Category Archives: Gary James

This is Your Life Joe Mercer

Broadcast live on this day (25 March) in 1970 was the This is Your Life TV episode with Joe Mercer as the subject. Here are the details plus a special recording which supporters of all the clubs Joe was involved with could be interested in.

This Is Your Life was viewed at the time as significant recognition for a lifetime’s achievement. Only major stars and personalities were featured in those days, and the main idea would be that the subject of the programme would be surprised by the sudden appearance of presenter Eamonn Andrews and his ‘Big Red Book’. The subject would then be whisked away to a studio or other location where a variety of figures from the person’s life would be brought out to tell anecdotes and the like. The main part of the show would be broadcast live.

This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970

Back in 1970 young Manchester City supporter John Stapleton was working on the series and he suggested they feature Joe Mercer as the topic of one show. John, who has gone on to be a prominent broadcaster with a well-regarded TV career was interviewed by me a few years back and we discussed the programme and John’s part in the idea of featuring Joe: ‘I did it purely for the benefit of me and my dad.  Eamon Andrews, the presenter, had of course a great interest in sport and I put the idea to him and the rest of the production team.  Together with Norah, Joe’s wife who in recent years I often sat with at games sharing her boiled sweets, we concocted a situation where Joe and Malcolm were in a London hotel before a trip to watch a European game in 1970. Malcolm disappeared – deliberately as part of the show though Joe didn’t know this – and Joe was called to reception urgently.  Eamon leaped out to do the big “This Is Your Life” reveal and Joe had no idea whatsoever. It was a great day for us all and Joe was thoroughly deserving of it as well.’

Joe was staying at a Hilton Hotel in London. As John described, He had been due to fly with Malcolm Allison to the continent to watch ECWC semi-final opponents Schalke but he had received a message to say the game was off. It was all a ruse of course. That night television viewers watched as Eamonn Andrews surprised Joe at the hotel reception desk: ‘Joe Mercer, former England playing star, now manager of Cup winning Manchester City, tonight. This Is Your Life!’

Eamon Andrews This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970

At the start of the show the City team appeared. This had been an extremely busy time for the Blues. Over a 18 day period City had played two League games, the League Cup final, the second leg of the ECWC quarter-final with Coimbra and found time to work with television to honour their manager. This live show occurred on Wednesday 25 March and City were to face Derby in the League on 27th and Manchester United on 28th, plus they had to play the first leg of the ECWC semi-final with Schalke on 1st. It was incredible that a team would be involved in this at such a busy time but that’s the way it was.

This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970 MCFC squad

As Joe explains in the show Malcolm Allison was nowhere to be seen. He had been staying with Joe at the hotel and the City manager commented: ‘I’m a great sleeper you see, and subconsciously I heard Malcolm getting up and I thought, oh, he’s going to the bathroom. I thought, well, he hasn’t come back, so he must be having a bath, and then I went back to sleep. I woke about ten and Malcolm had gone, but occasionally this happens – Malcolm disappears!’

Andrews explained that Allison had left early to watch the match which was still on. Joe was flabbergasted: ‘He’s left all his clothes! I’ve had to pack his bag as well!’

During the course of the show, Andrews informed Joe that Alf Ramsey had named the squad he was to take to the 1970 World Cup: ‘I know you haven’t had a chance to hear the news, but I’m going to tell it to you now, that two of your boys have been named by Alf for the World Cup – Francis Lee and Colin Bell. And two more in the twelve reserves – Mike Summerbee and Alan Oakes. Congratulations lads, and to the whole of the Manchester City.’

Joe was overjoyed.

Subscribers to this website are now in for a special treat as an audio of the entire episode has been preserved and can now be listened to here:

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You can listen to this special recording of Joe Mercer, Eamon Andrews, Dixie Dean, Malcolm Allison, Stan Cullis, Stanley Matthews etc. by subscribing. It costs £3 per month (cancel anytime) to access everything posted since 1 Oct 2022 or there’s an annual option (below).

