As I write, it is August 1st 2019, the 25th anniversary since publication. It was also the first book I ever wrote and its generally favourable reception motivated me to continue writing. I am currently working on my fourteenth book which will be a return to my roots in the form of a history of Kilmarnock FC managers.
Today I'm going to mark the anniversary with a spot of self-indulgence by reminiscing about how publication came about and posting some photos from the book launch that mean a lot to me personally. Lesley Gore sang "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to." I'm saying it's my blog and I'll wallow in nostalgia if I want to. Come and join me if you feel like it. If you don't then head back to the beginning and read the Killie story from the start.
It was in late 1992 that I first began to think of Kilmarnock's 125th birthday, due to take place in 1994. I approached two specialist football publishers with the idea for a full annual and statistical history of the club. One of them rejected the idea out of hand, the other was interested but made publication contingent on getting the club's blessing and on promotion to the then Premier Division.
That left me with something of a dilemma. Did I wait until the end of the 1992-93 season to see if Killie won promotion or take a chance and start to research. I opted for the latter. This involved travelling to the National Newspaper Library in Colindale in North London from where I was living in East Dulwich. Train to London Bridge then tube to Colindale. It took approximately ninety minutes to get there and obviously another ninety to get back. The library itself was only open Mondays-Fridays, 10am-4.45pm. I quickly learned that it was essential to order newspapers the day before I intended to consult them.
I would write everything up when I got home and in those pre-internet days this was on an electronic typewriter that had a one-line character read-out that allowed me the luxury of up to fourteen characters that could be deleted before I had to reach for the Tippex (Google, kids).
Each page had to be photocopied at the local newsagent's and rather than trust to mail I hand-delivered each chapter to the publisher. That involved travelling to and from Uxbridge and made the sojourn to Colindale seem like a stroll to the local shop by comparison.
At the same time I made an initial approach to the club. I sent a copy of an article I'd had published elsewhere to the board. Official endorsement was important on several counts. First, it made getting access to club records and illustrative material that much easier. Second, it encouraged more supporters to buy the finished product, knowing it had the club's approval. Third it provided a direct outlet for sales via the club shop (at that time situated in Bank Street, Kilmarnock) and through advance subscriptions.
When I met with the board the then Chairman Bobby Fleeting told me he'd laughed his head off when he read the article I'd submitted. Fortunately for me that article had been intended as a humorous piece. The board agreed to give the still putative tome official approval.
I should make it clear that I had full control over the entire project. I had read far too many anodyne club histories presenting a picture of sweetness, light and constant harmony. I didn't want to do that. I wanted a 'warts and all' history. No airbrushing contentious moments out of history. No glossing over disastrous defeats. Kilmarnock DID tour racist Rhodesia. They did it for the money. Full stop. Humiliating cup losses to Brechin City, East Stirlingshire and Inverness Thistle WERE the most important games of their respective seasons. Pretending they never happened wouldn't alter that.
None of this, in my view, could or should be ignored. If this were simply my own book there wouldn't have been any problem. But this was carrying the imprint of Kilmarnock FC. It was an OFFICIAL history and it was possible there may have been aspects with which the club might have been unhappy. I outlined what my general approach would be while letting the board know I wasn't prepared to be censored in any way. Fortunately Bobby Fleeting and the other directors were in agreement and happy to give me free rein.
All that was needed now was promotion.
I'm not going to go into details about that great event itself, as it's covered extensively in the book and is available to read any time you like. Suffice to say that there was a gathering of the clans at opening time in the bottom shop in Dundonald and while football supporters singing and stamping their feet on a bus on the way to a match is not exactly a rare occurrence, it wasn't often that those exercising their lungs were all aged between 30-50, as was the case that day.
I still had to juggle time between going to Colindale and travelling to Scotland. Both my parents were still alive and I was in the habit of taking my son to see them three times a year during school holidays and half-term. Somehow or other those visits always seemed to chime just right with the fixture list - happy coincidence, eh? This gave me the opportunity to speak to people, select material for inclusion. Again, all of this is on the acknowledgements page so I'm not going to repeat it here.
Everything proceeded apace. The only potential blot on the landscape was if Killie were to be relegated. It would be invidious to say the least to try and celebrate a birthday in such circumstances. Again, no need to go into detail here but that glorious afternoon when Killie left Easter Road with the point that secured Premier Division status seemed to confirm the stars were in alignment for a successful book launch.
Then the sky fell in. Once everything was done and dusted and it was too late to make changes the manager - Tommy Burns - walked out to take over at Celtic. Tommy had been nothing other than a gentleman in the dealings I had with him. Always willing to take time out to talk and happy to help in any way he could. But now not only was he gone, there was a foreword with his signature on it that couldn't be changed. And in that foreword it stated how happy he was at Kilmarnock and how much he was looking forward to the future at Rugby Park. Worse, Tommy had been scheduled to join me at the launch!
In the previous blog entry I said that history is what you've just witnessed when the whistle blows at the end of a match. Here was proof positive. Tommy Burns was now part of Kilmarnock's past before a book - in which he himself was proclaiming he was not only part of the present but intended to be in the future as well - had even seen the light of day.
