Is this good Rich ? I think so. I would’ve rather played Everton and Brentford but…..
Gives Thomas time to recover to play Spurs.
Also allows a full first team to play PSV. I hate to tempt fate but we should be too strong. 6 point start in the group would be great.

Bit sloshed so forgive me. Very agreeable bottle of Williamette Pinot Noir in the rear view mirror.

Curious as to the age range of the forumites… I think I’m in the senior age group with such other luminaries as OMOH, DHD, Parkerknoll Gooner, TG and Long Time. Mee sadly passed. Please excuse me if I have mis categorized you
I was born December 1953 in London. Makes me 68. ( Supported the Arse forever. First game I really remember is beating Spurs at Highbury after Terry
Venables got married in the morning with GG as his best man)

Don’t think that makes me the oldest….certainly not the youngest. I’m not prying individually just intrigued by the demographics of this terrific group of world wide supporters of a great club.
I think that currently it is 100 per cent male ….

Curiosity killed the cat so please ignore this if it causes offence. Apologies in advance ….I’m an open book…I think I’m the only poster who uses his real full name. My London addresses before I moved to Philly were
20 Trinder Road N.19
1 The Woodlands Crouch Hill N.8
44 Gallants Farm Road East Barnet Herts EN48ES
12 Orpington Road London N.21
8 Old Park Ridings Grange Park,N.21

Any of you know North London my family are from the Bunk.
Campbell Bunk ….it’s gone now ….was a tough street ….near Playford Road in Finsbury Park. My Dad and his siblings were raised there

I think I’ll stop here as I am now well into the Nocino and this probably all reads like a lot of bollocks. Sorry. Night all.

Hi Andy. There definitely is at least one female on the forum. But as she’s never revealed her gender, I’m never going to.

Of the red grape varieties, I prefer the fuller, more robust ones. So pinot noir doesn’t really do it for me. But we all have our own taste and if you like it, that’s what counts.

I won’t give the addresses where I’ve lived but started off in Muswell Hill, then Barnet (Totteridge), then Edmonton for a few years when I married my first wife, then New Barnet when we split up. I then started work in Chichester where I met who was to be my second and current wife and we lived in a village close by until we moved to South Hertfordshire. Worked in various places including (but not only) Worthing, South London, the Stoke area, Manchester and Plymouth without ever moving there.

Chose to go to university at the LSE to make it easier to get to Arsenal matches when a student. Firmly consider myself a North Londoner (both an Arsenal fan in football and a somewhat less enthusiastic Middlesex fan in cricket) and know everywhere north of the Thames pretty well. But have also regularly socialised countless times all over Greater London. Particularly Central London but also South, West and East London. Basically there’s nowhere in London I don’t know pretty damn well.

Isn’t it obvious that Long Time Gooner is a female?

I know Fish Bar was…cannot guess a current female…not that it matters….I enjoy reading all posts…..

Anyhow I’d like my post back if I could…..I think I crossed the line.Too nosy. This, rightly, should be a forum for people ….Arsenal supporters ….to express their views in private. Male female young old all welcome.

Not going near that one

Bernard ….since living over here (Philly) my wine drinking has changed a bit. I love the great French burgundies ….Puligny,Montrachet and St Auban…but they’re getting so expensive now. Even a decent Chablis is ridiculously over priced. I’ve started drinking a few more modest wines…Gavi de Gavi, Albariño etc..

With reds the greater selection here is indigenous…..but some of the Californian Cabernet Sauvignon bottles are 14.5% and more which is too strong for me….the Oregon Pinot Noirs are 12.5 and easy drinking.
I’m far from a connoisseur though….my taste buds ain’t what they were!

I've heard Babu doxed me so I'm an open book too.

More than one Arsenal fan have told me that the Royal family were gooners since the 30s at least as we were the first London club to be the best continually.

It's also been amazing to me how one city can support so many clubs comfortably. We maxed at out 3 in one sport (baseball in NY up to the 50s). But I guess if you take all sports into consideration as well as university teams we kinda, sorta do.

65 yo and lived most of my life around 9500 miles from London.

It wasn't as it was made clear earlier on that it was up to each sporting body to decide whether or not they went ahead. They could have played on. The thing is an already crowded season has just got worse.[/quote]
The core elements were planned, as they should be. The rest is everyone else trying not to appear insensitive.

Born in 1967 in Bulawayo. My grandfather's store and petrol station was in Matopos near World's view. The store is still there but it is guesthouse.
Then Ndola (my dad managed the sugar refinery there for six years)
Then Bulawayo again (dad promoted)
Then Salisbury/Harare (ditto)
Then Pietermaritzburg for varsity
Then Grahamstown since 1992. address Firdene Farm, stones hill since 1998.