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Subscribe to get access – Annual

You can listen to this special recording of Joe Mercer, Eamon Andrews, Dixie Dean, Malcolm Allison, Stan Cullis, Stanley Matthews etc. by subscribing. It costs £20 per year (cancel anytime) to access everything posted since the site began in December 2020, that includes history talks, videos, a couple of my books, hundreds of articles etc.

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Joe appeared on several other This Is Your Life shows including in November 1988 when Tom Finney was the subject and in 1980 when Emlyn Hughes was. He also appeared on two for Matt Busby, one in 1958 and one in 1971 (which opened at Maine Road).

The Programme details for the Joe Mercer episode are:

  • Edition No: 274
  • Subject No: 276
  • Broadcast live: Wed 25 Mar 1970
  • Broadcast time: 7.00-7.30pm
  • Venue: Euston Road Studios
  • Series: 10
  • Edition: 18
  • Director: Margery Baker
  • Producer: Robert Tyrrell
  • City supporter and broadcaster John Stapleton worked on the show

The guests were:

  • Norah – wife
  • members of Manchester City FC team 
  • Francis Lee
  • Colin Bell
  • Mike Summerbee
  • Alan Oakes
  • Alan Percival
  • David – son
David & Joan Mercer, This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970
  • Joan – daughter-in-law
  • Arthur – brother
  • Stan Cullis
Stan Cullis, This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970
  • Billy Dixie Dean
Billy ‘Dixie’ Dean, This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970
  • Jim Morris
  • Charles Palmer
  • Matt Busby
  • Frank Soo
  • Walley Barnes
  • Maurice Edelston
  • Bernard Joy
  • Roy White
  • George Hardwick
  • Raich Carter
  • Neil Franklin
  • Stanley Matthews
Stanley Matthews, This is Your Life Joe Mercer 1970

Filmed tributes:

  • Malcolm Allison
  • Susan – granddaughter
  • Albert Dyson – father-in-law

If you have enjoyed this article then why not subscribe (see above for details) for other material like this? If you don’t want to subscribe but would like to support the research into Manchester football by Gary James then it’s possible to donate below. All support is used to help perform further research that will be posted here for future generations. Thanks for the support.

Latest Manchester Confidential Article: Rochdale

My lates monthly article on football in the Greater Manchester area on Manchester Confidential has been published. This one is about the first team from the region to reach the League Cup final. That’s right – Rochdale AFC. It can be read here:

https://t.co/xR5QhjeB0a

Thanks to Rochdale fan Greg Ingham from the It’s Only A Game podcast for your help ( https://twitter.com/Its_OnlyAGame ).

My earlier articles for Manchester Confidential were on United and City (see below):

https://confidentials.com/manchester/when-will-manchester-city-achieve-european-champions-league-glory?id=63ef59984ff4e

https://confidentials.com/manchester/manchester-united-looking-backward-to-push-forward?id=63c9274f540ba

One Week Today: Free History Talk on Manchester City 2005 to 2009

I’m delighted to say I’ll be performing the next free online History Talk this time next week (Wednesday 29 March at 6pm until 7pm). This talk will be on Manchester City FC between 2005 to 2009. It’ll last about 1 hour and is free to attend but places must be reserved in advance. It will follow a similar format to previous talks I’ve done on the origins of MCFC but this one will specifically focus on the transformational period of 2005 to 2009. I’ll talk about the development of MCFC during the period.

During the 2000s I spent considerable time behind the scenes interviewing and meeting those who played a part in this transformational period. I’ll discuss the development of the club from the dedicated chairmanship of John Wardle, through a season or so of Thaksin Shinawatra and on to Khaldoon Al Mubarak. I will talk about meetings I attended and interviews I performed during this period, including discussions with all three chairmen, plus other significant figures.

This hour will include the opportunity to ask questions as I’m keen to hear your thoughts on these transformational years for the club.

The event will be live on Zoom on 29/3/23 at 6pm and a link will be sent to all those who have registered for the event beforehand (probably earlier that day). THIS WILL BE EMAILED OUT SEPARATELY AND NOT VIA THE EVENTBRITE WEBSITE.

You can register here:

Register on Eventbrite

You must register here if you want to get involved. If you’d like an example of what the talk will be like take a look at:

Video of my online talk on history of MCFC Support/Match Day at Maine Road

The talk will last about 1 hour and will be online on zoom, so you should be able to access it anywhere.