It was too late to remove the foreword and too late to include anything from the new manager Alex Totten. As it turned out the managerial change did no harm. Ayrshire folk well understand "the best laid schemes o' mice and men gang aft agley." In fact if anything it was the reverse as the controversy surrounding the move ensured a higher Scotland-wide profile for the book than would normally have been the case.
Although officially published on August 1st, the actual launch took place on August 6th, seven days before the start of the season. The last 'football-free' Saturday was the ideal occasion as before the days of internet banking and online payments it was at this time that fans renewed their season tickets and - so I hoped - picked up a book at the same time.
Club captain Ray Montgomerie stepped into the breach, taking over Tommy Burns' role at the launch in the club shop. And as anyone who's seen Ray 'in action' in club hospitality will know this turned out to be an inspired substitution. For me everything seemed to pass by in a blur. I was excited but nervous, afraid it would all go wrong. But it didn't. If memory serves I spent over two hours signing books and chatting with supporters. Some faces were well-known to me, others were total strangers but all were friendly. Eventually I had to be dragged away in order to do a Radio Scotland interview with Gordon Smith.
All media publicity had been arranged in advance but when the opportunity suddenly arose to do a live interview it couldn't be turned down. It did present a couple of problems however. First, while I wouldn't say I was a regular in a TV or radio studio, I wasn't exactly unfamiliar with either. In the mid-1970s I received a piece of advice about interview techniques that has served me well from that day to this. 'If you're stuck for an answer then swear.' It's not as daft as it sounds. In those primitive times of cassettes the interviewer had to stop recording, rewind to ensure the offending word had been deleted then ask the question again. This allowed the interviewee time to collect their thoughts and prepare an answer to a question they now knew they were about to receive. It's worked wonders for me for decades.
Unfortunately it's of no use whatsoever in a live broadcast.
This increased the pressure of an already nerve-wracking occasion as I was acutely aware that one slip of the tongue could create disaster.
The second problem was the question of actually doing the interview in the first place. Under normal circumstances it would be in Glasgow but Gordon was - if I remember correctly - in Inverness as that city prepared itself for the imminent arrival of Scottish League football for the newly-merged club then known simply as Caledonian Thistle. Nowadays that would be no problem. Find a quiet corner and establish contact via Skype or mobile phone. Not so in 1994. The nearest 'studio' was in Ayr. I use the quote marks deliberately.
I don't drive so I had to arrange a lift to Ayr then call in at the railway station to pick up the 'studio' key and hope whoever was on duty knew the difference between that one and the one people sometimes had to ask for if they needed to go to the lavatory.
The exact details are dimly remembered but there was somewhere I think in the council offices with a pokey room, equipment that looked like it had come from a NASA jumble sale and a handbook of instructions for use that ran to about twelve pages. All for a couple of minutes airtime.
But it went off okay. The only time I felt like I needed the swear technique was when he asked me who was the best player I'd ever seen play for Killie. Not because the answer was difficult. It was easy. Tommy McLean. And anyone who saw wee Tam turn out at Rugby Park and gives any other answer is wrong. End of. No, the problem was I knew it couldn't be just a two-word answer or even one qualified with an exposition of McLean's abilities. I knew I had to mention other 'contenders' first, outline their qualities then settle on McLean. But as it was obvious the interview was nearing the end I didn't know how long I had left. And with me in Ayr and him in Inverness there was no chance of a 'wind it up' signal or a hand gesture indicating how long I had left as there would have been face-to-face. There wasn't even a clock to go by.
So I hurriedly rushed through players before my time, name-checked some of the 1965 championship-winning squad, gave a mention to some players after that era - Eddie Morrison of course being the first that came to mind - then awarded the accolade to McLean. It was only then that I realised I really should have said something about the guy sat in Inverness asking the questions. So, again I'm relying on memory from 25 years ago here, I blurted something along the lines of "you weren't all that bad yourself, CASPER."
It's second nature, isn't it? Fans of every club refer to players by their nicknames. If an Old Firm fan talks of 'Jinky' or 'Super Ally,' everyone knows who they mean. No further qualification necessary. But how many beyond the confines of Rugby Park would be familiar with the sobriquet of the cartoon friendly ghost awarded to Gordon Smith during his time with Kilmarnock?
I was convinced I had just made myself sound like a rank idiot in a live interview. That people listening would think I was some clueless clown who had no idea who he was speaking to. Fortunately the man himself came to my rescue informing his co-host (I forget who) that was indeed the name he was known by at Rugby Park. He also agreed with my selection of McLean.
That was the last formal event. After that it was off to the Dundonald Highland Games for the remainder of the afternoon and the chance to finally relax in the company of some old pals. The rest of the weekend is a blur. There are reasons for that and you'll probably be able to guess them without me pointing them out. Suffice to say there have been other books, other launches, some supposedly more 'prestigious.' But nothing can or ever will compare to the sheer thrill of the first. And for it to have been the official history of the club I have supported all my life was something so special there are no words in the English language capable of adequately expressing how I felt that day. I felt that in writing Killie's history I had become part of it myself. That even if I never wrote another word in the rest of my life this was an achievement no one could ever take away from me. I was and remain grateful to all who helped this book see the light of day.
I will forever be in your debt.
At my parents just before the launch
My father and his brother, my Uncle Wullie, at the launch
With Ray Montgomerie at the launch
Anyone wishing to use any of this material should contact me via my email address or Twitter feed. Links on the top right of the page
