The Halcyon Podcast

It's the second episode of World Cup Nuggets daily, our mini-podcast previewing each of the 32 teams taking part in Qatar. 

It's unquestionably a lot of nuggets for two men. Luckily we've got renowned football author and historian Richard Foster to help us, whose new book, World Cup Nuggets (see what we did there?) is a) an indispensable guide to the World Cup's weird, wild and wonderful stories and b) out on 24 October.

This episode is about Australia. A questionable approach to goals, a tough start, a potential talisman and much more. Enjoy!

It's the first episode of Halcyon’s World Cup Nuggets daily, our mini-podcast featuring a short preview and a ‘nugget’ about each of the 32 teams taking part in Qatar. 

That’s a lot of nuggets. But to help us we've got renowned football author and historian Richard Foster, whose new book, World Cup Nuggets (see what we did there?) is a) an indispensable guide to the World Cup's weird, wild and wonderful stories and b) out on 24 October.

So here's episode 1, on Argentina. Good form, straightforward-ish group, Lionel Messi and much more. It's nearly World Cup time!

A mere 509 days since the last podcast, Adam and Rob reunite to provide a few teasers about what the next couple of months have in store on the book and podcast front. In a true sign that they're returning to form, they also forget the end of the alphabet.

We'll be back in a few days with the first of our World Cup Daily nuggets with special guest Richard Foster. In the meantime you can check out the bigger and better than ever offerings on the Halcyon website and grab your copies while stocks last.

Adam and Rob are joined by multi-award-winning author and journalist Michael Calvin for a wide-ranging and actually very moving chat about... well, everything really.

In this second part, we discuss the cleansing experience of Leicester City and the 2021 FA Cup final, as well as how the club is run and how that reflects on the 'Super League plotters' - remember them?.

We also talk in more depth about Mike's experiences researching Whose Game is it Anyway and how he approaches his stories and his craft. Mike also shares some profound and touching stories about carers in football and gives us a small but fascinating insight into his current project away from sport.

If you'd like to buy a copy of our anthology on glorious defeat, From the Jaws of Victory is available on the Halcyon website - use the imaginative discount code 'PODCAST' for 15% off. Shipping's free too.

And if you'd like to get in touch with us, we're on Twitter @HalcyonPublish1 for books and @magicspongers for everything else (and also quite frequently books as well).

Adam and Rob are joined by multi-award-winning author and journalist Michael Calvin for a wide-ranging and actually very moving chat about... well, everything really.

In this first part, Mike talks to us about his earliest memories of football, being in the privileged position of ballboy at Vicarage Road in his formative years and 4am starts to queue for FA Cup Fourth Round replay tickets (ask your dad, kids) at the ground.

We also cover the fundamental nature of being a football fan in light of some of Mike's experiences researching Whose Game is it Anyway and the documentary film 'Ours', and make ourselves sound very old by asking if fans are still being created by the same process we identify so heavily with.

If you'd like to buy a copy of our anthology on glorious defeat, From the Jaws of Victory is available on the Halcyon website - use the imaginative discount code 'PODCAST' for 15% off. Shipping's free too.

And if you'd like to get in touch with us, we're on Twitter @HalcyonPublish1 for books and @magicspongers for everything else (and also quite frequently books as well).

Adam and Rob welcome The Guardian Football Weekly’s host Max Rushden, who is still on a high after Cambridge United’s automatic promotion from League 2.

Max explains why he was initially reluctant to appear on the pod until promotion was secured considering our remit focuses on glorious defeat and Cambridge were making a complete hash of gaining one point from their last three games.

He talks to us about how he first fell for the football, which includes Pavarotti, Gazza’s tears, a Cambridge side fronted by Dion Dublin in the early 90s and running Arsenal close in the FA Cup.

We also talk to Max about his broadcasting career, which includes counting baked beans live on radio, stroppy indie bands, talking to Rob’s brother on Soccer AM and heading up the most successful football podcast in the world (not this one, sadly).

