Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

At a wedding in Weston Super Mare, where everything had to be moved around because of the final.

More of rugby fan myself but I do believe that there is something special with this English team.

In a traditional old apartment in the back streets of Vienna, Austria -- shades of the Third Man and Harry Lime! I was returning by car from a trip down to the southern end of the Yugoslavia coast and made a detour via Vienna to look up some Austrian friends (met a couple of years earlier in a youth hostel in the Bavarian Alps). When I arrived they told me about the match that evening and said that we should watch it. They would side with Germany and they would be happy for me to side with England. I had been unaware about the match before arriving, having not seen much UK news for a few weeks. So, I had a particularly enjoyable evening with Austrian food and drink in front of the TV.

At home in Lee-on-Solent where we watched the final on our rented black and white tv. It's one of my earliest memories though I don't remember the match so much as the fact of sitting in the drawing room watching it. I suppose I should, therefore, watch this evening's game but I suspect I'll only watch the last few minutes.

Football doesn't interest me much but I wish the team well; Gareth Southgate seems an excellent manager and it is good that he has given so may youngsters a go and built such a successful team. Whether they can beat Italy remains to be seen but I certainly hope they do pull it out of the bag. I also hope that the moron who shone the laser at the Danish goalkeeper and the other ESNs who booed the Danish national anthem are nowhere to be found this evening.

In the Maine A Quiet Room watching the match on TV with a few others. Not sure why I was at CH on 30 July but I was!

Momentous day for a football obsessed little boy of 12 at the time and I hope tonight will prove similar for and old git of nearly 67.

Watching on a Mess TV at the 30th Signal Regiment Blandford, with the rest of the CCF Signals Section on summer camp, under the watchful eye of our host, an OB senior officer (whose name unfortunately I can no longer remember).
Firmly stuck in the memory, even for someone who doesn't follow football much!

Near Strasbourg, working as an au pair between CH & Oxford. I was very unaware of everything about the World Cup. I can’t remember a TV in the apartment. The children’s grandfather rang to tell me the result, knowing his son wouldn’t be interested and wouldn’t know! I thought that a very kind gesture.

Only just back from the best job I ever had and weeks before, as she puts it, my wife won me!

I had to work with no access to tv or radio !!!!

J.R. wrote: ↑Mon Jul 19, 2021 6:23 pm I had to work with no access to tv or radio !!!!

That must have been particularly hard for someone like you, JR, or did your love of the sport come later?

... at a friend's wedding reception. Reception in function room. Free drinks in function room. Television in public bar, but no free drinks. Reception strangely quiet. Bride not best pleased. I can't remember much about it. There must be an explanation for that.

SamT says: "under the watchful eye of our host, an OB senior officer (whose name unfortunately I can no longer remember)."
Probably either Mickey Jarret or John Newman, or, possibly, Ray Bell.
David

Katharine wrote: ↑Tue Jul 20, 2021 8:36 am

J.R. wrote: ↑Mon Jul 19, 2021 6:23 pm I had to work with no access to tv or radio !!!!

That must have been particularly hard for someone like you, JR, or did your love of the sport come later?

I wasn't quite so interested in sport those days.

In '66, my Dad was still a few years away from sitting his O levels, so up until the last few years, I've never seen an English team that a) were really good, b) universally likeable, and c) I didn't watch from behind the sofa, just waiting for the inevitable.

I was gutted they didn't win (although losing on penalties had a warm familiar feeling), but they were better than any team in my living memory and for the first time ever I actually feel hopeful for the next World cup.

It is, of course, the hope that kills you, but still.