Sir Bobby Charlton

Jfingers

digitalkettle said:

joeyowen said:

From David Squires (Guardian)

Got something in my eye again ;-/

Indeed. Not being a particular fan of any team I was surprised to find that a cartoon strip about football could make me cry a little.

Made me feel a bit like I did when I first watched When The Wind Blows. RIP Bobby Charlton.

axisus

Nice to see all the tributes at Old Trafford

Devil#20

I first started going on OT when Best, Law and Charlton were playing alongside each other. I was 4 and on my Dad's shoulders at the back of the Scoreboard End before it even had a roof on it.

For me Best was my favourite player of all time and the best by name and best player and probably still is. His picture, my Avatar, still hangs pride of place in my living room along with the picture of the last line up of the Busby babes (didn't include Bobby btw).

However, the big difference is that Best let the team and the Club down in his latter years with the club. He should have been entering his prime years as a player but preferred to turn up pissed for games or not at all.

Bobby never did that and neither did Denis. They were both more professional but Bobby for whatever reason, and over time, I think I most respect. My Dad said the greatest player he ever saw was Duncan Edwards but his favourite player was Bobby Charlton. Bobby Charlton agreed with my Dad. He said Duncan Edwards was the best player he'd ever seen too. 

The other funny thing is my Dad often got asked for autographs in the street because people mistook him for Bobby Charlton. We lived near Paddy Crerand (Best later lodged with him at his house on Erlington Avenue) and  Dennis Violet (King's Rd) and they both commented on his likeness to Bobby. Other neighbours were Nobby Stiles (off Kings Rd) and Albert Quixall (off Kings Rd). All Stretford/Firswood. 

Matt Busby's address was often given as King's Rd but I don't ever remember him living there or off it. He lived in Chorlton about 2 mile away. on Ellesmere Road. Used to see him ofter knocking about in his Jensen Interceptor. 

Decorativeed

I hadn't seen this thread earlier, but I thought I'd repost something I wrote on another forum.

One of the most memorable moments in my career was working on an exhibition about the 1966 World Cup, when Sir Bobby came to the opening. I was able to wander around and chat to the guests and see them interact with the displays, and I stood watching while Sir Bobby and Lady Norma Charlton, Roger Hunt, Jimmy Armfield and others took a seat in the cinema space I'd had made - complete with retro 1960s fold down chairs and posters - to watch footage of the final and the squad's visit to a London cinema the day after the final. (Link here: ) 

Sir Bobby remained standing throughout it, and as the video ended, I watched him remove his glasses and wipe away a tear, clearly as emotional about the events now as he had been 50 years earlier. That's something I'll hopefully never forget.

A few weeks later, I stood at the side of the stage at Wembley Arena exactly 50 years on from the final, and as they replayed the footage of the match, Sir Bobby stood a yard or two away from me waiting to go up onto the stage. He was watching the video intently, and you could see him physically reliving every movement from half a century previously, with perfectly timed mini-kicks and micro-headers.

After the event, I had a few moments with him and Lady Norma, and I asked him about the story of him using his spare time on the morning of the final to return a pair of trousers at a shop in Golders Green, which we had mentioned in the exhibition. He shook his head and said "I was just buying a pair of trousers". Lady Norma wearily interjected and told me that the some of the other players had come up with that story to tease him and they had repeated it for years at after dinner speaking events. Sir Bobby whistfully nodded: "Aye, I was just buying them, son. I'll see you later".

RIP Sir Bobby.

digitalkettle

Decorativeed said:

I hadn't seen this thread earlier, but I thought I'd repost something I wrote on another forum.

One of the most memorable moments in my career was working on an exhibition about the 1966 World Cup, when Sir Bobby came to the opening. I was able to wander around and chat to the guests and see them interact with the displays, and I stood watching while Sir Bobby and Lady Norma Charlton, Roger Hunt, Jimmy Armfield and others took a seat in the cinema space I'd had made - complete with retro 1960s fold down chairs and posters - to watch footage of the final and the squad's visit to a London cinema the day after the final. (Link here: ) 

Sir Bobby remained standing throughout it, and as the video ended, I watched him remove his glasses and wipe away a tear, clearly as emotional about the events now as he had been 50 years earlier. That's something I'll hopefully never forget.

A few weeks later, I stood at the side of the stage at Wembley Arena exactly 50 years on from the final, and as they replayed the footage of the match, Sir Bobby stood a yard or two away from me waiting to go up onto the stage. He was watching the video intently, and you could see him physically reliving every movement from half a century previously, with perfectly timed mini-kicks and micro-headers.

After the event, I had a few moments with him and Lady Norma, and I asked him about the story of him using his spare time on the morning of the final to return a pair of trousers at a shop in Golders Green, which we had mentioned in the exhibition. He shook his head and said "I was just buying a pair of trousers". Lady Norma wearily interjected and told me that the some of the other players had come up with that story to tease him and they had repeated it for years at after dinner speaking events. Sir Bobby whistfully nodded: "Aye, I was just buying them, son. I'll see you later".

RIP Sir Bobby.

Brilliant