Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 8

Welcome, one and all, to the podcast that likes nothing better than to dip a hand into the lucky bag of football nostalgia.

On this episode, we go back to where our podcast began - 1981, but this is the 80/81 season, not 81/82, and what's this? ITV have got the rights to show Saturday night football! Whatever next - long hair on men?

Yes, we're off to Granadaland once more, but Gerald Sinstadt's insisting on staying in his commentary box, so the job of linking all the footy footage has fallen to Roger Elton Welsby. He seems like a nice enough young man, but just to be on the safe side, he's got backup in the form of England international goalkeeper, Ray Clemence. Maybe he can explain why Liverpool have just lost their three-year unbeaten run at home...

Elsewhere, we drop in on the Anglia region where (and this will make you larf) Ipswich Town think they're in with a chance of winning the League Championship, then we head off to that there London to catch a West Ham team that are trying to get back to Division One. Will Preston North End stand in their way?

If all that wasn't enough, there's the usual look at what was happening in the news and, whisper it quietly, they might be changing the One Pound Note to a coin. How will they get a picture of Brian May on THAT?

There's also lots of talk on the subject of novelty chart records, old TV adverts for Lego, the redevelopment of the London Docklands area (we kid you not) and much, MUCH more besides. Oh, and a bit of swearing, but we've censored most of it out, thankfully.

If you want to watch the accompanying episode of Match Night that features in this episode, you can find it here. Oh, and there's a nice Brucie Bonus for you at the end, courtesy of the wonderful Cut & Thrust. We do look after you...

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 8 (.MP3 74.9 MB)

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 7

Hello again, listeners - it's time for another deep dive into the calming waters of football nostalgia in the form of The Football Attic: Rewind - episode 7!

On this occasion, we've got for you the most recent batch of TV football we've covered so far, and it's from the very first season of the FA Premier League. Yes, we're looking back at 20th March 1993, Des Lynam and Match of the Day...

In this podcast, we remind ourselves of a time when Man United were only just remembering how to be the best team in England again. There's Cantona and Giggs, but both are having trouble finding the net at this point, and as for Bryan Robson... well, he's been injured recently, but you knew that already, probably.

United are up against their rivals Man City, while elsewhere, Liverpool face their arch-enemies Everton. Why is John Barnes warming up with a four-year-old? Why is Graeme Souness Britain's angriest man? And why does Clive Tyldesley think attendances will never go beyond 44,000 ever again?

All these questions are answered, plus we remember the ridiculous excitement generated by Nicam Stereo TV's, ponder for a moment on Bruce Forsyth's short career as a cartoon narrator and find out why Rich spent his days at university writing about BDSM. It's the podcast that truly has everything you could ever want!

Watch along with our featured episode of Match of the Day here, and don't forget to drop us a line if you want to tell us about anything featured in this podcast. Enjoy.

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 7 (.MP3 67.2 MB)

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 6

Hello, nostalgia lovers!

It's great to be back with the sixth episode of the podcast that people on the internet are calling "Huh?"

Yes, it's only us again, inviting you to come along for another therapeutic journey back into the football abyss, and this time we're going back to February 15th 1976...

We're not quite at the point of the long hot summer, but there's plenty of knockabout FA Cup fun to warm you up at Filbert Street where Leicester City are taking on Manchester United in the Fifth Round.

'What, no Chelsea' we hear you cry? Well no, and you can blame Gerald Sinstadt for that because on this episode we're in Granadaland where The Kick Off Match (crap title) is showing us all the best football action from 'Oop North.'

There's much to entertain us from Sinstadt talking into a dubious microphone in a shipping container to referee Jack Taylor personally taking it upon himself to drag a long-haired loon off the pitch. As if that wasn't enough, there's the weirdest theme tune accompanying the most sinister title sequence, kids selling doughnuts AND another instalment of 'Where's Brucie?'

Just don't ask how good the football is because Leicester and ManYoo are playing like schoolkids and Stoke and Sunderland don't even own a banjo, let alone hit a cow's backside with it.

Never mind, it's all classic stuff and you'll do well to watch it too before listening to us giving our own distinctive take on things. IF YOU DON'T, THE WHOLE THING WON'T MAKE SENSE. Your choice...

(Please note: This episode was recorded just a few days before Gerald Sinstadt passed away. We'd like to dedicate this podcast to his memory.)

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 6 (.MP3 74.9 MB)

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 5

Greetings nostalgia lovers... it's Attic Rewind time again!

On this occasion, we're heading back to the warm, cosy beigeness of the BBC's Match of the Day studio such as it was on February 2nd 1985.  Once again, Jimmy Hill has the highlights of two matches to bring us, but, with the aid of Tony Gubba, there's also time for a brief report from Millwall where George Graham is learning the managerial ropes. Hooligans? What hooligans?

On the pitch, we get to see Luton Town facing up to their fellow lavish spenders Tottenham Hotspur at a ground that has possibly the most advertising boards in the country. They've even got some on the upper tier of the main stand!

