On 9th March 1946, over 85,000 people piled into Burnden Park.
Eager football fans had gathered at Bolton Wanderers’ former home ground for the club’s highly-anticipated second-leg clash against Stoke City in the Sixth Round of the FA Cup, but not long after kick-off, the crowd began spilling onto the pitch and the game was temporarily stopped as the pitch was cleared.
However, at this time, two barriers collapsed and the crowd fell forward, crushing those underneath.
The crush resulted in injuries to hundreds of Bolton fans and the devastating deaths of 33 people, making it the deadliest stadium-related disaster in British history, until the Ibrox Park disaster in 1971.
The disaster happened at the ‘Railway End’ of the ground – which closed in 1997 – where, in common with many other post-war grounds, facilities were rudimentary and the bank was crude, with just dirt and odd flagstones for steps, and although there was room towards the Burnden side of the ground, part of the stand had been requisitioned by the Ministry of Supply and had not yet been returned to normal use following the war.
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Additionally, the turnstiles at the east end of the Railway Embankment – which adjoined the Burnden Stand – had also been closed since 1940.
As was common practice back then, fans paid at the turnstiles to enter, rather than buy tickets beforehand, but as a result of this, the end became packed and over capacity and it was decided to close the turnstiles at 2:40pm.
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This did not stop more people entering the ground though.
Bolton News / Bolton Council
Desperate to catch a glimpse of the game, people began climbing in from the railway, climbing over the closed turnstiles and, when a locked gate was opened, entering through it. This lead to pressure from the ‘Railway End’ and meant that many fans were “inexorably pushed” along the side of the pitch, around the far end and eventually right out of the ground, before inevitably spilling onto the pitch itself.
Once the pitch was cleared, the game was restarted, but quickly halted again when a police officer came onto the pitch to speak to the referee to inform him there had been a fatality.
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Despite this, the game was still allowed to continue under what were described as “sickening” circumstances.
It ended in a goalless draw.
But the score meant nothing in light of the tragic event, which is still known to the people of Bolton and Stoke, the wider Greater Manchester community and football fans across the globe as one of the “greatest tragedies in football history”.
The disaster directly lead to a subsequent official report published by lawyer and MP, Moelwyn Hughes, which recommended more rigorous control of crowd sizes, and a conference on the licensing and regulation of sports grounds where it was recommended that, as a voluntary code, local authorities should inspect grounds with a capacity of 10,000 spectators. It was also agreed safety limits should be in place for grounds of more than 25,000 capacity, turnstiles should mechanically record spectator numbers, and grounds should have internal telephone systems.
The aftermath of the event may have meant that positive, necessary and life-saving change was brought about for the future, but tragedy still remains and the victims of that dreadful day in 1946 will nevertheless, always be remembered.
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Today, 75 years on, Bolton Wanderers will mark this “poignant day” in history.
? Today is a poignant day in the history of Bolton Wanderers Football Club.
75 years ago, 33 supporters attended a match at Burnden Park and never returned home. We shall remember them. pic.twitter.com/VzF3NrfEWD
When the team faces Cambridge United in a League Two clash at their home ground – the University of Bolton Stadium – this evening, a minute’s silence will be observed and the players will wear black armbands.
The club is also releasing a series of videos about the disaster on their social media channels during the day, a book of remembrance will be displayed outside the ground and a special matchday programme has been produced to mark the anniversary.
Outside the ground, the flags will fly at half mast and wreaths will be laid before the game kicks off.
The current Bolton squad are well-aware of the disaster’s significance on its 75th anniversary, with Wanderers manager, Ian Evatt, aiming to mark the occasion with a win, saying: “It’s absolutely heartbreaking to think that people went to watch a football match and didn’t go home again.
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“That is really, really heartbreaking and sad.”
Bolton Wanderers
He continued: “For the 75th anniversary, we want to go out there and perform to the level to give them the respect and the memory that they deserve and that’s as far as it goes.
“We understand the importance of it, we understand the importance of the occasion, and we want to go out there and win. The players are all aware of it, of course… [and] want to go out there and perform to the best levels they can for a number of reasons, and that is the main reason.
“We can’t forget and we never will forget.