Grandparents were
Rankins from Bute
Junors from Black Isle
Fryers from east end of London
Campbell-Wilsons from Thetford

Great grandfather Fryer migrated to South Africa in the 1890s then ended up in Bulawayo. He was a master-upholsterer Grandfather following him in about 1910. He was a station-master and general trader.

Other grandparents came to Southern Africa after WWI.

My mum passed away in January and I've been chatting on whatsapp with my dad, who is 90, almost every night since.

His knowledge and memory of the family and the places he has lived (and I grew up), are vast and crystal clear.

I tend to just look at google maps and wikipedia while he talks, and remember places like Ndola, Inyanga, Chimanimani, Kariba, Chiredzi, Matopos, Highlands in Harare. Stamping grounds when I was young!

As you can imagine, he was very saddened and unsettled by Queen Elizabeth death.

Born at the very arse-end of 1971, conceived on the night Storey equalised against Stoke in the Cup Semi final with virtually the last kick of the game. A very energised Dad came home from the game vigorously happy that evening apparently. I wouldn't be here if Storey had missed the peno.

Dad is North London, Mum is South London, my 2 older brothers were both born in London. Family moved to Pompey just before I was born. I've lived in Southsea (the nice bit of Pompey) all my life, and spent teenage years schlepping up to Highbury regularly about 10 times a season coz it was affordable in those days to do such things, apart from a couple of seasons of really excellent Pompey football under Jim Smith where I gave The Arse a miss. As things got more expensive and wife/son-and-heir arrived on the scene during the mid 90s my attendance at Highbury tailed off, and I haven't been to a live game since we moved to The Grove. My last live game was the 5-1 win over Wolves in the piss-pot cup when Fabregas became our youngest goal-scorer.

Turned 50 in December, and 10 years ago me and the wifey-doo-dah bought ourselves a property down in the North Devon countryside which we rent out for holidays and spend as much time in as we can through late-autumn, winter and early spring. Right now we are looking seriously at finally selling up and moving down there full time. All made possible by the advent of home-working thanks to covid.

Hi Andy,

As a kid, I used to yearn to have been born within the sound of the Highbury matchday tannoy. I was born in north east Wales (late December back in ’63, oh what a night), and have lived my life within a relatively narrow geographical area stretching from Caernarfon in the west, Worcester in the south, Manchester in the east, and Lancaster in the north. And many points in between. Currently in north Liverpool, where the love of my life is.

My Dad supported The Arsenal. Why and how I never actually got around to asking him; one of my first thoughts when he passed away last November (on the 11th – very apt as a WW2 RAF veteran) was why didn’t I ask him? So my love and support of The Arsenal was just something that happened without question; even as the only Gooner in the village, then the town/city (or so it seemed).

I once got stranded in London at the age of 15, so 1978ish. I was in the Army cadets at school in Shrewsbury, and our officer commanding organised a trip down to Silvermans (military outfitters) in the East End, so we could get some gear for the unit. We caught the train down. I saw it as an opportunity to go for a wander up to Highbury for a look around and to savour the atmosphere, so I went awol. The little adventure took so long that I never got to Silvermans; I went straight back to Euston where the teacher wasn’t very happy and told me I got a months detention. It was worth it though.

That little trip laid the navigational groundwork for when I started a little part time job a few months later; this, complemented by subs from my Dad, got me enough money to get to Highbury for a few games a season. Happy days.

This forum is just great; makes me feel connected to The Arsenal family, even though I don’t attend many games these days. (I'm still so jealous of those who live nearish and go to the games).

Best wishes

John

Liverpool, luxury!



Think of us poor sod sods living in the far flung colonies.

Yes I think this is probably good for us.
The difficulty for all teams is where to fit these fixtures in. The only options in the calendar are the midweek slots kept free for the FA Cup 3rd and 4th round replays - so scrap the replays. Also they could make the League cup semi finals 1 leg and use that midweek. This is more of a problem for the teams in European competition because the other teams can play midweek when European games are on even though UEFA don’t like it.
The congestion will suit teams with big squads. None of the games can be rearranged until after the World Cup and the opening of the Jan transfer window though so a chance to strengthen and lose players before then. Much could change

I’m past 40 now but still behave like a teenager I’m afraid Andy. Always got the impression I’m one of the younger forumites

My family are from south London and are Arsenal fans. I’m essentially an Arsenal fan because my Nan wouldn’t let my dad go to millwall because it was murders every week. Pretty much an addicted Arsenal fan, my dad used to take me on the north bank when I was just six and leave me at the front with the other kids and go to back with his mates. Seems crazy now and I certainly wouldn’t have done it with mine but I loved it and have never looked back.

