Seeing my future crumble before my eyes, I grasped for the rope. Before my eyes, I saw an eight year old kid at the Standard Triumph putting on gloves for the first time. A teenage schoolboy champion effortlessly destroying everything put before him. All that struggle and here, in front of all my enemies, it would come to this this ignominious end.' This is not the story of a celebrity sportsman. It's not the story of a life covered in glory with its attendant cavalcade of famous friends, easy wins and glamorous encounters. Errol Christie may have been one of the most promising British boxers of his generation a Fight Night poster boy, captain of the England boxing team, English and European champion, and a cocky, Ali-esque dancer with a reputation for devastating early knockouts but this is not that story. This is a story about fighting. Coventry in the dying days of the Seventies was a tough place to grow up especially if you were poor and black. At the same time as the young Errol Christie was raising the flag in the ring, his fists were seeing off skinhead tormentors and NF bootboys on the streets. Britain was sickening from a vicious racial divide, and even when the big time turned up Errol soon discovered that a black boxer who refused to play by the rules white rules would never be tolerated. In 1985, after a string of professional knockouts, Errol faced Mark Kaylor in a brutal bout that tore open the country's simmering racial enmities. In the eighth round he went down and stayed down, the roar of the hard right in his ears. But the years that followed would see Errol square up against a far tougher adversary as he found himself out in the cold, struggling to get by, and alone with only his own shattered confidence and no place to hide. Errol Christie is a former professional boxer and amateur champion. He has since become a trainer and is one of the country's leading coaches of white collar boxing', with students including Dermot O'Leary and Gianluca Vialli. He also works in inner city schools, using boxing and his experiences of racism to campaign against knife and gun crime. Tony McMahon is one of Errol's students. An online, TV and print journalist he is also the co-writer of Aurum's Original Rude Boy, the autobiography of Neville Staple.
No Place to Hide: How I Put the Black in the Union Jack
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'His is a chilling read, every bit as engrossing as the underworld created by his old friend [Steve] Bunce.' -- The Observer, 11.04.2010
About the Author
Errol Christie is a former professional boxer and was a record-breaking amateur. In 1980 he was made captain of the England boxing team and in 1983 he became European champion. He has since built a career as a trainer and is one of the country's leading coaches of 'white-collar boxing', with students including Dermot O'Leary and Gianluca Vialli. He also works in inner-city schools, using boxing and his first-hand experiences of racism and street violence to campaign against knife and gun crime.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By John McBride
Format:Hardcover
If you like boxing at all, pick this book up & read it. Being in my mid-forties myself, I remember Errol Christie's fights well. Who can forget what happened with Mark Kaylor. Did everyone know how bad racisim was back then? This guy tried & tried, & I'm pleased to say, is still trying.
As I said in my title about this book, The only bad thing about this book is that it finishes. Well worth a read, its honest, vibrant & very much real.
As I said in my title about this book, The only bad thing about this book is that it finishes. Well worth a read, its honest, vibrant & very much real.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not just one of the best autobiographies I've read, but also one of the best books I've read
26 April 2010
By vlad
Format:Hardcover
This is a fantastic real life story. It offers a vivid portrait of Mr. Christie's life; it is incredibly well written. It is hard to sum this book up in a few sentences because there's so much it covers, but like boxing at it's best, it captures many of the ups and downs of life in general. Mr. Christie describes in detail how he had to deal with daily racism and violence when he was growing up, including close shaves with the law (he had to jump over a balcony in a high rise block of flats to escape the police in one incident!). He also details his peerless achievements as an amateur boxer. It's also a story of what might have been; for example Mr. Christie reflects on how his professional boxing career might have turned out differently had he stayed under the tutelage of Emmanuel Steward at The Kronk. When I finished reading this book I felt nothing but admiration for Mr. Christie. To me, he comes across as a man full of principle, honesty and integrity. It is the most candid autobiography I have ever read; but this review only highlights a tiny fraction of it's content so I'll end by saying it's highly informative, entertaining, and well worth a read!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By MATCHEN
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book is a must read for fans of british boxing. It gives a detailed account of the life and background of Errol Christie one of the best british boxers of his generation. Christie gives a detailed account of his early life in 197o's coventry growing up as an ethnic minority. Christie is a fighting man no doubt inside and outside the ring - early chapters detailing these accounts was interesting if a little slightly one chapter too many on the streetfighting IMO. I was more interested in his boxing career , relationships with managers and other fighters and there was some there but felt there could have been more. Christie hints at the power relationships between fighters and manager but again here i felt there could have been more detail especially in the after math of the Kaylor fight and the poor management, preperation and guidance he received thereafter. The aftermath personally hit Errol but he's fighting back and winning. All the best Errol.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
No Place to Hide
This autobiography was not as interesting as many other books of this genre on the market. Quite frankly, it was a little disappointing - especially as I remember how exciting... Read more
Published 4 months ago by nick anderson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic
I was lucky enough to get to know Errol a few years ago as I got involved in white collar boxing in London. Read more
Published 7 months ago by conthedon
5.0 out of 5 stars
An amazing read about an amazing person
As a big fan of boxing in the 80s I remember Errol Christie as an exciting and talented boxer. It's sad to read how a world professional championship belt eluded Errol but... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Colin Everett
5.0 out of 5 stars
More than just a Boxing book!
One of my earliest recollections of being a boxing fan was the build up to the Errol Christie versus Mark Kaylor contest. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Daniel Cann
5.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended reading!
I really enjoyed this book and I couldn't put it down once I started it. It was very moving and sad at the same time when reading about the violence which was dished out by the... Read more
Published 23 months ago by by someone
4.0 out of 5 stars
NO PLACE TO HIDE
I think this is a great book not that I read many books but I've wanted to get my hands on this book for some time as I meet the subject March 2010, it was to learn more about his... Read more
Published on 22 May 2011 by Mark Rule
4.0 out of 5 stars
A challenging read about the bad old days
I grew up in Cov at this time and followed Errol's career as a fan. He was an angry young man on a mission. Read more
Published on 23 Jan 2011 by R. M. Carr
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best book I have ever read
reading the rewievs on amazon i decided to buy this book. its the best think i ever did, if you are going to buy one book make it this one.
Published on 28 Dec 2010 by james lamb
5.0 out of 5 stars
fists of fury
Errol Christie and his fists of fury take the reader on a rollercoaster ride through 70/80s Britain in this entertaining tale of one mans struggle against racism and his own... Read more
Published on 5 May 2010 by lunchmoney
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