After trying to be not too distracted by all the pro-Scandi names on show at Kenilworth Road, it's off to Hillsborough again where there's 48,000 watching Sheffield Wednesday play Liverpool - most of them wearing bobble hats, parkas, scarves or possibly a combination of all three. The game's not all that flash, but Jimmy Hill reckons it's a wind-related problem. Well we've all been there...

Elsewhere, Breaking News: Bryan Robson's injured! But it's not all predictable... We get to see all the goals from Dumbarton (WTF?), stopping along the way to find out what Bruce Forsyth was up to in February 1985, and discover the worst small business name in the UK at time of recording. Oh, and we give a doff of the hat to the late, great Sir Clive Sinclair.

It's all here in episode 5 of The Football Attic: Rewind, including this ever-important link to the accompanying Match of the Day episode. Without that, our ramblings would be rendered completely pointless (if you can imagine such a thing).

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 5 (.MP3 65.4 MB)

Follow us on Patreon

By donating just £3 per month, you can download every episode of The Football Attic: Rewind two weeks before anyone that chooses not to. As if that wasn't good enough, you'll also get to vote on the year we focus on in the next podcast. Neat, huh?

And how do you get to gain access to such marvellous privileges? It's simple. Just visit patreon.com/footballattic, choose a membership level and enjoy being one of a growing number of people who know how to enjoy football nostalgia. We look forward to having you with us...

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 4

 

Hello again, nostalgia lovers, and welcome to another episode of The Football Attic: Rewind.

For this episode, we're jumping into the Attic Time Cupboard and heading back 42 years to December 16th 1979. Why? Well apart from 'why not?', we wanted to watch an old episode of ITV's The Big Match and tell you what we saw.

Among the many delights on offer this time around:

• Brian Moore once again turns his back on the giants of English football to focus instead on Second Division Chelsea,
• Rich paints the slightly inappropriate picture of him and his brother in their underpants wearing cowboy hats (well he was young at the time),
• We discuss the improbable coming together of Rod Hull, Emu and Snoop Dog on a low-rent Channel 4 TV show,
• and we get our first sighting of a dog on the pitch which, we presume, must have been happening virtually every week during the 1970's.

As well as all that, we defiantly fail to laugh at several referees experiencing misfortune and discomfort, contemplate the miraculous popularity of grapefruits four decades ago, and commit unflinchingly to give Bruce Forsyth his own spot in all future episodes. What more could you possibly ask for?

Well, there's always a link to this episode of The Big Match, of course. That would be handy. Apart from that, not a lot, we hope...

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 4 (.MP3 84.6 MB)

Follow us on Patreon

By donating just £3 per month, you can download every episode of The Football Attic: Rewind two weeks before anyone that chooses not to. As if that wasn't good enough, you'll also get to vote on the year we focus on in the next podcast. Neat, huh?

And how do you get to gain access to such marvellous privileges? It's simple. Just visit patreon.com/footballattic, choose a membership level and enjoy being one of a growing number of people who know how to enjoy football nostalgia. We look forward to having you with us...

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 3

Once again we invite you to jump into The Football Attic's time cupboard and join us for another romp through the forgotten wilderness of British football on TV...

And what a romp it turns out to be. First of all, we're honoured by the presence of Rich Nelson as our guest, fresh from single-handedly providing the BBC with all its Finnish football-related content during Euro 2020.

Having put us straight on the subject of Scandinavian advertising boards of the late-1980's, we plunge into an episode of ITV's The Big Match from 7th December 1975. As ever, the observations are acute and the tangents wild.

For instance, did John Wayne really voice a minor part in Star Wars? Was sports bra technology really so appalling 46 years ago? And why did some overhead projectors in the 1970's use orange-tinted plastic sheets?

There's also much delight at the memory of ITV regions we'd see on holiday as kids, a moment to ponder who had more fun with Raquel Welch - Jimmy Hill or Peter Osgood? - and a conscious effort on our parts not to mention the name of a popular brand of liquorice in Denmark. All that, plus listener feedback and Brian Moore telling a viewer how to say 'Steve Coppell' properly.

Confused? Don't be. Watch this episode of The Big Match, settle back and listen to our observations using the download link below. Is there any swearing, we hear you ask? Yes, but surely you've come to expect that by now.

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 3 (.MP3 92 MB)

Further information:

• John Wayne in Star Wars?
• Questionably-named liquorice brand in Denmark
• Ridiculously insensitive interview with referee Roger Kirkpatrick
• Who's The Greatest? (Brian Moore, 1987)

Follow us on Patreon

By donating just £3 per month, you can download every episode of The Football Attic: Rewind two weeks before anyone that chooses not to. As if that wasn't good enough, you'll also get to vote on the year we focus on in the next podcast. Neat, huh?

And how do you get to gain access to such marvellous privileges? It's simple. Just visit patreon.com/footballattic, choose a membership level and enjoy being one of a growing number of people who know how to enjoy football nostalgia. We look forward to having you with us...

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 2

It's episode 2 of the retro football podcast that knows its Kombilotts from its Konsum Vasts! Yes, we're back once again to take you back to a time in British football when the shorts were short and the tempers on the field were even shorter...

