I've been lost inside the box countless times already, recalling times in our history and this book really does prove that a picture can paint a thousand words.
But how did the book come about, where was the inspiration for these two committed Clarets to put this together? Clarets Mad went to ask them.
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Mark's perspective
I suppose it all began because of the programmes I have in my collection. From the 1914 F.A.Cup final printed by W.H.Smith to the 1921 Charity Shield, it became apparent these were publications very few Burnley supporters had ever seen. My Dad (Lester) suggested that this might be the basis of a good book, an insight into Burnley Football Club in pictorial form. The only problem with this idea being that my own programmes would only go so far to fill the pages.
The solution was to contact other collectors who had substantial collections of their own. As a result we were able to build up a number of different areas in the book and to acquire many unusual items, ranging from those programmes issued in the nineteenth century to games played in Madagascar.
We spent many hours scanning in the items yet the highlight for me was being able to photograph the England Cap of Bert Freeman.
Not only was it interesting to compile the book but also to read about Burnley Football Club's proud and rich history in the programmes and ephemera that went into producing the publication.
The Old Fella's tale
What Mark has not said, is that whilst I live on the outskirts of Burnley, he lives in London and, as you can appreciate, this did complicate matters somewhat. I had to acquire the many items for scanning to coincide with his visits up north to watch the Clarets.
Since most historical information in other books and such sources relates to the 1st team only, I spent many "happy hours" in the local library trying to find the results for the lesser teams; quite often to no avail, since I would eventually find that the newspapers had not bothered to report on these games.
The first publisher we approached turned the book down on the grounds that it would be a catalogue. Even our actual publisher was a little sceptical at first since no one had ever tried to produce a book like this before. However, it all came good in the end and we are very proud of the end result.
Mark and Lester have kindly offered to donate £5 towards Clarets Mad Youth Foundation for every book sold through this site.
There are three ways to buy the book, by post, Paypal or in person.
To pay by Paypal click HERE and follow the link to payment.
To order by post please send you cheque for £18.20, payable to L. A. Davidson to:
3 Furness Avenue
Simonstone
Burnley
Lancs
BB12 7SU
Should you wish to pay by cash, or wish to collect the book in person, contact them to make arrangements. If ordering via post or to make arrangements to collect please EMAIL them and quote CLARETS MAD.