The Real Football Factories

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The Real Football Factories
Genre Documentary
Created byPeter Day
Starring Danny Dyer
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes6
Production
Running time60 minutes (inc commercials)
Original release
Network Bravo, Bravo +1
Release6 May (2006-05-06) 
15 June 2006 (2006-06-15)
Related
The Real Football Factories International

The Real Football Factories is a documentary series shown on the Bravo television channel in the United Kingdom and created by Zig Zag Productions. The show looks at the in-depth life of football hooligans and hooligan firms. Interviews are conducted with past and present hooligans.

Contents

The presenter of the show, Danny Dyer, also starred in the film The Football Factory . During the series Dyer visits Yorkshire, Scotland, The Midlands, North West England and London to meet up with and interview hooligans.

On 25 May 2007 Bravo broadcast a new show, The Real Football Factories International, which looks at football firms worldwide.

In September 2007 Virgin Media released a spoof version of the show starring comedian Terry Alderton as Danny Dire. [1]

Episode guide

Episode 1: London

The series begins by briefly outlining the history of football hooliganism from the rise of skinhead culture in London during the 1960s and 70s through the casual movement in the late 1970s and 80s. The episode then turns to the firms of four major clubs in London: Millwall, West Ham United, Chelsea, and Tottenham Hotspur.

Dyer meets with Ginger Bob, a member of Millwall's F-Troop, one of the first firms chronicled by the media. Ginger Bob describes how F-Troop was willing to charge an entire terrace of opposition fans with as few as 10 or 20 boys. During one incident in 2002, 900 Millwall supporters went on a rampage after losing to Birmingham City. Over 100 police officers were injured. In another incident following an FA Cup match at Luton, over 700 seats were torn from the stands and thrown onto the pitch. Tommy Robinson of Luton's Mig Crew comments on taking on not only members of Millwall, but the firms of other London clubs as well including Arsenals Gooners.

The episode also covers Millwall's long-time rivals, West Ham United. Dyer, a West Ham fan himself, meets with Cass Pennant, former top boy of West Ham's infamous Inter City Firm (the ICF). The firm takes its name from the InterCity trains utilised by the firm to travel to away games. Pennant describes the ICF's introduction of calling cards which would be served upon members of opposing firms. The episode also discusses the Cockney Rejects, which the ICF followed during its tours around England. Two of the band's members, Mick Geggus and Jeff Turner, described how during one show in Birmingham, it kicked off between the band and opposing fans.

Moving on to Chelsea, Dyer meets with Jason Marriner, a former "respected lad" with the Chelsea Headhunters. Marriner was sentenced to six years for football-related offences. Following his sentence, he became something of a celebrity among many of Chelsea's fans, signing autographs and holding audiences with where he discussed his days with the firm.

At Tottenham, Dyer met with Trevor Tanner, a member of the Spurs' "Yid Army". Tanner describes how "Yid" was (and continues to be) used as a derogatory term by opposition fans, referencing the Tottenham area's historical roots as a Jewish community. Over time, however, the firm adopted the term as its own. Tanner also describes how he was imprisoned for three years following a violent confrontation with the firm's bitter rival, the Chelsea Headhunters, outside of a pub. The episode concludes by describing how the police have utilised CCTV, close surveillance during match days and football banning orders to crack down on football violence.

Episode 2: North West

In this episode Dyer travels to the Northwest of England to confront members of firms with relations to Manchester United and their main rivals Manchester City, Liverpool and Everton.

Episode 3: Yorkshire

Episode 4: The Midlands

Episode 5: Scotland

Episode 6: England Away

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millwall F.C.</span> Association football club in London, England

Millwall Football Club is a professional football club in Bermondsey, South East London, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the Millwall area of the Isle of Dogs in 1910. From then until 1993, the club played at what is now called The Old Den in New Cross, before moving to its current home stadium nearby, called The Den. The traditional club crest is a rampant lion, referred to in the team's nickname The Lions. Millwall's traditional kit consists of dark blue shirts, white shorts, and blue socks.