You can see posts about other History Talks here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/tag/history-talks/

Finding 1904 Objects

As a trained historian I am always wary about saying that something is the first or that something’s an absolute fact unless I can properly prove it. It’s important to not jump to assumptions and to act responsibly. The quest to uncover football’s history and ensure the facts not the fiction are recorded drives me on. In addition, I am keen to locate items that can link us directly with a particular moment or achievement. So I’d just like to talk about a few items that I’ve been desperate to locate for several years…

There are many items from Manchester City’s long history that I have been searching for over many, many years. I could write a book about them but here’s the story of a few objects connected with the 1904 FA Cup final and one item I’m after tracking down survived for years and I’ve discovered that it was housed in Burnley for at least 40 years.

Many objects connected with Manchester’s first major trophy success still exist including the original-style FA Cup (housed at the National Football Museum – go and take a look when you can); a watch presented to manager Tom Maley (and some of the others presented to the players); a banner made by members of the Alexander Family (club officials and directors from 1894 through to the modern day; the flag is in City’s archive); players’ medals and various newspaper cuttings and photographs. However, there are three important items that I know existed that have vanished.

I am going to start with the 1904 FA Cup final ball, which was stored in Burnley into the 1950s.

Hillman’s Ball

At the end of the 1904 FA Cup final goalkeeper Jack Hillman charged past an opponent to pick up the ball and claim it as his own. The 1904 FA Cup final became the possession of City’s Hillman and he kept hold of it throughout his life. For many years he had it on display in his sweet shop on Thurston Street, Burnley and it is believed it was still in that building at the time of Hillman’s death in 1952.

According to reports the ball was painted in City’s colours – Cambridge Blue and White was worn for the 1904 final – and was inscribed as the 1904 English Cup winning ball. Back then the FA Cup was more commonly known as the English Cup.

Following Hillman’s death there is uncertainty over what happened to the ball. It seems it stayed in Burnley, so if there’s anyone reading with information please get in touch. If the ball managed to survive into the 1950s then it is possible it is still around somewhere.

I managed to get a Burnley newspaper to do a piece on this a few years back but sadly no one came forward with any information.

Film of the Final

The 1904 FA Cup final was filmed and shown in pubs and exhibition halls for at least a month after the final. Several copies of the film must have existed as it was shown in multiple locations at similar times but, to date, none of these copies have been found. Many photos from the 1904 final (including this one of Meredith scoring) are believed to have been taken from the original footage. In recent years older football films have been located in the north-west and I live in hope that one day a metal film cannister will be found with the words ‘1904 English final’ scrawled across will be identified.

The Players’ Shirts

Not one of the 1904 FA Cup final shirts has ever been found despite many of the players saving other equally important shirts. The 1904 shirt carried no badge and as City played a League game only 2 days after the final and travelled straight to Everton from London, it’s possible the same kit was worn again. Players such as Billy Meredith and Sandy Turnbull did save other important shirts and it’s possible the kits may have stayed within family circles but not recognised for their significance due to the lack of a badge. Frank Booth, a prominent member of the team, died in 1919 and is buried in Denton – maybe his family retained the shirt and it still resides in the region?

If you know of any of these items and can help locate them then please do. The film is probably the one that appeals most to me, but both the ball and a shirt would be great finds too.

You can find out more about 1904 here:

Manchester City – FA Cup Winners Since 1904

Next Free History Talk: Manchester City 2005 to 2009 on 29 March

I’m delighted to say I’ll be performing the next free online History Talk on Wednesday 29 March at 6pm until 7pm. This talk will be on Manchester City FC between 2005 to 2009. It’ll last about 1 hour and is free to attend but places must be reserved in advance. It will follow a similar format to previous talks I’ve done on the origins of MCFC but this one will specifically focus on the transformational period of 2005 to 2009. I’ll talk about the development of MCFC during the period.

During the 2000s I spent considerable time behind the scenes interviewing and meeting those who played a part in this transformational period. I’ll discuss the development of the club from the dedicated chairmanship of John Wardle, through a season or so of Thaksin Shinawatra and on to Khaldoon Al Mubarak. I will talk about meetings I attended and interviews I performed during this period, including discussions with all three chairmen, plus other significant figures.

