After the whistle, the final whistle. Tommy Docherty, the manager of Chelsea Football Club, walked down the touchline to Bill Shankly. Tommy Docherty shook hands with Bill Shankly. And Tommy Docherty said, I don’t understand it, Bill. You had a hard game in midweek. I just don’t understand it, Bill. All our boys were fit and fresh. But today you were fitter and you were fresher, Bill. You were by far the better side. Congratulations, Bill. Congratulations.
Thank you, said Bill Shankly. And then Bill Shankly smiled. Bill Shankly took out the brochure from his coat pocket. And Bill Shankly handed the brochure to Tommy Docherty.
Tommy Docherty looked down at the brochure. The Chelsea brochure for the FA Cup Final. Tommy Docherty shook his head. And Tommy Docherty said, What’s this, Bill? What on earth is this?
Just a wee souvenir for you, said Bill Shankly. A little something for you to remember us by, Tommy. A Cup Final souvenir.
18. THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN
In the house, in their hall. The letters never stopped coming. The first post and the second post. The letters always coming. The letters asking for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And Bill answered them all. Bill apologised to them all. In the house, at their door. The callers never stopped knocking. Early in the morning, late in the evening. The callers always knocking. The callers begging for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And Bill answered them all. Bill apologised to them all. In the house, in their hall. The telephone never stopped ringing. Early in the morning, late in the evening. The telephone always ringing. The calls pleading for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And Bill answered them all. Bill apologised to them all. And in the house, in their hall. The telephone was still ringing. But now Bill had to go. The telephone still ringing. Bill put on his coat. The telephone still ringing. Bill put on his hat. The telephone still ringing. Bill opened the front door. The telephone still ringing. Bill stepped outside. The telephone still ringing. Bill closed the door. The telephone still ringing. Bill walked down the drive. In the street, children spotted him. The children called out to him. Bill waved at them. The children asked Bill for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And Bill apologised to them. Bill got into his car. Bill drove down the West Derby Road. On the pavements, people spotted him. People waved at him. Bill waved back. People begged Bill for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And Bill apologised to them. Bill turned onto Belmont Road. Again, people waved at him. Again, Bill waved back. Again, people pleaded with Bill for tickets. Cup Final tickets. And again, Bill apologised to them. Bill turned into Anfield Road. Again, there were crowds of people. In the car park. Bill parked his car. Bill got out of his car. The crowds of people saw Bill. The crowds of people rushed to Bill. The crowds of people asked Bill for tickets. Cup Final tickets. They begged and they pleaded. Bill pushed through the crowds of people. And Bill apologised. Bill apologised and Bill apologised. And Bill went inside Anfield. The telephones ringing. Bill went up the stairs. The telephones ringing. Bill went down the corridor. The telephones ringing. Bill tapped on the office door. The telephones ringing. The office door of the club secretary. The telephones ringing. Bill opened the door. The telephones ringing. Bill saw the camp bed in the corner. The telephones ringing. Bill saw the bags of mail standing on the floor. The telephones ringing. The bags and bags of mail. The telephones ringing. Bill saw the stacks of letters on the desk. The telephones ringing. The stacks and stacks of letters. The telephones ringing. And Bill looked at Jimmy McInnes. The telephones ringing. Jimmy sat behind his desk. The telephones ringing. Among the letters. The telephones ringing. The stacks and stacks of letters. The telephones ringing. And Bill saw the circles under the eyes of Jimmy McInnes. The telephones ringing. The black, dark circles under Jimmy’s eyes. The telephones ringing. Bill picked up one of the phones on Jimmy’s desk. And Bill said, Yes, what do you want, sir?
Did you get my letter, asked the voice on the other end of the line, the voice with a thick Birmingham accent. The letter I sent to you? The one I sent to you weeks ago now. Weeks ago …
What letter was that, sir?
For tickets. For the final. From Birmingham.
In Jimmy’s office, down Jimmy’s phone. Bill shouted, From Birmingham? Birmingham? I’ve got hundreds of friends, hundreds of relatives, all asking me for tickets, sir. But not one of them is getting a ticket. Not one of them. The tickets we’ve got are going to the Kop. To the boys on the Kop. To the boys who have supported us, week in and week out. That’s where our tickets are going, sir. To the Kop. To the boys on the Spion Kop. The Liverpool boys.
But I was born in Liverpool …
Then you should have stayed here! You should never have moved to Birmingham. You should never have left Liverpool, sir.
And Bill put down the phone. The telephones still ringing. Bill looked at Jimmy. The telephones ringing. The circles under the eyes of Jimmy McInnes. The telephones ringing. The black and dark circles. The telephones ringing. And Bill smiled. The telephones ringing. And Bill said, I see you’re still the most popular man at Anfield, Jimmy. Still the most popular man at Liverpool Football Club …
No, I’m not, said Jimmy McInnes. I’m definitely the most unpopular man at Liverpool Football Club, Bill.
Bill smiled again. The telephones ringing. And Bill said, No, Jimmy. No. I know you try to make as many people happy as you can, Jimmy. I know you try. I know you do …
Yes, said Jimmy McInnes. I try, Bill. I really do try. But I can’t.
Bill picked up a phone on the desk. Bill put down the phone again. But the telephone started ringing again. And Bill said, But at least you try, Jimmy. At least you try to make the people happy.
…
In the studio, the BBC studio. On the radio, on Desert Island Discs. Because Liverpool Football Club had reached the final of the FA Cup, because Liverpool Football Club would play Leeds United in the final. Roy Plomley asked Bill which eight records he would take with him if Bill was cast away on a desert island. And Bill chose My Love Is Like a Red, Red Rose, sung by Kenneth McKellar. Bill chose When the Saints Go Marching In, sung by Danny Kaye and Louis Armstrong. Bill chose The Last Rose of Summer, sung by Sydney MacEwan and Robinson Cleaver. Bill chose Danny Boy, sung by Jim Reeves. Bill chose Étude in E major, Op. 10/3, composed by Frédéric Chopin, played by Claudio Arrau. Bill chose Because You’re Mine, sung by Mario Lanza. Bill chose The English Rose, sung by Webster Booth. And finally, Bill chose You’ll Never Walk Alone, sung by Gerry and the Pacemakers. Then Roy Plomley asked Bill which book he would take with him if Bill was cast away on a desert island. And Bill chose Life of Robert Burns, by John Stuart Blackie. And then Roy Plomley asked Bill what luxury item he would take with him if Bill was cast away on a desert island. Bill smiled, Bill laughed –