A Load of Old Balls

The QI History of Sport

James Harkin, Anna Ptaszynski

$24.99

Paperback

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English

Faber & Faber
01 October 2024

Reference; Trivia & quiz question books; Humour; Sports & outdoor recreation

SHORTLISTED FOR THE CHARLES TYRWHITT SPORTS BOOK AWARDS

'Top Bins! A personal best, a lap record and a hole in one for when rain has stopped play.' ALAN DAVIES 'The trivia book of the season . . . magnificent.' SPECTATOR

Did you know that Henry VIII owned the first pair of football boots? Or that David Attenborough is responsible for yellow tennis balls?

A Load of Old Balls is the curious story of us and sport. It's about our mind-blowingly determined attempts to be the fastest, the strongest, the most skilful. In this endlessly entertaining tale of play and belonging, astonishing violence and jaw-dropping cheating, we learn what led ancient Egyptian athletes to have their spleens removed and discover why Michael Palin was disqualified from a conker tournament. Crossing millennia, continents and cultures, Harkin and Ptaszynski - the brainy researchers for BBC's QI and co-hosts of No Such Thing As A Fish -show us sport as we've never seen it before.
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Published in hardback as Everything to Play For.
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For more from the team behind QI's hit TV show, check out the QI FACTS series of books, @qikipedia, their weekly podcast at nosuchthingasafish.com or visit qi.com.

By: James Harkin, Anna Ptaszynski
Imprint: Faber & Faber
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Main
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm,
ISBN: 9780571372546
ISBN 10: 0571372546
Pages: 400
Publication Date: 01 October 2024
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Anna Ptaszynski and James Harkin are senior researchers, writers and script-editors for the BBC's QI, and two-fourths of the award-winning podcast No Such Thing As A Fish. Between them, they have authored 13 books with the QI Elves and toured sell-out shows across the world, from the London Palladium to the Sydney Opera House. They are long-suffering fan of Charlton Athletic and the Jacksonville Jaguars, respectively.