Bananas

[Franny 1234]

May 1988, final game of the 87/88 season at Crystal Palace, the craze was just taking off at City via the Blue Print fanzine, with every other club's fans unaware of it....
The police at Palace decided that the bananas were racist towards Palace's black players....
Having just bust a gut blowing up my 6 foot banana on the supporter's club coach, to be told by fellow Blues that the police were not letting bananas in, I deflated it, shoved it down the jeans, entered the ground and amongst the many hundreds of City fans, blew it up and proudly waved it around!

We've had our issues over the years but we were from moss side for God's sake half our firm was black. CTID

 

[CotswoldsBlue]

‘It took on a life of its own’ – how a bet started the inflatable craze in the 80s

English football grounds in the late 1980s could be grey and downbeat but that changed thanks to Manchester City fan Frank Newton

www.theguardian.com

Great article

 

[El Gringo]

I had Chelsea in mind.
Used to throw it on the pitch.
Can't remember the reason why now

Yep defo Chelsea

 

[Kippax Street 1880]

Lost mine spiking it halfway up the tier at Wembley when Yaya scored against the rags lol

 

[Blue Mist]

A much simpler times and fun nowadays someone somewhere will be offended by them.

Or the elfin safety mob would get it stopped
'All them sharp corners, you could poke someone's eye out with that paddling pool'

 

[Grassland Blue]

A much simpler times and fun nowadays someone somewhere will be offended by them.

Or offended on behalf of someone else who wasn't personally offended themselves.
It's a mad world we live in now!

 

[Gary James]

Is this to educate new and young fans or FOCs to reminisce about twatting each other over the head with 3 foot long bananas, and other inflatables?

Best ever away day for bananas was boxing day 88 at the old Victoria ground, Stoke. 12000 blues waving bananas around many in fancy dress. Great day out.

View attachment 138101

That’s my photo from Stoke. I’ve used it in a couple of my books.

 

[Gary James]

A brilliant read and good to see them allowing Frank Newton to tell the proper story and not the usual "it was all about paying homage to Imre Varadi" miss information version

As for reading the article, why do these websites bombard you with shite adverts in the manner that they do (i get that advertising pays but that was ridiculous. I thought the MEN'S website was bad but the Guardian was awful here)

It drives me mad that the Varadi story still does the rounds. It’s down to that Granada report where they went in the old shop. The video has reappeared in recent years so the story took off again. Frank’s the man and the true story is much better than the Varadi story anyway.

 

[Gary James]

Bloody hell. I’m just out of that photo, I remember being by the TippEx pen!

It’s one of my photos from that day. Nudge me in a few weeks when I get chance and I’ll see if the others show the area you’re in.

 

[East Level 2]

A crocodile was my inflatable of choice.