This film is part of Free
Danny Blanchflower
The Spurs and Northern Ireland football legend sets out his insightful views on violence on and off the pitch.
Overview
Some three years after he hung up his boots, legendary Spurs and Northern Ireland captain Danny Blanchflower still had a lot to say about the game. This unbroadcast February 1968 interview sees him commenting insightfully about violence on and off the field, and offering some practical suggestions for how to combat it. At the same time, he cautions against unrealistic expectations that violence can ever be truly stamped out.
At the time of the interview, Blanchflower had recently penned an article on the subject for the Sunday Express, and he would continue to write for the newspaper until the late 1980s. Given the growing public concern about football violence - particularly on the terraces - in the 1970s and 80s, Blanchflower's interest seems prescient. His analysis is nuanced and sophisticated, and surprisingly socially progressive for his profession - he suggests, for example, that football serves as an outlet for the legitimate social grievances of working-class men. This interview is one of more than 300 filmed for Braden's ultimately unbroadcast TV series, Now and Then. Several other examples are also available on BFI Player.
Related
Women in Action Panel Discussion Women in Action Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 28 mins
Action Xtreme - the UK's leading action film studio - hosts this panel discussion with four leading women in action cinema - Soo Cole, Jo Rolison, Jadey Duffield and Ioanna Karavela.
Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 24 mins
Daniel Kokotajlo talks to Nia Childs about Starve Acre, his folk horror about a couple digging deep into grief in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales.
Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 30 mins
Sky Peals director Moin Hussain and lead actor Faraz Ayub talk to Tomisin Adepeju about their magic realist drama.
Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell
Documentary 2024 42 mins
Documentary exploring the BFI National Archive’s role in rediscovering and remastering the early films of Michael Powell.
Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels
Short documentary 2024 12 mins
Bryony Dixon, curator of silent film at the BFI national archive, explores the origins of a series of comic travelogues, and Michael Powell's involvement in making them.
New Perspectives: Oldboy New Perspectives: Oldboy
Short documentary 2024 4 mins
Discover why Dan George of Northumbria University believes everyone should experience Oldboy at least once.