Of course, things have changed design-wise but the somewhat flimsy paper publication was lapped up by fans at the time.
The fact that this Volume 42, Issue 18 suggests that - as this was issued in February 1948, the programme had been in existence since 1906 - depending on what ‘volume’ actually represents in this particular instance.
READ: Blue Peter, Peter Barnes, Peterborough and Shep the dog!
READ: From the archives: Disaster at Hyde Road
Typically, each edition would have at least one feature (in this case, Frank Swift’s farewell), plus other news stories, illustrations and ads.
The ads were simple and probably designed by the programme creators as opposed to having some swanky ad agency supply them.
One of them, in the slightly later edition from August 1948, appears to advertise an early front-runner for Deliveroo with it’s tagline ‘At your service, sir...’ and there is the inevitable Oxo ad - a staple hot drink along with Bovril on chilly Maine Road match-days.
Despite their fragility, these surviving issues, kindly donated to the Club by David Warner, have certainly stood the test of time and, as with all our archival material, are a peak into a bygone era.
Do you have a Peter Barnes Trainer in your loft? Or a rare photograph in your garage? If you have any rare City treasures you’d like to share with the Club - we’d like to hear from you!