<i>The Football Factory</i> (film) 2004 British sports drama film by Nick Love

The Football Factory is a 2004 British sports drama film written by AJ Lovell and directed by Nick Love and starring Danny Dyer, Tamer Hassan, Frank Harper, Roland Manookian, Neil Maskell and Dudley Sutton. The film is loosely based on the novel of the same name by John King and the first foray into filmmaking by video game producers Rockstar Games, credited as executive producers. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 14 May 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chelsea Headhunters</span> Football firm linked with Chelsea F.C.

The Chelsea Headhunters are a notorious English football hooligan firm linked to the London football club Chelsea.

<i>Green Street</i> (film) 2005 British-American crime drama film

Green Street is a 2005 crime drama film about football hooliganism in the United Kingdom. The film was directed by Lexi Alexander and stars Elijah Wood and Charlie Hunnam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inter City Firm</span> West Ham United FC fanbase from late 1970s to early 1990s

The Inter City Firm (ICF) is an English football hooligan firm associated with West Ham United, which was mainly active in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. The name came from the use of InterCity trains to travel to away games. They were the subject of a 1985 Thames Television documentary, Hooligan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London derbies</span> Association football derbies based in London

London derbies are the various local football derbies between the teams in London, England. It specifically refers to individual matches between the teams, but can also be used to describe the general ongoing rivalry between the clubs and fans. The first London Football League derby took place at Clapton Stadium on 11 November 1905, where Chelsea beat Clapton Orient 3–0 in a Second Division match. Chelsea also won the first top-flight London derby with a 2–1 victory over Woolwich Arsenal, in a First Division game at Stamford Bridge on 9 November 1907. The first FA Cup Final to be contested between two teams from London was the 1967 Final, where Tottenham Hotspur beat Chelsea 2–1. As of the 2021–22 season, there are thirteen clubs in the Premier League and Football League that play in the Greater London area. Arsenal against Tottenham Hotspur and Millwall against West Ham United are ranked as two of the most ferocious London derbies.

The Millwall Bushwackers are a football firm associated with Millwall Football Club. Millwall have a historic association with football hooliganism, which came to prevalence in the 1970s and 1980s, with a firm known originally as F-Troop, eventually becoming more widely known as the Millwall Bushwackers, who were one of the most notorious hooligan gangs in England. On five occasions The Den was closed by the Football Association and the club has received numerous fines for crowd disorder. Millwall's hooligans are regarded by their rivals as amongst the stiffest competition, with Manchester United hooligan Colin Blaney describing them as being amongst the top four firms in his autobiography 'Undesirables', and West Ham hooligan Cass Pennant featuring them on his Top Boys TV YouTube channel, on which their fearsome reputation for violence was described.

The MIGs are a football hooligan "firm" associated with the English football club Luton Town, which was originally formed in the 1980s.

<i>The Football Factory</i> (novel) 1997 novel by John King

The Football Factory is the controversial debut novel by English author John King, and is based around the adventures of a group of working-class Londoners who follow Chelsea home and away, fighting their rivals on the streets of England's cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millwall F.C.–West Ham United F.C. rivalry</span> Rivalry between two London football teams

The rivalry between Millwall and West Ham United is one of the longest-standing and most bitter in English football. The two teams, then known as Millwall Athletic and Thames Ironworks, both originated in the East End of London, and were located less than three miles apart. They first played each other in the 1899–1900 FA Cup. The match was historically known as the Dockers derby, as both sets of supporters were predominantly dockers at shipyards on the River Thames. Consequently, each set of fans worked for rival firms who were competing for the same business; this intensified the tension between the teams. In 1904, West Ham moved to the Boleyn Ground which was then part of Essex until a London boundary change in 1965. In 1910, Millwall moved across the River Thames to New Cross in South East London and the teams were no longer East London neighbours. Both sides have relocated since, but remain just under four miles apart. Millwall moved to The Den in Bermondsey in 1993 and West Ham to the London Stadium in Stratford in 2016.