I live just outside London and commute to games.

Is it AG?

Hi Andy

Born 1981, grew up in Devon and Somerset
Went to university in Portsmouth (know the city like the back of my hand Pompey Gooner)
Left there in 2006 and moved to London for work, qualified as an Architect and lived in Muswell Hill and latterly Clapham. Amazing how many Arsenal games I was able to get to by simply being close by and available at short notice as all sorts of people offer you a ride key if they know you’re a big fan.
Met my wife in London, she’s from Leeds and so in 2018 we moved to Leeds and now have two young kids…..and I work over in Manchester.

Incidentally the only reason I support Arsenal is because my dad supports them and the only reason he supports them is because his elder brother went to the university of Leeds and so started supporting Leeds and my dad decided he’d support Leeds rivals at the time which in the early 70’s was Arsenal. So I support Arsenal because of where my Uncle chose to go to university and my dad’s competitive younger brother personality

Grew up in Harrow so got to see Arsenal regularly via the Piccadilly Line.

In the fifties and sixties our annual holiday was at my mum’s parents in Instow. The place seemed quite magical. Beach, ice cream, clotted cream, sandcastles, humorous postcards etc.

Last year we did a tour of the West Country taking in Bath, Wells and the wonderful coastal drive across Porlock and Countisbury. I was astounded to see how drab and run down Ilfracombe and Barnstaple and Bideford had become in the 10 years or so since last being there. Very sad indeed.

By contrast we are here on holiday right now, this being the private area in front of our waterside villa. Just bliss.

Looks wonderful. Crete?

Well spotted. Aghios Nikolaos. Our of our several regular haunts. My missus is just ace at finding great accommodation and locations.

Other sports seem to have taken a more reasonable approach. Loads of sport taking place. They are demonstrating that you can pay tribute without shutting the whole thing down.

And I reckon that our Brentford game will fall by the wayside due to policing (lack of) on the day before the funeral.

My dad’s dad was a tube train driver and lived in Earls Court (a curiously old fashioned flat - definitely not a luxury apartment). He was a regular at Highbury over many years and used to tell me about the Bank of England club days. Strangely, and possibly due to being busy in a war, my father never really took to football. It was another relative who got me into Arsenal at about 9 years old. He enrolled me in the supporters club and I got a whole package of bits including the standard plain red/white scarf.

All very mysterious back then with minimal media coverage.

Thank you to all….fascinating reading.I really appreciate you sharing your stories.
As an expatriate I really enjoy this forum….it is a great source of information, humour and occasionally the sublime!
It is the nearest I get to meeting my mates down the pub.
33 years in Philly now….hoping to finish what I started by the end of next year and move back to blighty in 2024. Probably in Sussex…it ticks all my boxes….easy commute to London and both major airports…..my sister lives in Brighton, my eldest boy and his family live in Rustington….my youngest will never leave North London
Anyhow cheers all….

Nice try! Not fooling me though

You’ll end up close to me then (there’s a warning for you). I’m in Storrington.

Aw shucks.

Love it there. St Nicolas Bay Hotel?

No it’s this one.

https://www.minosbeach.com/

I’ve just looked up the one that you mentioned. It looks good too. And it’s just across the water from where I am sitting right now. I’ve seen several Arsenal games over the years at the Galley Bar, including the recent Man U one.

Yes indeed an old bluffer now, though think I was still clinging to my 30s when I first stumbled across this forum, time really does fly. I’m from the 1958 vintage and inherited my love of the Club from my Father and Grandfather. Grandfather was born a farmer’s boy in Worcestershire and ended up a “Bobby” in Walthamstow through the war. Dad was born and raised around York Rd before escaping to one of the New Town’s where I was born.

Came up with my username, Parkerknoll, as a pun on armchair supporter which I’ve been for the past 20 plus years. I now live in leafy Buckinghamshire just a few miles from the Parkerknoll workshop, who knew.

Easy to work out, there is no way in this day and age that a male would have been able to get away with your previous avatar!

To an expected round chorus of “I don’t believe you”…

… when I originally chose it all those years ago I didn’t realise that the ‘kit’ was merely paint. Dopey old b***** I am.

I’ve met LTG. He is definitely male.

I rather liked it.

To be fair, that is quite hard to believe!