Peter Beardsley

In March 1994, our family had been invited to the Sheffield Wednesday v Newcastle United match.  We had been entertained in the Director’s Box and had experienced a memorable afternoon, particularly as Newcastle United won.  Leaving the ground some time after the end of the game we encountered the Newcastle team bus, marshalled by Kevin Keegan, manoeuvring to leave the car park.  My teenage daughter, sensing an opportunity, rushed to the door of the bus clutching her match programme, hoping for an autograph or two.  She was intercepted by Kevin who asked her, “who’s autograph do you want pet?”  Quick as a flash my daughter replied, “Peter Beardsley.”  Kevin went back into the bus and returned with the programme, duly signed.

Adored by the fans in 1994 and making over 300 appearances for the club, it was sad to see that in 2019 Peter Beardsley had been suspended from football for 32 weeks for making racist comments to players.  What he had said, apparently, was “obviously racist and wholly unacceptable.”  In a line of mitigation, the FA panel said that “he is now 58 years of age,” and “he has not had the benefit of training and education about offensive racist remarks and the importance of not making them.”

Leaving aside the specifics of this case and, to be clear, I do not think that anything Peter Beardsley was alleged to have said was acceptable at any time, never mind today, I doubt if many of us, now in retirement, have had, “the benefit of training and education about offensive racist remarks.”  In the fast-developing world of victimhood and correctness, how are old people like us to keep up.  Fortunately, the BBC can help.  We have just watched the Gentleman Jack series and have greatly benefitted form the correction to my misconceptions of 19^th Century social history.  Similarly, I do look forward to this Sunday night’s offering, “World on Fire.”  We are told that viewers will “quickly clock the unusual diversity of key players.”  That subtle eh?