Carol "Cass" Pennant, is an English writer and former football hooligan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1985 Luton riot</span> 1985 football riot in England

The 1985 Luton riot occurred before, during and after a 1984–85 FA Cup sixth-round football match between Luton Town and Millwall on 13 March 1985 at Luton Town's Kenilworth Road ground in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It was one of the worst incidents of football hooliganism during the 1980s, and led to a ban on away supporters by Luton Town which lasted for four seasons. This itself led to Luton's expulsion from the Football League Cup during the 1986–87 season. The club also began to enforce a membership card scheme, which Margaret Thatcher's government attempted to have adopted at grounds across England. Kenilworth Road was damaged, along with the surrounding area, and a year later was converted to an all-seater stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Upton Park riot</span> Football riot in London, England

The 2009 Upton Park riot occurred in and around West Ham United's Boleyn Ground, in Upton Park before, during and after a Football League Cup second round match between West Ham and Millwall on 25 August 2009. The match was won by the home side 3–1 after extra time, but the game was marred by pitch invasions and disorder in the streets outside the ground, where a Millwall supporter was stabbed. The disturbances were met with condemnation by the Football Association, the British government and the two clubs involved. The incident led to fears of a return of the hooliganism that had tarnished the reputation of English football in the 1970s and 80s. There were also concerns that it could have a negative effect on England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup - which was rejected in favour of the bid from Russia more than a year later.

There are two Arsenal hooligan firms, The Gooners and The Herd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Ham United F.C. supporters</span> Supporters of association football club

West Ham United F.C. supporters are the followers of the London-based West Ham United Football Club, who were founded as Thames Ironworks in 1895. There are 700,000 fans on the club's database and over 2,300,000 likes on Facebook. The club's website is in the top ten most visited websites for English football clubs by people in the USA. Their fans are also associated with a once-notorious hooligan element and have long-standing rivalries with several other clubs, most notably Millwall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012–13 FA Cup</span> Football tournament season

The 2012–13 FA Cup was the 132nd season of the FA Cup, the main domestic cup competition in English football, and the oldest football knock-out competition in the world. It was sponsored by Budweiser for a second consecutive season, thus the competition name was The FA Cup with Budweiser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Football hooliganism in the United Kingdom</span> Hooliganism associated with football in the United Kingdom

Beginning in at least the 1960s, the United Kingdom gained a reputation worldwide for football hooliganism; the phenomenon was often dubbed the British or English Disease. However, since the 1980s and well into the 1990s the UK government has led a widescale crackdown on football related violence. While football hooliganism has been a growing concern in some continental European countries in recent years, British football fans now tend to have a better reputation abroad. Although reports of British football hooliganism still surface, the instances now tend to occur at pre-arranged locations rather than at the matches themselves.

<i>The Hooligan Factory</i> 2014 British film

The Hooligan Factory is a 2014 football hooliganism spoof film directed, co-written and starring Nick Nevern. The film heavily parodies titles from the British hooligan genre films and focuses mainly on The Firm, along with The Football Factory, Rise of the Footsoldier, I.D., Green Street and Cass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Gardner (football hooligan)</span> English football supporter and co-author

Bill Gardner is an English football supporter, former football hooligan and co-author of books on football hooliganism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tottenham Hotspur F.C. supporters</span> Football team fan base

The London club Tottenham Hotspur has one of the largest fan bases in England. The fanbase of Tottenham was initially drawn primarily from North London and the nearby home counties, but the fanbase has expanded worldwide and there is now a great number of fans around the world. The club has one of the best attendance figures in the Premier League for its matches, and it holds the record attendances in the Premier League. There is a long-standing rivalry with Arsenal, and the North London derby is considered the most important of their matches by the fans.

References

  1. "Danny Dire – Feltham". Virgin Media . Retrieved 17 September 2007.
  2. "Kicking off". Daily Record. 6 May 2006. Retrieved 21 April 2018.