Talking Sports Books

Beginning this month we will be looking at the greatest ever books on sport and we begin with not only the greatest ever book on boxing but one of the greatest ever books on sport . Norman Mailers "The Fight"

In part 2 of "Killing Maradona" author David Arrowsmith returns to look at the years from joining Napoli to his tragic final days .

David Arrowsmith joins me to talk about his new book Killing Maradona how cocaine the camora and crime corrupted footballs greatest talent and with the World Cup almost here Will Gray has released a book "The World Football Food" book a collection of recipes inspired by the 48 nations taking part in this summers tournament.

The World Cup is almost upon us so we are looking back at some of the great World Cup stories we have featured since "Talking Sports Books" began and we go back to "Brazil 1982 The Glorious Failure" with author Stu Horsfield they were the team that had it all the team everyone thought would win the world cup yet on July 5 82 Italy destroyed the dream .

Dave Hannigan joins us today to talk about his new book "We Need To Talk About Roy" None has had more of substance to say for himself. Across nearly four tumultuous decades, from callow teen prospect to grey bearded influencer, Roy Keane has transcended sport, redefined the parameters of fame and captivated the nation. Our hopes, dreams and sometimes our despair have been wrapped up in h...

Welcome back to the new series of "Talking Sports Books" and on this edition we will hear from Tottenham Hotspur's record holding captain Steve Perryman about what happened to him and the club when they were last relegated to what was then division 2. The main book featured this month is "Escape From Holland" Just before dawn on May 10, 1940, German parachute troops rain do...

On the new edition of "Talking Sports Books" I am joined by author and journalist Jonathan Wilson to talk about his just released book "The Power and the Glory" . The time is nearly upon us, just moths left to go until the greatest show on earth gets underwayAuthor Jonathan Wilson will join us in November to talk about his new book "The Power and the Glory. The football Wo...

Talking Sports Books" here is the video edition of the new show with Manchester journalist Dom Farrell talking about his new book release "Glory Days For The Waifs And Strays" On 12 May 2019, Manchester City became the first team to retain the Premier League title for a decade. Twenty years earlier, the same club was slogging its way out of Division Two, having sunk ignominiously to...

On this edition of the show I am joined by award winning writer and journalist Don Stradley to talk about his new book "Immortals of American Boxing" so who are they who were the fighters who transcended the sport in this edition we will focus on a selection of ring legends.

Welcome to "Talking Spots Books" Twenty-Two Football Shirts that explain the world, geopolitics and the biggest stories of our timeFootball is the world's most popular sport, and the shirts worn by teams and their supporters are its greatest means of cultural expression. Every year clubs launch new kits with increasingly extravagant marketing campaigns and convoluted explanations of...

Coming up on this edition of "Talking Sports Books"The Scouting Game brings us the inside story of the hidden world of top-level football scouting from a man with 30 years’ experience in the professional game, and more than a decade in the recruitment team at Chelsea FC’s renowned academy. Chris Robinson reveals how scouts work, what they look for and how they report on players, giving p...

Postcards from Santiago  tells the extraordinary true story of George Robledo, the pioneering Chilean footballer whose name has largely been forgotten—despite rewriting the history of English football. Long before the likes of Haaland, Henry, or Cantona made headlines as international stars in England, Robledo was blazing a trail as the first foreign-born player to top the English scoring charts....

On this edition of the show In “The Last Bell,” award-winning author Donald McRae reflects on six tumultuous years in boxing, grief, and redemption—featuring Tyson Fury, Canelo Álvarez, and more it is more than just a boxing book — it's a raw, emotional ringside journey through six years of triumph, tragedy, and truth. From Tyson Fury’s comeback to the heartache of Patrick Day, this is sport a...

Welcome to another edition of  Talking Sports Books  with Tim Caple! In this episode, we are joined by the legendary Elton Welsby, who takes us through his remarkable career in football and the release of his highly anticipated autobiography,  Game for a Laugh . For over four decades, Elton has woven his love for football into a captivating career—reporting on non-league matches, hosting ITV’s top...

In this edition of the show Boxing is the main feature with Carl Frampton, Steve Bunce and this editions book choice Steve Hunt's book looking back at the heavyweight Championship Fights of the 1980'S and yes every single one of them .Mike Tyson apart history wasn't kind to the champions of the 80's but we thought it was high time for a re-appraisal of some of those who were crowne...

Welcome to the final show of the year where we look back at some of the best moments from the last 12 months, we will hear from David Pleat, Steve Bunce, Andy Clarke, Maurice Hope, Gary Newbon and we will look back at the greatest football tournaments forgotten by time but bought back to life in the pages of "Tin Pot" by Simon Turner Tinpot is the story of football's lost tournaments: the strange...

Welcome back to "Talking Sports Books" this is the audio version of the show remember you can watch the video of this edition here as well. On this show I am joined by the the man who has been the pen and voice of Boxing for close to 4 decades. Steve Bunce has been a fixture of Boxing coverage over the years and continues to be the most in demand Boxing journalist and broadcaster across not only G...

Welcome back to "Talking Sports Books" and this is the very first video edition of the show you can also access the audio only version as well if you prefer. On this show I am joined by the the man who has been the pen and voice of Boxing for close to 4 decades. Steve Bunce has been a fixture of Boxing coverage over the years and continues to be the most in demand Boxing journalist and broadcaster...

So we have a first with this edition or preview of "Talking Sports Books" as this is the first edition to appear in both video and audio formats. Here's a preview of the upcoming show later this week with the legendary Boxing writer and broadcaster Steve Bunce as we look at his new book "Around the World in 80 Fights" which looks back over Steve's career in Boxing and highlights some of the most m...

Welcome back to the new edition of the show and coming up we head back to the 1980's when the goundworks were underway for the biggest changes in the history of football as the balance of power began its shift from to associations to the tv companies when the era of commercialism really got underway. Set against a backdrop of economic recession, rampant hooliganism and suspect fashion, Go To War t...

On this edition of the show I am joined by David Pleat to look back at his 6 decade life in Football as chronicled in his new book "Just One More Goal". We look at how his playing career began including a memorable England schoolboys debut and on through a playing career which was cut short due to injury before he took on his first managerial role at Nuneaton, following on from that we journey wit...

Andy Bollen joins me on this edition to delve into football's most fiercely contested matches in "Classic Derbies and Epic Rivalries" Andy Bollen explores the history, tradition and violent nature of football's biggest clashes. In unravelling the history of these infamous feuds, Bollen gets to the crux of each conflict, exploring why the fans dislike each other so vehemently. Foo...

On this show we are joined by former WBC LM World Champion Maurice Hope to talk about his new book "Land of Hope and Glory" which looks back on his life from humble beginnings in Antigua to competing in the Munich 72 Olympic Games, winning a World Title, becoming an MBE and having a private audience with Queen Elizabeth.

It was a time when football was a television luxury the BBC had MOTD and that was it you were allowed the FA Cup Final a few home internationals and the World Cup and that was your lot, until ITV unveiled "The Big Match" with Brian Moore and football in the ITV regions was born and along with it some iconic broadcasters including Brian Moore , Hugh Johns, Gerald Sinstadt, Gerry Harrison,...

Welcome back to the "Talking Sports Books" show and coming up in this edition we are joined by Sky Sports Boxing commentator Andy Clarke to talk about his new book "The Knockout" which looks in depth at sport's most decisive moment the book features comment from Deontay Wilder, Carl Froch, Tony Bellew, Ricky Hatton . The book looks at the effects of "The Knockout"...