[Football] The old West stand monkey chanters.

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

I recall a game against Chelsea, probably at home though not sure now, where the Chelsea fans were giving Keith Dublin a lot of stick including racist chanting and noises. This at z time when they had black players too.

The Albion fans sang back at them "our blacks are blacker than your blacks". The sarcasm in the chant was wasted on those knuckle draggers, but I remember being very proud of our fans.

I also had the huge displeasure of sitting in the shed at Chelsea in the mid 80s (taken by a Chelsea supporting mate from uni) and hearing racism and vitriol like I've never heard before or since. Mind you, I've never been to Burnley.

 

[South Stand Bonfire]

Announcement widely reported from a match at Twerton Park in 1990s

'Coming on for Bristol City is Junior Bent, and I think he probably is'

Mind you, Bristol City weren't averse to foopahs. I was at an Albion match there in '95 when they started playing Smokie's 'Alice'. Alas, they put the explicit version on. We found it rather funny to see it ringing out across the family section.

I have this vague memory in either the late 70s/early 80s of Bristol City having two topless women either paraded at a home game or shown in a programme, or am I imagining that?

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

As a child I was quite surprised at the “Harry Roberts” song. Even as a kid I thought it was OTT.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I remember that but @Herr Tubthumper has a better memory of the details. Unbelievable.

Thinking about it now, what on earth compelled the announcer to tell this joke? As @smillie's garden said, it’s not as though half time jokes were a thing; quite the opposite.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Thinking about it now, what on earth compelled the announcer to tell this joke? As @smillie's garden said, it’s not as though half time jokes were a thing; quite the opposite.

I can only think it was a cheap shot at an easy target. Pretty disgusting but highlights the huge shift in tolerance since then.

 

[Jam The Man]

Sadly, the banana luzzers were right there up until the final match.

Several chucked at Darren Moore when he was sent off for handbags with Ian Baird.

Probably the most embarrassed I’ve felt at a football match.

Especially when you consider that less than 30 mins beforehand, their players had unfurled a huge banner ‘saluting Brighton fans’ on the pitch.

 

[Peacehaven Wild Kids]

Probably the most embarrassed I’ve felt at a football match.

Especially when you consider that less than 30 mins beforehand, their players had unfurled a huge banner ‘saluting Brighton fans’ on the pitch.

Indeed

 

[Hamilton]

Sadly, the banana luzzers were right there up until the final match.

Several chucked at Darren Moore when he was sent off for handbags with Ian Baird.

Yes that was shameful.

We were desperate for the win and all I could think was how thick someone had to be to want to throw a banana on the pitch. I can’t fathom racism.

 

[Comrade Sam]

Brentford away in the late 80s their fans monkey chanted our solitary black player on the day - maybe Keith Dublin, whilst they had a predominantly black team. I couldn't imagine what it must have felt like for their players, let alone ours.

 

[HeaviestTed]

My car has a tape player and I have a 1996 recording of Kenny Ken on kissfm- one of the adverts is an Indian lady phoning up to book a hotel and there is no room and then a white lady phoning to book for the same night and there is suddenly plenty of room.

It is amazing to think that thirty years ago the government had to pay for adverts to tell people not to be racist and to explain that it was racism.

 

[Questions]

As a child I was quite surprised at the “Harry Roberts” song. Even as a kid I thought it was OTT.

I sang along to that but I don’t think I knew at the time who he was.

 

[Questions]

Looking back the West only had monkey noises and the “Oh my what a referee” in their set list.

 

[Insel affe]

At 10 years old I never went to The Goldstone with a “responsible adult” I just went with mates from school and we looked up to “bigger boys”

I did monkey noises, joined in with racist chants and even made nazi salutes.

Sadly, you can’t turn back time.

At 55 years old I now go to away matches with my 14 year old son who cringes and gets a bit embarrassed for those his own age singing the Wilfred Zaha dies song and other hateful shite.

I’m proud of his train of thought which is basically his own free thinking.