This hour will include the opportunity to ask questions as I’m keen to hear your thoughts on these transformational years for the club.

The event will be live on Zoom on 29/3/23 at 6pm and a link will be sent to all those who have registered for the event beforehand (probably earlier that day). THIS WILL BE EMAILED OUT SEPARATELY AND NOT VIA THE EVENTBRITE WEBSITE.

You can register here:

Register on Eventbrite

You must register here if you want to get involved. If you’d like an example of what the talk will be like take a look at:

Video of my online talk on history of MCFC Support/Match Day at Maine Road

The talk will last about 1 hour and will be online on zoom, so you should be able to access it anywhere.

You can see posts about other History Talks here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/tag/history-talks/

History Video: Joshua Parlby and the Launch of MCFC

As promised, here for subscribers is my presentation on Joshua Parlby and the launch of Manchester City FC. It lasts about 58 minutes and was recorded on 1 March 2023. There are lots of myths out there, but I focused on the facts and my latest research. 

The presentation is all about the visionary who promoted a new club to represent Manchester, Manchester City and about the steps taken in 1894. This talk is now only available to subscribers (see below for details of how to subscribe).

Subscribers can also see the previous history talk on St Mark’s and City’s development in the Gorton area during the 1870s and 1880s below.

Subscribe to get access – Annual

Annual subscribers get access to everything posted since December 2020 (interviews, history talks, articles, PDFs of books etc.) and everything to be posted during your subscription. It costs £20 a year (about 5p a day).

Subscribe

Subscribe to get access – Monthly

Monthly subscribers get access to everything posted since 1 October 2022 and everything to be posted during your subscription. It costs £3 a month (cancel any time).

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El Rubio: Barnes, United & Betis

This week Manchester United play Real Betis in the Europa League. This immediately brings to mind the stories of the former England international winger Peter Barnes. Barnes, or El Rubio as he was known in Spain (it means the blond one).

Peter’s time at both clubs is covered in my authorised biography of him. There are some touching moments and some great stories too. The book was started before the Covid pandemic and then was delayed because of Covid. Despite the delays it was great to write this biography and Peter’s a wonderful person who has an interesting story. I’m sure fans of every club Peter was involved with and neutrals will enjoy reading the book.

You can buy the book below.

This 372 page, colour paperback book is £16.95 (including UK postage).

United Kingdom

The Peter Barnes Authorised Biography – UNITED KINGDOM

Order today for £16.95 (incl UK Postage and Packaging).

£16.95

To order please use the button above (UK postage included; outside UK contact me for additional postage costs). You do not need to have a PayPal account to order – use the ‘Pay with PayPal’ button above and it will give you the option to pay by credit/debit card without creating a PayPal account.

Here are the contents pages:

This long awaited authorised biography, written by Gary James with the memories and stories of Peter’s career throughout, tells the story of Peter’s life from his childhood in Manchester and Wrexham through to the modern day. With particular focus on his footballing career with Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion, Leeds United, Real Betis, Coventry City, Manchester United, Tampa Bay Rowdies and, of course, England.

If you run a book shop and would like to know more about the book please email: accounts@manchesterfootball.org

The ISBN is 978-1-9168852-0-2.

You can listen to Peter in conversation with myself about the book here:

Thanks,

Gary James

History Talk Video: Joshua Parlby and the Launch of MCFC

Here’s my presentation on Joshua Parlby and the launch of Manchester City FC. It lasts about 58 minutes and was recorded on 1 March 2023. There are lots of myths out there, but I focused on the facts and my latest research. 

The presentation is all about the visionary who promoted a new club to represent Manchester, Manchester City and about the steps taken in 1894. This talk was free to download until this morning (9 March). Now it is available to subscribers (see below for details of how to subscribe).

Subscribers can also see the previous history talk on St Mark’s and City’s development in the Gorton area during the 1870s and 1880s below.

Subscribe to get access – Annual

Annual subscribers get access to everything posted since December 2020 (interviews, history talks, articles, PDFs of books etc.) and everything to be posted during your subscription. It costs £20 a year (about 5p a day).

