Having already bought the previous books Got, Not Got; The Lost World of Football Nostalgia; What A Shot; Shirt Tales & Short Stories and Got, Not Got The Lost World of Manchester United by authors Derek Hammond and Gary Silke, I definitely wanted to get Fully Programmed The Lost World of Football Programmes by them, as well.
These 2 authors fully deserve to be recognised as the leader writers and historians of British Football Nostalgia for the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. This latest book by them covers football programmes for this period of time and is an excellent read. I have collected the Manchester United programmes for this era including the homes, aways, Cup Finals, Semi Finals, Tournaments, Testimonials and Friendlies too, so it was a subject I already had a big interest in.
This book covers the programmes of the English teams, as well as the leading Scottish teams from this time period. There are literally hundreds of photos of the match programme covers in this book. For me, the 1960s up until the early 1990s is my favourite timespan for football programmes. Looking through the book I recognised most of the programme covers of the teams in the book, through away games that Manchester United had played at those clubs. Match programmes from the last 20 years, in my opinion, have less of the unique character and identity of these older programmes seen in this book.
From a Manchester United supporters’ point of view, I have always thought that our programme, the United Review, should always have the traditional ‘handshake’ cover. I was disappointed it was removed between 1967 and 1981, then again in the early 2000s before being brought back again. Looking through the book, many other clubs have had classic and memorable programme covers, which fans and programme collectors will have their own personal favourites.
I highly recommend this book, as I would do with all their books so far. Firstly, I would definitely recommend it for anyone who collects football programmes and memorabilia, no matter what team you support. Beyond programme collectors I definitely think anyone with any interest in football nostalgia and history will enjoy this book. Well done to authors Derek Hammond and Gary Silke, who have kept up their great work with this latest book.
Fully Programmed – The Lost World of Football Programmes is published by Pitch Publishing Ltd. It is available to buy from all leading booksellers.
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