Respect for acknowledging your past indiscretions, the key is education.
Although I never joined in monkey chants or made nazi salutes at football, I did get nearly sucked in as a young 16 year old, by an older well known right wing chappie (he was screwdriver security) who suddenly turned up in our northern town at the time from London.
He hung around our little group of Rockabillies and Psychobilles and tried to indoctrinate us, he invited us to a right wing meeting, as left his flat he knocked on the neighbours flat and asked if they minded looking after his staffie for the day, it was all very pleasant, the neighbour was black. It kinda blew my mind a but, his explanation was "oh he knows me and agrees there is too much immigration, but he is all right"
Oh yeah right on, he is just scared of you i thought and he should have been to be honest as he was very dangerous.
He years later claimed responsibility for the nail bombs in London via his group at the time White Wolves.
Anyway at the meeting, it was full of knuckleheads and someone was brandishing a gun and a sword of some kind, the rhetoric was dumb, I love my history and this country is built on immigration I knew that even back then, and some of it just did not add up, I thought that was very hypocritical and started to think, you know what this is all bollox, why do I hate someone for no reason, it is stupid, just judge everyone for how they act towards you and others.
I like you am ashamed I went and got involved in some stupid things, but you can't turn back time, but what you can do is have insight, acknowledge racism does exist, learn move on and prevent your children falling into a trap or being blinded by hate of any kind.
Sometimes I find myself listening to so called right on people Brighton explain how multicultural they and what a wonderful place to bring children up it is, and then they tell you about their children's school they go to and they try and get into a better school even though they have a choice, They avoid schools like Fairlight I know the real reason, even if they can't admit it. Lets not kid ourselves Brighton is not an ethnically diverse city it is roughly 94% white of various backgrounds, people move here from London and beyond partly because of that, and that is a sad fact.


sorry for taking it off rail.

 

[Eeyore]

Looking back the West only had monkey noises and the “Oh my what a referee” in their set list.

Slight extremes. I don't know who Harry Roberts was.

 

[Peacehaven Wild Kids]

I sang along to that but I don’t think I knew at the time who he was.

Yep, and “if you’ve got a yellow mini you’ll be shot…”
Again, young, stupid and impressionable. Repeating myself, I quickly grew out of it fortunately, however worryingly, some of those starting those songs that this 10/11 year old looked up to would have been in their 20s. I wonder what they’re up to now?

 

[Perfidious Albion]

Times have changed a lot in our lifetime. When I was a kid the N word was in normal use, without any prejudice necessarily. It was just the word you used for people of colour. When I left school and worked in a decorating shop we sold a tin of paint called on the tin, N. Brown. I remember it changing to chocolate brown.
The whole mindset of humour has changed as well. As for football crowds I am sure that a lot of it was done just to wind up the opposition, although there were of course some real racism’s too.
Aren’t. We glad it is better now !

 

[Peacehaven Wild Kids]

……however worryingly, some of those starting those songs that this 10/11 year old looked up to would have been in their 20s. I wonder what they’re up to now?

I’ve just answered my own question. I’m watching Jeremy Vine and there is a phone in regarding the migrant “crisis”

It’s fuckin painful

 

[Brovion]

Slight extremes. I don't know who Harry Roberts was.

He was part of a gang who shot three unarmed police officers dead in West London and went on the run. The chant (aimed at police officers) was "Harry Roberts is our mate, he kills coppers".

EDIT: Just googled it, Roberts personally shot two of them, and one of the other gang shot the third. It was in 1966.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Not racism, but along the lines of how things have changed, Karen Brady was on the radio the other day talking about 30-odd years ago when she she a) got mistaken for one of the directors' wives and b) wasn't allowed in the boardroom because she was a female. I think she said that was at Watford, but I'm guessing the ban was at most/all of the grounds.

Bonkers.

 

[faoileán]

Hmmm.... I don't want to judge those blokes on here confessing to the stupidity of their younger selves, but I can remember being a teenager in the 1970s and hearing the monkey noises and people dropping the N bomb; I never joined-in as it was so obviously cretinous. Britain at the time also loved "thick paddy" and "poof" jokes, in fact these were staples of prime-time TV.