A grand day out for Coleen Rooney

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Today was the biggest day in the racing calendar, the Grand National, and one of the UK most famous WAGs turned up looking exceptionally stylish, despite being 8 months pregnant. Coleen Rooney stepped out in a clinging, black lycra dress which emphasised her bump and a lace panel over her boobs. She teamed with a killer set of scarlet heels, dismissing the myth that those so close to giving birth have to live in flats.

Coleen is always a head of the game when it comes to fashion, and her maternity outfits never fail to impress either. She has appeared in a series of great outfits since she announced that she was pregnant with the couple’s second son, who is due to make an appearance next month. Accompanying her to Aintree were her mum Colette McLoughlin, herself looking a lot colourful than we are used to in a turquoise dress with with bright yellow handbag and shoes.

Although husband Wayne was at home injured, Coleen did bring along his little mini-me; 3 year old son Kai. The youngest member of the party was looking very stylish in a pale blue and white ensemble with striped pants, and he even brought along his own Buzz Lightyear booster seat to ensure he missed none of the action on the course.

Wayne’s boss was there too but not as a mere spectator, Sir Alex Ferguson had two horses in the starting line up; What a Friend and Harry the Viking. Neither were in it at the finish however, with the surprise winner being the 66-1 shot Aurora’s Encore. Whether any of Coleen’s group won a few quid is unknown, but if there are was a style race Mrs Rooney would have won by a length.

Abby Clancy’s fakery goes OTT

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The word is that whilst preparing for her appearance on Alan Carr’s Chatty Man TV show, 27 year old Abbey Clancy had somewhat of a wardrobe malfunction due to her overload of fake tan. Her love of bronzer apparently left her look less healthy glow and more as if she had been Tango-ed. Taking her place on his Grand National special, Abbey stood out for all the wrong reasons alongside fellow guests Rylan Clark, Kimberley Walsh, Alex Brooker, James Corden and Jonathan Ross.

She tweeted after the show that she was feeling a bit tipsy, if she had tweeted this before the show it may have explained the faking faux pas. Abby, married to footballer Peter Crouch, has often come under fire for her thin frame, which was emphasised when she arrived for filming thanks to her skinny jeans and black jacket ensemble. A picture she has put on Twitter was later removed after a deluge of comments were posted saying that she looked way too thin.

Abbey has repeatedly denied that she has any kind of eating disorder and is just lucky in that she is naturally thin. If that is the case fair enough, but the fact she often looks very drawn and unhealthy gives rise for concern. She was also recently spotted in a swanky hotel dressed to kill but looking as if she was in desperate need of a good meal and slightly worse for wear.

There have been reports that all is not well in Camp Crouch, something both Abby and her lanky husband deny vehemently, but who knows in planet celebrity. One thing is for sure however, and that is that Abby seems to have lost that spark that was so appealing, and all her fans will be hoping she can recapture it sooner rather than later.

 

 

 

50 years of footballing fashion on display at the National Football Museum Manchester

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If you haven’t yet paid a visit to the National Football Museum since its relocation from Preston to Manchester, it’s new exhibition might just be the one to tempt you in. The name; Strike a Pose; 50 years of Football and Fashion is a complete giveaway and takes a look at everything that links both football and fashion from the way that kits have evolved over the years, through the many dodgy haircuts and the rise and rise of the WAG.

This is not merely a fashion show however, as the exhibition effectively deals with how the coupling of the beautiful game and fashion have changed both society and popular culture and also led to violence in the terraces. Inspired by the best selling book from 2004; The Fashion of Football From Best to Beckham, From Mod to Label Slave by Mark Baxter and Paolo Hewitt, they have run with the authors’ belief that what unites fashion and football is passion.

Things started to change in the 1960’s when the footballing minimum wage was scrapped and they could then start to lead more lavish lifestyles than their predecessors could ever have dreamt of. Fans started to take sartorial inspiration from their stylish icons, a trend that continues today. The late and great George Best owned a fashion boutique in Manchester on Bridge Street, so it is fitting that the exhibition looks at the part he played in the 60’s.

