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Bill Gardner (football hooligan)

Gardner in 2021

Bill Gardner (born 29 January 1954)[1] is an English football supporter, former football hooligan and co-author of books on football hooliganism.

Born in Hornchurch, Essex,[1] Gardner came to prominence in the 1970s as a supporter of West Ham United and as a member of the Mile End Boys and not firm, the I.C.F.[2][3][4][5][6] Gardner was arrested by the Metropolitan police in 1987 as part of Operation Fulltime.[3][7][8] The aim of this police operation was to bring football hooligans to justice.[9]

Following a renewed interest by the public in the 21st century in football hooliganism of the 1970s and 1980s, Gardner featured prominently on the cover of fellow I.C.F. member Cass Pennant's 2003 book "Congratulations, You Have Just Met the I. C. F."[10] In 2005 Gardner published his autobiography "Good Afternoon, Gentlemen, the Name's Bill Gardner" detailing his involvement in hooliganism.[11] The book was co-written with Cass Pennant.[11]

Gardner was portrayed by Stuart Moore in the 2007 film Rise of the Footsoldier which details the life of another member of the I.C.F., Carlton Leach.[12][13] The film shows an incident involving Gardner and the I.C.F. fighting supporters of Manchester United, the Red Army, on the terraces at Old Trafford where he starts a fight by throwing a hot Bovril drink over an opposing fan.[14] This mirrors a real life incident where Gardner himself had hot tea thrown over him by Manchester United fans.[15]

In 2020, Gardner published another autobiography "Bill Gardner: The Man, The Myth, The Legend", written with Abe Atchia. The book details the abuses and crime in his life.[16]

References

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  1. ^ a b Gardner, Bill (2006). Good Afternoon, Gentlemen, the Name's Bill Gardner. John Blake Publishing Ltd. p. 1. ISBN 9781844542611.
  2. ^ Jason Allday (22 July 2014). JUNIOR: Villains, Hooligans and Scoundrels A testament to the social icons in our lives and the friends I keep. AuthorHouse. pp. 6–. ISBN 978-1-4969-2687-6.
  3. ^ a b Ward, Colin (2013). Armed For The Match. Headline. ISBN 9780755365630.
  4. ^ Brimson, Dougie (2007). March of the Hooligans. Ebury Press. ISBN 9780753512937.
  5. ^ "InterCity Days". The Independent. 8 March 2002. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  6. ^ Jonas Nyrup; Tom Carstensen (2011). Hooligan: de danske broderskaber ; respekten, æren, rusen. Lindhardt og Ringhof. pp. 142–. ISBN 978-87-11-41781-2.
  7. ^ "1987: Police crack down on soccer hooligans". BBC News. 20 January 1987. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  8. ^ Pennant, Cass (2003). Congratulations, You Have Just Met the I. C. F. John Blake Publishing. p. 61. ISBN 9781904034858.
  9. ^ Nauright, John (2012). Sports Around The World. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781598843019.
  10. ^ Pennant, Cass (2003). Congratulations, You Have Just Met the I. C. F. John Blake Publishing Ltd. ISBN 9781904034858.
  11. ^ a b "Prize night".[dead link‍][ISBN missing]
  12. ^ "Stuart Moore — Equity". www.equity.org.uk. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  13. ^ "Bill Gardner at IMDB". www.imdb.com. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  14. ^ "Rise of the Footsoldier — Bill Gardner". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  15. ^ Pennant, Cass (2003). Congratulations, You Have Just Met the I. C. F. John Blake Publishing. p. 53. ISBN 9781904034858.
  16. ^ Elgueta, Adriana (4 March 2021). "World Book Day: Notorious football fan 'Mr West Ham' sets record straight". Romford Recorder. Retrieved 26 March 2021.