Football is weird. Damn weird. Why do we love it so intensely? Why are millions of us utterly obsessed by it? Is it a kind of drug or some sort of hypnosis? It can t just be the 22 preening millionaires running around on a rectangle of grass that keeps us all hooked. Have you watched football? A lot of it is so boring it can make your eyes melt. In We Ate All the Pies, John Nicholson, gonzo sports writer and star columnist for www.football365. com asks a question which few, if anyone has asked before; just why is football so damn popular? Football is Britain s big love. It has consumed the nation totally. Drawing on his life as a devoted football obsessive and lifelong Middlesbrough fan, John delves into the culture that surrounds the game to discover how and why it has got under the skin of the British public like no other sport. He explores the history of the football shirt in style and design; how and why sponsorship became the norm; the culture of food inside the ground, around the stadium and in the pubs and clubs and how the modern trend of fine dining changed the match day experience (explaining why prawn sandwiches are the perfect expression of the class-politics of football in Britain). From the crucial role booze and food takes, to the importance of shirts and merchandise, John also considers how football helps define who we are, who we think we are, how we behave, how it affects our relationships in life and how the game is used by people to vent their everyday frustrations and emotions. Along the way, he also recounts the history of football on TV and how it changed perceptions of teams and countries (in particular, the 1970 World Cup TV revolution) and just what part the game takes in the intricate complexities of national identity, not least of being a Teessider, Northern and English, in that order! This is a unique, funny, warm and thought provoking excursion into our football lives, told in John s trademark off-beat, powerful and irreverent style.
We Ate All the Pies: How Football Swallowed Britain Whole
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Two words guaranteed to make any piece of writing worth reading: John and Nicholson.....even when you don't agree with him you sort of wish you did. In fact, you wonder if you even agree with yourself any more --Sid Lowe, The Guardian
Johnny has ideas about football you didn't know you had until you find yourself nodding along to every word. Except the words that drive you mental, of course. But the beauty of Johnny is that you love those words too.' --Sarah Winterburn, Editor. Football365
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
The cumulative effect is akin to a long, rambling and unexpectedly interesting conversation with the bloke on the next stool in a pub you've stumbled into by accident, and is none the worse for that. --Simon Redfern, Independent on Sunday
--Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
A thematic survey of football in his lifetime... with much that is perceptive or simply funny --Huw Richards, The Guardian
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
A thematic survey of football in his lifetime... with much that is perceptive or simply funny --Huw Richards, The Guardian
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
Johnny has ideas about football you didn't know you had until you find yourself nodding along to every word. Except the words that drive you mental, of course. But the beauty of Johnny is that you love those words too.' --Sarah Winterburn, Editor. Football365
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
The cumulative effect is akin to a long, rambling and unexpectedly interesting conversation with the bloke on the next stool in a pub you've stumbled into by accident, and is none the worse for that. --Simon Redfern, Independent on Sunday
--Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
A thematic survey of football in his lifetime... with much that is perceptive or simply funny --Huw Richards, The Guardian
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
A thematic survey of football in his lifetime... with much that is perceptive or simply funny --Huw Richards, The Guardian
John is often compared to Hunter S Thompson, to Vivian Stanshall and to Bill Bailey, but comparisons are erroneous if they suggest that he is anything other than a 100 percent original --Steve Anglesey, Editor. Mirror.co.uk
About the Author
John Nicholson is the star columnist of www.football365.com, the UK s most popular football website
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By George
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'm a big fan of John's Football365 columns and so was looking forward to reading this because I've never read a writer like him. I was not disappointed because We Ate All The Pies is hilarious. John's views on football make for wonderful reading. He has a way of telling stories about himself, his life, football teams, whatever, which make you feel like you're sitting in a pub being told them by the funniest, maddest guy you've ever met, who also happens to be very clever and brilliant with words. This book is just so much fun and I loved it. I'd even describe it as unputdownable - when I finished one chapter and saw what the subject of the next one was, I couldn't wait to read it and find out what John had to say about that. And I've just seen it's been nominated for the William Hill Sports Book of The Year award - very well deserved for a book that will make you smile and laugh and then want to go back to the start and read it again.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By Yorkie Dave
Format:Paperback
I've read John Nicholson on Football365 for years now. THere isn't really anyone else writing about football in the way he does but if you like Harry Pearson or the Baker and Kelly shows this has that sort of daft but passionate feel. He looks at different stuff around the culture of football such as pies, shirts, violence, booze and asks what they reveal about why we love the game and what football's place is in society. It's never dry and always funny. A real one-off, I raced through this book and would recommend it to anyone who loves football beyond the usual Premier League plastic fan stuff.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By roonballs85
Format:Paperback
I was previously familiar with Johnny Nic's work through his columns on f365, and I've always been a huge fan. His articles were are always well written and very, very funny, although his sometimes radical schools of thought can be pretty divisive - but that's the whole point surely!?
'We Ate All the Pies' follows firmly in this way, with the author drawing on his personal experiences to great effect - I constantly found myself nodding along in agreement, usually laughing at the same time.
The book is nicely structured into the elements which Nicholson feels football has influenced our lives, and uses his love of rock music as a comparable to very good effect.
I could fully understand why John Nicholson might not be everyone's cup of tea due to his somewhat zany analogies and cross-referencing, as it could be perceived as him drifting from the point somewhat. However, I feel that this element of his writing only serves to add to what is already a thoroughly enjoyable and easy to relate to book.
This is without a doubt the most enjoyable football-based book I've ever read, and I would consider it an essential purchase for any football fan - you'll feel nostalgic, you'll laugh out loud, and you may even learn a thing or two along the way!
'We Ate All the Pies' follows firmly in this way, with the author drawing on his personal experiences to great effect - I constantly found myself nodding along in agreement, usually laughing at the same time.
The book is nicely structured into the elements which Nicholson feels football has influenced our lives, and uses his love of rock music as a comparable to very good effect.
I could fully understand why John Nicholson might not be everyone's cup of tea due to his somewhat zany analogies and cross-referencing, as it could be perceived as him drifting from the point somewhat. However, I feel that this element of his writing only serves to add to what is already a thoroughly enjoyable and easy to relate to book.
This is without a doubt the most enjoyable football-based book I've ever read, and I would consider it an essential purchase for any football fan - you'll feel nostalgic, you'll laugh out loud, and you may even learn a thing or two along the way!
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2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing pies
I love football, I love the hilarious rants you can see on programmes like 606 over on Radio 5 Live and so thought We Ate All The Pies: How Football Swallowed Britain Whole by John... Read more
Published 5 months ago by C. Kidd
3.0 out of 5 stars
Potentially good but...
This book is... ok. There are some interesting opinions, it's just a shame about the number of irrelevant digressions (do I care that you love living in California, drinking wine? Read more
Published on 7 Mar 2011 by ryanclark82
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