Another fun inclusion from recent times is the ovecoat favoured by Jose Mourinho during his time at Chelsea, and itself an inspiration for a song sung by the fans at matches. There have also been some notable faux pas, lest we forget those white suits the Liverpool team sported before the FA Cup Final in 1996. Gamely, Robbie Fowler has supplied one of these offensive items for the exhibition, fine in 76′ but a definite no no two decades later.

It hasn’t yet been disclosed which famous hairstyles have made the cut but obvious inclusions would be the Keegan bubble perm and the 80’s mullets sported by Glen Hoddle and Chris Waddle. There are many photographs on display courtesy of one of Britain’s finest photographers Terry O’Neill who shot to fame in the 60’s with his candid shots of celebs. An avid footie fan, O’Neill happily provided images for the display, including a great shot of a very young Bobby Moore, described by the museum as an unlikely style icon.

The dark side of football is also explored and looks at the links between the terraces and the skinheads, mods, casuals and how the different styles spilled over into explicit violence, and even today exists in the form of racism. This is an excellent exhibition which runs until the 27th August 2013, so get along there if you can.

 

 

 

 

 

Novelist signs up as ‘The Daggers’ writer in residence

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Novelist signs up as 'The Daggers' writer in residence

Novelist signs up as ‘The Daggers’ writer in residence

Dagenham and Redbridge FC have announced that they have signed their first ever writer in residence, Ian Ayris, the sports fiction and crime novelist and lifelong fan of the Daggers. He will be joining the club in a number of projects that are community related in a bid to bring football and writing together.

Ian has been attending matches at Victoria Road for more than 3 decades and is delighted to be able to play a part in both the club and the community. Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club managing director, Steve Thompson said, “Ian is a great fan of the club and we are happy to be working with him bringing football and increasing literary skills into the community. This will involve projects in schools and at the club engaging young people and fans of the club.”

Ian said, “Football clubs have a lot of influence with young people and in the community in general, especially clubs like The Daggers who are still very much a family club with family values. So it’s great to be here at the club I love and be able to work with them giving something back. I am looking forward to working with the club not just in schools but also on a project charting the history of the club with fans which we hope to produce as a book.”

Steve Thompson continued, “As a club we want to reach kids who have an interest in football at all levels. Not all will want to play or have the ability to make it as a professional footballer, but by making the most of their education they can broaden their options. Some may want to write about football or just improve their writing skills, and that’s where we as a club working with Ian, can give them inspiration.”

Ian’s novel, Abide with Me published by Caffeine Nights Publishing, hit the number one spot in Amazon’s sports fiction chart and is still the highest rated title in that section with over 50 reviews, including 44 5 star reviews. Part East End crime fiction, part passage of rites tale with football at its heart, Abide with Me is a moving tale charting the life of two boys given a raw deal in life.

 

 

Finances not improving at Liverpool

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Liverpool Football Club has revealed that its financial troubles are not getting any better. In fact, the challenge is getting much worse as the European elite team has reached an unprecedented £87 million of debt, an impressive increase from £22 million in 2011, a sobering result from the economically harsh landscape in Anfield.

The current owners of the team, Fenway Sports Group, tried to offer various explanations as to why this situation has come about. The arguments surround the Champions League but concerns raised by some observers point to the figures covering the period between August 2011 to early 2012 where Ian Ayre, the managing director of the team, oversaw the biggest debt increase thanks to payment transfers. Former employees were paid over £30 million a year such as former manager Kenny Dalglish, leading to the impact we can now see.

In a recent press event, the team has tried to reassure fans and supporters that this is just a temporary setback and that the next European season including the Champions League would help bring the finances back under control. But many are still unsure where the enormous amount of necessary funds will be coming from.

Some of the reveals in these figures include a £120 million package that was used to refinance the team from the Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and Bank of America. These types of financial moves do not help to bring more confidence in the management of the Liverpool club, and could make it hard for the manager to gain back the fans’ respect.