Sporting Memorys

Is the missus on your case about those old football programmes you've got stored up ?
As much as it pains you to do so, selling them might be the answer to your cash flow problems in these hard times.

Birmingham based company Sporting Memorys specialise in Sports Memorabilia and offer a free valuation service on football match programmes.

You can contact them for a valuation at :

11 Rectory Gardens
Castle Bromwich
Birmingham
B36 9DG

Office: 0121 684 8282

Mobile: 07973 311 123

Email: robert@sportingmemorys.com

2 Man Tent

I was looking for a free standing 2 Man Tent and came across tentastic.co.uk. They had exactly what I was looking for.

Also a few handy tent repair kits and accessories for when me and the lads go away on our next adventure.

QPR match programmes

It's no surprise that currently QPR match programmes are in demand with the success of the team going so well.

Where is the best place to buy them is the question.

Having looked around the best place I could find was Ebay unless your after something a little more refined but a job lot of 20 was going for 99p when I checked.

Here is a package that literally just ended:-

IF YOU WANT SECOND HAND PROGRAMMES WITH WRITING ON, TORN EDGES, RIPS & GRAVY STAINS DO NOT BID.
THESE ARE MINT CONDITION - STORED SINCE THE DAY THEY WERE PRINTED.

QPR v BLACKBURN ROVERS 3/10/81
QPR v WOLVES 2/1/84
QPR v ORIENT 6/4/82
QPR v SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY 18/9/82
QPR v CHARLTON ATHLETIC 22/3/83
QPR v ASTON VILLA 3/9/83 GUINNESS LAUNCH
QPR v WATFORD 6/9/83
QPR v NOTTS COUNTY 3/12/83
QPR v SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY 10/11/84
QPR v WBA 25/8/84

Not a bad deal for £1.99!

The match that never was

At first sight it would seem odd that a programme for a match that never took place should be so valuable, but one of the most expensive match programmes that comes onto the market from time to time is for the Manchester United v Wolves game that was scheduled for February 8, 1958.

The match never took place because, tragically, seven members of the Manchester United team were killed two days earlier as the aeroplane bringing them back from Munich crashed on take off. The crash was survived by Matt Busby, Bobby Charlton and goalkeeper Harry Gregg. Not surprisingly this was a major news story at the time both amongst football fans and those with no interest in the game.

The match programmes had already been printed but because of the disaster they were pulped. A few copies survived however and these are now conservatively valued at around £5,000 each.

Why match programmes matter

As a boy grows into a man, the man turns into a family man and the family man turns into an old man he looks back on his life and, if he is wise, he forgets all the stupid things he did and all the things he never achieved. Instead he remembers the good times, the friends and the great moments that made him leap with joy.

For anyone who is a football fan those great moments will undoubtedly include pivotal events, matches, players and managers. The programme is proof of that great day: proof that can be treasured, proof that can be shared with friends. It is a tangible document that defines our lives.

Early programmes were simple affairs usually printed in one colour only on a plain or coloured background. Gradually they have become more sophisticated, with the use of colour, the introduction of black and white photos and then colour photos. But their true value is in the events they mark - and if they have one or more autographs then they become even more important.

Imagine being there to see the first match of Stanley Matthews, George Best, Jack and Bobby, Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoine, Wayne Rooney, David Beckham and so on. Or being on the touchline on that July 30 in 1966 - a day that is still revered over 40 years later.

Welcome to Football Match Programmes

Welcome to Football Match Programmes.