In this episode, we take you back to March 1987 for another instalment of the BBC's Match of the Day where it's FA Cup quarter final weekend. Arsenal play Watford and find the linesman giving off all the wrong signals, Coventry City play Sheffield Wednesday surrounded by a profusion of Scandinavian product placement, while back in the studio Bob Wilson tries not to moan about the pain in his neck. Jimmy Hill is your presenter.

Along the way we profile Steve Williams and Keith Houchen/Hoochin, consider the drop-off in quality of chart music 34 years ago and generally grab whatever low-hanging fruit we can find from the long-forgotten era of Shoot magazine, home computing and phone-based football information services. ClubCall, anyone?

If you want to watch this episode of Match of the Day to see what we're talking about, you can catch it here. Like last time, there are a few brief pauses in the video caused by circumstances beyond our control which we hope won't detract too much from your viewing pleasure. Apart from that, sit back, listen to The Football Attic: Rewind and enjoy...

(Caution: some minor swearing, but you can cope.)

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 2 (.MP3 94.6 MB)

Follow us on Patreon

By donating just £3 per month, you can download every episode of The Football Attic: Rewind two weeks before anyone that chooses not to. As if that wasn't good enough, you'll also get to vote on the year we focus on in the next podcast. Neat, huh?

And how do you get to gain access to such marvellous privileges? It's simple. Just visit patreon.com/footballattic, choose a membership level and enjoy being one of a growing number of people who know how to enjoy football nostalgia. We look forward to having you with us...

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Football Attic: Rewind - Episode 1

If you've been waiting for a football podcast that thinks electronic scoreboards are the coolest thing ever or shrugs its shoulders when it hears the phrase 'VAR', you're very much in luck.

Yes folks, The Football Attic: Rewind is on hand to transport you back to a time when 'Internet' was something international-standard anglers used to catch fish and 'Bestie' was that Irish bloke who used to score loads of goals for Manchester United.

In this first episode, we, your humble hosts, take you back to September 19th 1981 to look at an old episode of the BBC's Match of the Day. And my, how things have changed. We see crowds bereft of replica shirt-wearing fans (apart from one young bloke at Anfield), players getting fouled but denying us the chance to see their extensive acting repertoire and pitchside boards advertising holiday camps and stone enamellers. Did this really happen in our lifetime?

Apparently it did, and we've got the evidence to prove it. If you want to watch this episode of Match of the Day to see what we're talking about, you can catch it here. 

So if you want to the greatest ever example of the Egyptian goatee beard, see the evil in Garry Birtles' eyes or simply marvel at the wonder of a behind-the-goal camera angle, you've definitely come to the right place. Mind - there's a bit of mild swearing here and there. Sorry about that...

Download:

• The Football Attic: Episode 1 (.MP3 88.7 MB)

This introductory visit to The Football Attic is free to download immediately, but if you want to catch future episodes with similar speed and efficiency, why not support us on Patreon? Check out the membership levels and help us bring you more of the same, only better...

Additional Links:

• Chris O's Favourite 5 Footballs
• Al Gordon's Five Subbuteo Items They Never Made
• Match of the Day 19 September 1981

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Kit Collection Volume 3 - Register Your Interest

I said after Volume 2 that I'd never write another book about football shirts...I was wrong.

I did, however, figure that if I was going to risk sanity and divorce once more, I'd best make it worth it...and so the idea behind Volume 3 of the Attic Kit collection was born.

Rather than just showcase the latest additions to my collection, I thought I'd come up with a theme...and also a proper title. Given my love of obscure (some would say hideous) and limited edition shirts, it made sense to showcase as many as possible...

And so 'From Masterpiece to Madness' - The Football Attic Kit Collection Volume 3 is now on the horizon...but I'm doing things a little differently.

For one, it's going to be in portrait - this will allow each shirt to have a whole page to itself.
I'm getting them properly printed too, which means more pages (currently looking at between 130-150) and it should also reduce the cost slightly...so more for less! Bargain!

As I'm having to order all the books upfront, I thought it'd make sense to get a feel for how many I should get printed...so, if you're interested, please fill out the form below.

NB This is just to register your interest and does not commit you to buying.

There's a few sneak peeks at some of the pages below the form...enjoy and thanks for your support :)

Rich

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The Football Attic Podcast 32 - The 1987-88 season

Can you remember what you were doing thirty years ago? Were you dreaming of owning your very own BMX bike, or were you wondering why Paul Gascoigne didn't talk with a very high-pitched voice after his encounter with Vinnie Jones?

If your answer was the latter, then welcome to our 32nd podcast in which we go back to the 1987-88 season!

Take a trip down memory lane with us as we remind you of the players, the teams and the goals that made up an often overlooked episode in football history. Plus, we bring you the stuff that was going on outside the world of football to complete your recollection of all that was happening thirty years ago, thanks to our complimentary YouTube playlist.

What more could you ask for? Oh, er... yes, of course... the link to download the podcast would be helpful...

Listen to The Football Attic Podcast 32 by clicking here, or alternatively, subscribe to us on iTunes.

Enjoy!

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