Writing Worth Reading
Writing Worth Reading
He’s 50 now and really looks very well, considering that racism, drugs and cancer almost destroyed him.
Black and Blue: How Racism, Drugs and Cancer Almost Destroyed Me.
I met Paul Canoville at the FA Cup semi-final and, you know, heads up to him. He was the first black player at Chelsea [debuted in 1982]. He has ten kids by ten different women, which is also impressive. He’s 50 now and really looks very well, considering that racism, drugs and cancer almost destroyed him. I remember when a black player would get a lot of stick from the terraces, even from their own supporters. Now the players being black is just something we expect. He wasn’t a brilliant player but it’s an amazing story.
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Writer, comedian and football fan David Baddiel says football writing changed in the 1990s, as men became more openly emotional about the game and about life in general – a sea change epitomised by Paul Gascoigne’s tears at Italia 90 and captured in two iconic British books – Nick Hornby’s Fever Pitch and Pete Davies’s All Played Out. Baddiel and Skinner are doing a series of 2010 World Cup podcasts for Absolute Radio.