“Those 33 names will live long in the memory of this football club as part of our existence and rightly so”.
The full list of Greater Manchester Olympians representing Team GB at Paris 2024
Danny Jones
The Paris Olympics are nearly here and this year Greater Manchester happens to have eight athletes competing at the 2024 Summer Games.
It just so happens that eight is also the exact same number of local Olympians who brought home medals from Tokyo 2020, and we’re hoping these lot will help Team GB bring back a record number, with the previous competition seeing them match their all-time record (65) set at London 2012.
Honestly, there are few times in the year that we love as much as when the summer of sport fully kicks in and with the heartbreak of the Euros finally starting to drift, we can fully throw ourselves into the Olympics and get behind our Mancs flying the flag for 0161.
But who exactly is representing Greater Manchester at Paris 2024 and what events are they competing in? Look no further.
Greater Manchester’s 2024 Team GB athletes and their sports
Without further ado, let’s meet our local Olympic heroes:
Keely Hodgkinson – Wigan – Athletics
Starting out over in the home of the Latics, pie barms and The Verve, we have Wigan‘s very own Keely Hodgkinson: a two-time European champion who also recently broke the all-time British record in the 800m at the Diamond League in London on 20 July.
Born in Atherton, the 22-year-old middle-distance runner’s career is already off to a flyer and having already picked up the silver in her event at the last Olympics at just 19, we have every faith she’ll be bringing home the gold this time.
Aimee Pratt – Stockport – Athletics
Over to Stockport (don’t start with that Cheshire nonsense today, just be proud she’s from around here) and our 3000m steeplechase specialist, who already broke the national record twice in 2022 and produced the UK’s best-ever finish (7th) in the women’s event at the World Athletics Championships.
A long-standing member of Sale Harriers running club and a University of Manchester graduate, Aimee Pratt, 26, has got so much local backing behind her and has quickly gone from rising star to very much looking like she’s going to live up to the expectations of becoming ‘world-class’ as coaches predicted.
The third and final Manc representing us in athletics events is Bury-born and bred Hannah Kelly, 23, who is also a member of nearby Bolton United Harriers.
She was part of the crack team at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow that helped Great Britain reach a women’s 4x400m national record, picking up the bronze medal and will no doubt be looking to go on further in her Olympic debut.
Now into the world of combat sport and the incredible story of Trafford boxer Pat Brown’s journey to Paris 2024 who beat Poland’s Mateusz Bereznicki in a qualifier back in March and now finds himself heading to his first-ever appearance at the Olympics.
Coming through the ranks at his local clubs Moss Side Fire Station and Sale West ABC, the 24-year-old has gone through his fair share of challenges of late, losing his best friend and cousin shortly after sealing his place at the Games but now has more spirit and motivation behind him than ever.
Moving over to the world of cycling and there’s just one local name taking part in two-wheeled events this year: 28-year-old sensation, Charlotte Worthington, from just down the road in Chorlton.
One of the select few Team GB athletes who managed to pick up an Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020, the BMX star is not only ready to defend her title – becoming the first women’s champion freestyle park champion in history – but is looking to come back stronger than ever after some time out.
Insane stuff.
Anthony Harding – Ashton-under-Lyne – Diving
On to those wading through Paris waters in the name of Manchester, the first of two aquatic athletes competing at this year’s tournament is Antony Harding from Ashton-under-Lyne in Tameside.
Joining forces will Britain’s first-ever Olympic diving champion, Jack Laugher (who won the gold at Rio 2016), the duo have already brought home Commonwealth and European gold in the 3m synchro, as well as a pair of World Championship silver medals in the last two years. Is 2024 set for more gold?
And completing the water-bound Team GB athletes hailing from 0161 is multiple-gold medal-winner James Guy who, to use a phrase the kids are using, really is ‘that guy‘.
Another Bury native, the 27-year-old swimmer already has a big collection of gold medals in both the 200m and 4x200m freestyle at the Worlds, as well as silvers across multiple events over the past few years. With five Olympic medals in total to date, we’re desperate for him to add a gold to that list.
