the limit. And not forgetting the 'words of wisdom' and derision from Paul's anti-running friend, Richard.
26.2 Miles to Happiness: A Comedian’s Tale of Running, Red Wine and Redemption
by Paul TonkinsonThe hilarious trials and tribulations of stand-up comedian Paul Tonkinson as he attempts to beat the much lauded 3-hour mark at the London Marathon. With a supporting cast of fellow comedians, this is a warmly written and wonderfully honest adventure-through-sport that will both entertain and inspire.Along the way, we are introduced to the characters helping Paul with his quest. Celebrity names such as Bryony Gordon, Russell Howard, Roisin Conaty and Vassos Alexander pop up with wit and wisdom, alongside an alpine adventure to the Mayr Clinic with Michael McIntyre that pushes Paul to the limit. And not forgetting the 'words of wisdom' and derision from Paul's anti-running friend, Richard.
26 Reasons to Run: Inspirational Running Stories from Women Like You
by Ruth FieldI wouldn't go to my husband's Christmas party because I had nothing to wear that fitted me and refused to buy anything. I vowed that night that I would shift the excess weight. It was shortly after this that I read Run Fat B!tch Run - and it has changed my life around completely. Now five-and-a-half stone lighter I am now training to compete in The Dublin Marathon in October of this year. Are you suffering from Motivation Meltdown? Have your well-worn-in trainers lain dormant for a few months, or are you simply looking for that first push to get up, lace up and RUN?Then look no further, for here are the stories from 26 women who have been exactly where you are (on the sofa, right?) and fought back . . . with a little help from The Grit Doctor. Their stories are all here to give you a Motivation Marathon every time you're tempted to give up and give in to the takeaway menu. Funny, moving and incredibly inspiring, each of these women found their own reasons to get running and beat the bulge and so can you.
3: The Quest to Break the Four Minute Mile
by John Bryant"Ladies and gentlemen, here is the result of event nine, the one mile: first, #41, Roger Bannister ... with a time which will be a new English Native, British National, All-Comers, European, British Empire and World Record. The time was three..."As the announcer spoke those fateful words, the crowd roared, and the century-long quest to run 'the world's greatest race' was finally at an end.For decades, amateur athletes like the American Lon Myers, a stick-thin hypochondriac who was sick before and after every race, yet still held every US record from 50 yards to the mile, and Joe Binks, an English journalist who only trained once per week, dominated the field. Paavo Nurmi, the 'Phantom Finn', won nine Olympic gold medals and set so many world records that statisticians still argue over the total, but even he couldn't breach the magic four-minute mark.As competition intensified, the Swede Gunder 'the Wonder' Haegg ran the mile in 4:01.4 - but it took the legendary Roger Bannister and his two co-runners to finally accomplish 'the most significant sporting achievement of the twentieth century'. It took a wholesale reimagining of running itself, as each generation built on the discoveries and secrets of the last, until the fateful day finally arrived, and an impossible dream became reality:6 May 1954. Roger Bannister. 3:59.4.
32 Programmes
by Dave RobertsWhen Dave Roberts relocates to the USA, his wife informs him that they can only take what is 'absolutely essential'. Packing his collection of football programmes (1,134 of them - football fans are sticklers for statistics), Dave is aghast to be informed that the programmes do not fall into that category. He must whittle down his treasured archive to only what will fit inside a Tupperware container the size of a Dan Brown hardback.32 Programmes tells the story of how Dave made the selection of his most important programmes, and how the process brought back a flood of nostalgia for simpler times. As the sights, sounds and smells of those 1,134 football matches return, the choices Dave makes reflect the twists and turns that life takes. Finally, with just hours to go before the flight, the container is full to the brim. One more programme will be added to the collection - one that Dave never thought he would see and which means more to him than any other.32 Programmes is the story of youthful football obsession, crushes on disinterested girls, rubbish jobs and trying to impress skinheads. But most of all, it is the story of a man's life and loves, of family, friends and football.