Subscribe

Subscribe to get access – Monthly

Monthly subscribers get access to everything posted since 1 October 2022 and everything to be posted during your subscription. It costs £3 a month (cancel any time).

Subscribe

Last Chance: Free Online Presentation This Wednesday on Joshua Parlby and the Launch of MCFC – Register Now

This Wednesday (1 March at 6pm UK time) my talk on Joshua Parlby and the launch of Manchester City FC in 1894 will take place. It’ll last about 1 hour and is free to attend but places must be reserved in advance. It will follow a similar format to previous talks I’ve done on the origins of MCFC but this one will specifically focus on the launch of City in 1894. I’ll talk about Parlby, his background and the development of MCFC which was established with the aim of creating a club to represent the whole of Manchester.

Sign up to listen to this free event where I will explain how Ardwick died, City was created and the steps Parlby took to get City into the League. I’ll be explaining how significant this was and who the key players were, plus pointing out the role Queen Victoria played in it. There are some myths out there about the club’s birth as MCFC so come and listen to the facts. This hour will include the opportunity to ask questions as I’m keen to hear your thoughts on these formative years for the club.

The event will be live on Zoom on 1/3/23 at 6pm and a link will be sent to all those who have registered for the event beforehand (probably earlier that day). THIS WILL BE EMAILED OUT SEPARATELY AND NOT VIA THE EVENTBRITE WEBSITE.

The plan is to present the facts and history of the birth of the club and its development as Manchester City during the 1890s. Dispelling myths and revealing the latest research and evidence of what actually happened.

There will be an opportunity to ask questions about this critical period for football development in Manchester. Everyone can register now.

Register on Eventbrite

You must register here if you want to get involved. If you’d like an example of what the talk will be like take a look at:

Video of my online talk on history of MCFC Support/Match Day at Maine Road

The talk will last about 1 hour and will be online on zoom, so you should be able to access it anywhere.

You can see posts about other History Talks here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/tag/history-talks/

John Motson

Sorry to hear the news about John Motson, who has died. I’ve several Motty anecdotes that I’ll always cherish. I wrote to him over 30 years ago about Joe Mercer not really expecting a reply but he phoned me up at 10.30pm to share his memories. Wonderful stuff though it did initially worry me that someone was phoning from a number I didn’t recognise at that time. I answered the phone thinking that there could be some sort of family emergency only to hear the voice on the other end say: ‘Is that Gary James? This is John Motson. How are you doing old boy?’

Another time there was also a surreal moment when I drove him to his 1st visit to the COM Stadium (now Etihad of course). I’d asked him to do some voice over work for the new MCFC museum – I was project managing the development as a freelance consultant. Throughout the 20 mins journey he bombarded me with statistical questions before I managed to divert his attention on to a few of his anecdotes. I’d never been questioned so much on long lost players and records. That journey even made it into Motty’s book….

A page from Motty’s Year. John Motson’s book.

Though he didn’t reveal how he’d kept me on my toes throughout the journey and our meeting that day!

The recordings we were due to do that day were delayed considerably as I’d invited City’s Secretary Bernard Halford over for lunch. Bernard and Motty were great friends and they spent several hours talking about various people and clubs. It was a wonderful insight into how their minds worked.

When we did get around to do the recording John had a few questions about the scripts I’d written. There was one bit that he told me off about! I’d written about the 1981 FA Cup final when Tommy Hutchison scored both for City and against City. My words said something like: ‘Then tragedy struck as Hutchison diverted the ball into his own net.’ Motty looked at me and said: ‘Now then Gary. It wasn’t a tragedy.’ I replied something like: ‘It was to City. It cost us the game and everything that followed.’

‘Yes, but Gary that’s not a tragedy. Heysel’s a tragedy. Conceding a goal is a misfortune.’ Motty was of course absolutely right and while football is full of hyperbole ever since that day I’ve always tried to focus on the specific meaning of words like that. An own goal or defeat is a misfortune.

Thanks Motty for your help that day and on the other occasions over the decades we’ve chatted etc.

RIP Motty