You can show your support for the Halcyon Podcast and also for health and safety regulations so Adam and Rob can safely get into their bathrooms without stepping over boxes of books by buying a copy of Jaws of Victory here. And as ever, you can get in touch with us on Twitter @HalcyonPublish1 or @magicspongers.

Enjoy!

Adam and Rob are joined by the legendary Patrick Barclay for a joyful journey down memory lane to the famed Dundee side of the early 1960s.

Paddy talks to us about how he first fell for football at Dens Park and both the famous title win of '62 and subsequent European Cup campaign, back when the European Cup was for champions ONLY.

We also talk to Paddy about his illustrious career in football writing, including the dread of the Saturday match report, pretending to be a player at the world's greatest stadia and even getting on the pitch at some of them (and then quickly off again).

Paddy also shares his proudest by-lines with us and has some unexpected advice on the best way to extricate yourself from precarious situations in Medellin, the murder capital of the world.

To read Paddy's outstanding chapter alongside 22 others, why not get yourself a copy of Jaws of Victory? And as ever, you can get in touch with us on Twitter @HalcyonPublish1 or @magicspongers.

Adam and Rob break with tradition to look at current affairs this week, specifically the Premier League 'Big Six''s affair with a closed-shop anti-competitive collective of glorified friendly-seekers. Ahem.

They're joined by From the Jaws of Victory contributor and author of 'Can We Have Our Football Back', John Nicholson, who's written brilliantly on the subject for Football365 in the past ten days.

We discuss the origins of both the Premier League and the Super League, and how much the very nature of football and society in England is geared around a model that encourages them to at best chance their arm, and at worst succeed, in completely monopolising the game.

We also look at whether or not the Super League is inevitable at some point anyway, and John offers some small doses of optimism about how football could be revolutionised for the better, as well as going in two-footed on a couple of members of the Cabinet, which we've always got time for.

As ever, you can get in touch with us on Twitter @HalcyonPublish1 or @magicspongers.

Adam and Rob are joined by the author of one of the best football books ever written, Pete Davies, whose book, All Played Out, so perfectly summed up the many highs and some lows of following England at Italia ‘90.

This episode is all the more pertinent given the events of the past few days, as we discuss a time when the Premier League was merely a glint in Rupert Murdoch’s eye, when Gazzamania was born, when the tabloid press were even more vicious than now and when England made a splash as a glorious surprise, ending in no-less glorious defeat. 

We also discuss the (to a contemporary audience at least) unprecedented level of access that Pete gained to the England squad and Bobby Robson, their siege mentality born out of an exasperation with the British press, Pete’s travails around Italy and quite why that fateful semi-final lives so long in the memory of football romantics.

Also covered is the how Pete wrote All Played Out in a mind-boggling 58 days, the ensuing writer’s block and how this pleasantly came to an end in 2017.
 
 As ever, please rate and subscribe to the pod to keep getting more from us, and get in touch with us on Twitter @magicspongers or @HalcyonPublish1

Adam and Rob are joined by Neil Atkinson of the Anfield Wrap to discuss his brilliant From the Jaws of Victory chapter on the Liverpool side of 2013-14 and much more besides.

We cover the various contributing factors to Neil's chapter being such an emotional punch in the face (in a good way) and the impact of 2013-14 on Liverpool's 2018-19 (very) near miss and their 2019-20 title victory. We also discuss how the club had to change in that time to gear itself up for two consecutive 90-point seasons and what the future holds for them and others in the Premier League, particularly once Guardiola buggers off.

Away from football Neil tells us about the genesis and growth of the brilliant Anfield Wrap and its journey from a series of podcasts to civic institution (watch out York!), gives us some quality tips on who to read next and of course gives us possibly the captain of our Nearly Men XI, if we were to judge it on unfortunate prescient rallying calls.

As ever, please rate and subscribe to the pod to keep getting more from us, and get in touch with us on Twitter @magicspongers or @HalcyonPublish1