My Dad and his brother Seamus lived and worked in London for a few months in 1966. Here, in his own words, is my Dads story of his attendance at four of Englands World Cup games at Wembley that summer: Seamus and I went over to London to stay with my aunt and her husband, Cissie and Jimmy Leavy: that would have been in early April 1966. One Saturday morning in May Seamus and I set out for Wembley Stadium, because we thought there would be an office there where we could buy tickets for one or all of the England Group matches. We travelled by bus from Mill Hill to Kingsbury and then on by a different bus to the Stadium. When we got to Wembley we circled the stadium until we arrived at a large open gateway so we walked through and before we knew it we were standing on the perimeter of the famous pitch. Nobody had challenged us as we entered and there were a number of maintenance men working around the place, so I asked about a ticket office and was told that tickets for the matches could only be bought at ticket agencies: after having a look around the ground we returned to Mill Hill. (Different times: there was no paying for tours around any of the football grounds back then.) I cant remember where we ended up buying our tickets, but I think there was an agency on Mill Hill Broadway. We were able to get tickets for the three England Group matches – against Uruguay, France and Mexico – at the amazing price of SEVEN SHILLINGS and SIX PENCE each (35 pence in todays money). I must do a search, as I think that I still have a couple of ticket stubs. I recall the opening ceremony before the first game: there were schoolchildren marching around the pitch carrying the flags of all the countries involved. No goals in that game, which was not at all exciting. The second match (against France) had an evening kickoff, with England winning by 2 - 0. The final group match was the one that Mum and your aunt Noreen attended with Seamus and me. We were standing behind one of the goals as England beat Mexico and had a good view of Bobby Charlton’s famous goal in that game (also a 2 - 0 win I think). That match also had an evening kickoff and your mother and aunt were more interested in looking around at fans in the crowd wearing big sombreros than watching was going on out on the pitch. As far as I can recall, after the game we walked all the way back to 51 Birkbeck Road from Wembley. At that time Seamus was working at a Sainsbury store in Edgware and did not want to ask for time off on a Saturday afternoon, so I decided that I would try to get a ticket for the quarter-final against Argentina. I was told that the game was a sell-out and no tickets were available to buy at official outlets. Not to be put off I set off on a very hot Saturday lunch-time for Wembley, as I had heard that there were usually ticket touts out and about around the stadium. I got a bus to Kingsbury and there I hopped onto a very crowded bus for Wembley. That bus only travelled a short distance before it ground to a halt. All the passengers on board were told that the bus could go no further and that that we had to get off and walk to the next stop along the route. There had been long lines at all of the stops along the route, so I did not think that I would make it to the stadium before the kickoff. So there I was, stranded among crowds of not-very-happy fans some two miles from the stadium an hour before the start of the match AND without a ticket. Then a bloke in front of me hailed down a taxi: when it stopped I beat a few others to get alongside of the vehicle and asked if I could share a ride – I took it for granted that the stranger was going to the game! I arrived at the bottom of Wembley Way in time to find a tout who was offering tickets (I didn’t even know if those were the genuine article) for £5 each. I think that I was earning £15 per week at Radio Rentals at the time, but I bought a ticket and was at that awful match. What I do recall about that event was the terrific heat and the long delay when the Argentine captain was ordered off the pitch, even though he had not committed a foul! Of course I did not have a camera with me at any of the matches and I think that my main interest in going to see England play was to see the great Jimmy Greaves in action. I should read up on the whole history of that tournament: that might help to bring back more memories. Seamus and I could not get tickets for England’s semi-final against Portugal and I returned to Derry before the Final took place. Apart from the World Cup being staged in England that year, 1966 saw the beginning of colour television transmissions in London and I was keen to be in on that exciting technical event. PS A musical item I can recall hearing a lot in London in 1966 was Frank Sinatra singing Strangers in the Night.
Posted on: Thu, 10 Apr 2014 13:32:44 +0000
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