Georgia Taylor-Brown – Droyslden – Triathlon
Last but certainly not least is Droyslden’s Georgia Taylor-Brown, who was born to be an Olympian after her mum and Dad swam and ran, respectively, but continues to chase her own story of greatness, having picked up silver on her Olympics debut at Tokyo 2020 – even whilst nursing an injury.
With two golds at the 2019 World Triathlon Mixed Relay Series and AJ Bell World Triathlon in Leeds as well, we already know the colour looks good on her. You can listen to her full interview about going for gold yet again on BBC Sounds HERE but, for now, we’ll admit that her talking about coping with missing her dog come race time has made us love her even more:
Passport ✅ Hotel ✅ Alfie the cavapoo 🥰@TeamGB triathlete Georgia Taylor-Brown from Droylsden on what she can't live without at the Olympics.
Fingers crossed out Greater Manchester Olympians will absolutely smash it at Paris 2024 and regardless of how many medals they come home with, we already know they’ll give it their all.
No matter what, they’ll be welcomed back with a lovely homecoming party over at the AO Arena and we already have a great place to watch the events too.
Best of luck to our Mancs and all of Team GB – now go and do us proud!
City Football Group strike landmark deal with Sony for series of TV shows
Danny Jones
Manchester City’s owners have struck yet another big commercial deal ahead of the 2024/25 season, announcing a new collaboration with Sony to produce a number of original TV series.
Confirmed on Wednesday, 23 July, the deal between the City Football Group (CFG) and Sony Pictures Television will see the entertainment corporation create various TV productions for Man City and the other clubs owned by the limited company as part of a new global partnership.
While it marks the third multimedia crossover of its kind they’ve had with an entertainment-led brand, having first worked with Amazon on their All Or Nothing series and then Netflix for the Treble Winners documentary, this deal will see Sony become an official partner of Man City.
City Football Group (CFG) and Sony Pictures Television have inked a new deal encompassing original scripted, nonfiction, and kids’ television projects. The collaboration will see CFG’s media creative production unit and expertise in sport pair with SPT’s production capabilities… pic.twitter.com/LmagHBMG2b
Although exactly how lucrative the deal itself is yet to be disclosed, as per an official statement from the club, the partnership will see Sony “co-develop and produce new original scripted, nonfiction, and kids’ television projects for worldwide audiences.”
The announcement goes on to state that “as well as scripted and unscripted series, projects can also include one-off documentaries, animated projects, or children’s programming.”
Given that CFG has stakes in 13 clubs across Europe, South America, Asia, the United States and Australia – most notably Girona, New York and Melbourne City, French club ES Troyes AC and Italian side Palermo – TV shows created could ultimately go on to feature teams other than just City.
With the holding group also currently developing the Etihad Campus even further by expanding the stadium capacity and adding new leisure additions such as a hotel, museum, rooftop bar and stadium ‘sky-walk’, this is just the latest step in a series of big commerical steps for Man City.
Moveover, as the CFG are also heavily invested in the recently opened Co-op Live arena – which is inextricably linked to the football club located just a stone’s throw away – the City franchise looks to be moving closer and closer to becoming not just a football club but fully-fledged lifestyle brand.
Commenting on the launch of the collaboration, CFG’s CEO Ferran Soriano said: “We are incredibly excited to be collaborating with Sony Pictures Television [SPT] in this joint initiative.
“City Football Group is already a global entertainment company, and this initiative builds on our long-standing track record of innovation in the content space and the growth of City Studios in the last years. We will now take an even more dynamic approach to content production, and we are already developing several scripted and nonfiction series that will delight audiences globally.
“Bringing together the expertise of both CFG and SPT will enable us to create brilliant shows and remain at the forefront of football-led content production.”
SPT’s President of International Production, Wayne Garvie, went on to add: “Football is the great global game, no other sport produces so many heroes, tears and laughter, joy and heartbreak as football […] but the game always evolves and over the last decade City Football Group have become an unprecedented innovator and global leader.
“Our aim is to be part of the next evolution of the game, creating a new generation of innovative football-based entertainment to thrill the world.” It’s still unclear as to when the first of these new football-related TV shows will start rolling out but given the success of previous ventures they’re sure to prove popular.