Jewish Telegraph 26 NEWS | Friday November 15, 2013 Susan Bookbinder

WAS working on my lap- be one of the best days of his life and one that he would certainly top one night last year never forget. when a private message Zac was literally centre stage, popped up on Facebook. sitting in exactly the same place IPhill Gatenby is a prolific where his uncle had sat 27 years author, well-known for his books Authors helped me ago. about the Manchester music scene He was in demand for auto- and The Smiths, including Morris- graphs, signing on his uncle’s sey’s Manchester and my personal behalf and this time, we found favourite, The Manchester Musical stars such as Ian Brightwell, Tony History Tour. Book and Steve Redmond coming His message made me gasp . . . to us to sign their copies of the with delight, relief and a number rewrite City history book. of emotions. Emotions I can only The evening began with an begin to try to explain within this live — and he knew how to die. appearance on Ian Cheeseman’s context. Blue Tuesday programme on BBC For the 20 odd years previous to Grief-stricken, I wrote to Andy Hinchcliffe, who went on from the Radio Manchester; a familiar set- this, I had been trying to get cor- ting for Zac, having already estab- rected a mistake in the printing of class of 86 to the City first team and scored the stunning fifth goal lished himself as a City celeb by a Manchester City matchday pro- winning the Samir Nasri lookalike gramme, which had caused in the famous 5-1 victory over United in September, 1989. competition earlier this year! increasing pain in my family from I was so touched by the kind 1986. I had presented him with his Hall of Fame award in 2005 and felt I comments of so many of the play- My brother John is there on the ers about John and the sincerest photograph in the changing rooms could ask him to help right this wrong. He very kindly asked his commiserations about what had at the Maine Road ground when he happened to my brother from was part of the iconic Manchester producer at Key 103 to ring me and ask what he could do to keep John’s coach Glyn Pardoe and player City squad which won the 1986 Paul Moulden, in particular. Youth Cup. memory alive, but made it clear there was little he could do to But it was the comments of He is there right next to captain David Boyd, who shared digs with Steve Redmond with first team change the programme from 1986. Everyone who has met my son, my brother in Burnage, that captain Paul Power. Manager affected me particularly. Tony Book has his hand on John’s Zac — be it the plumber entering a house full of photos of them both He described how the two shoulder. teenagers would have to go to the But John’s name was left out of or my best friend who grew up with both John and I, will say how he is chippy as the family they were the list of names due to a printing staying with didn’t feed them, nor error, so whenever journalists the spitting image of his uncle. He is also a very good footballer were the conditions the kind of wrote and honoured ‘the class of five-star accommodation you 86’, John was left out. and a cheeky devil with the sweet- est, happiest, megawatt smile you would expect to be provided for I wrote to City and raised the City’s current Academy players in have ever seen. Just like John. matter with then-chairman David their new multi-million facility. I was hosting a City Legends Bernstein. JOHN’S SMILE: Susan Bookbinder and On the platform he spoke of the night in Sussex (where there is a As a presenter for BBC Radio son Zac with former City star Ian harsh regime enforced by manager cult City Supporters Club) and Ian Five Live for many years, I was Brightwell. Right, with former City Tony Book, something ‘Skip’, as Brightwell and Paul Lake were the regularly in contact with key fig- manager Tony Book they called him’ expanded upon. legends. “If I saw a skip outside Maine Legends who were famously part Here he is with the same smile as He was trying to trace every Road or in the streets nearby, I of the class of 86, with John. his uncle in his local team’s kit. member of the squad and was Brightwell was The photo of my brother at the aware that John had passed away. would make them go through it as Zac, who was just six at the time, a punishment or I would get them asked the first question: “What was same age, collecting his trophy He asked, with the greatest from the Derby team from where respect, if I would consider writing painting the changing rooms or as moved as I it like playing with my Uncle cleaning the first team players’ John?” he was scouted for Derby Boys on John’s behalf. could easily be mistaken for Zac Obviously, he said he would boots,” he recalled. Both Lakey and Brighty were so He confirmed that he was the was by question kind and indeed, Lakey, as he had and visa-versa. understand if it was too much for said at John’s funeral, was clear. It was of enormous comfort to me. ures such as Dennis Tueart, Kevin “Book-jack, as we called him, me to see Zac, two days before his If I could, I would have grabbed Keegan and chief executives Alis- because he was like a Jack-in-a- seventh birthday, striding out onto his hand through the beautiful John fought tair Mackenzie and Garry Cook. box on the wing, had a superb left the Etihad turf as an official mas- ether. This was the very first time, ❝ cot for Manchester City. I wrote to the publishers of Man- foot and with opportunity to play, after all the years of striving to like a lion chester, the Greatest City by my could show us all,” he said. I wrote to Chris Bailey, a former get John’s story told — I had been friend Gary James, asking them Later, as everyone began to min- fellow journalist, now working for offered the opportunity to do so. to please correct the picture they gle informally, Zac asked Brighty a City and asked him to honour my It was as if the light which had against cancer were using and write about my question. brother by writing in the pro- been switched off when John died brother. “What was his voice like?” he gramme about him on Zac’s won- had flooded back into my life. derful day. ‘bad guy’ in the ‘good cop, bad cop’ My campaign fell on deaf ears. asked, heartbreakingly. For the following three months, partnership he had with Pardoe. No one was interested. This was a wonderful moment I paced up and down my office, I Ian was clearly as moved as I, not David told me that John used to and the nearest I thought I could kept sitting down at my laptop to ❝ My determination was intensi- least because John fought like a get to achieving justice for John write about John, but the words get “a lot of stick from Skip” and fied in 2006 when cancer bitterly lion against a particularly vicious another ex-player used the word took John from us at the age of 37. cancer which resulted in him los- over that printing error which had just could not come out onto the effectively written him out of City page. “bully”, but everyone agreed that Nothing can prepare you for the ing his tongue, larynx and voice John was certainly not a victim loss of a sibling and there are no box and so for the final months of history and denied him his place in Suddenly one night, at about this celebrated squad. and was the one who would stand words to express the sense of anger his life, he did not have a voice — he 1.30am, I woke up and it was as if up for himself and everyone else. and despair I feel each day. Now is could not even cry out in pain. That was until I received Phill’s John was dictating in my head. I not the time to go into any detail message that night in April, 2012. rushed to the computer and the I couldn’t help wondering if I will never forget how Ian knelt John’s ‘attitude’ was a factor in about how John died, but let’s just It was a very kind message, but two chapters I wrote about John in down to talk to Zac and told him him eventually being released, say no one should have to suffer why so cautiously written? I later Teenage Kicks just flowed out of how his Uncle John was “a special, just days after he had scored the the way he suffered. discovered Phill had worried about me. very kind and talented man and winning goal against Chelsea for writing to “someone of such Much of it is about John’s illness Suffer he did though, in silence you should be very proud”. the reserves ahead of the Full national prominence”. and how new Republic of Ireland and with such dignity and Now aged nine, Zac is more and Members Cup. (I found this quite remarkable manager Martin O’Neill, whose courage. My brother knew how to more like his uncle. It’s a question that has troubled from an author of such success and wife, Geraldine, was being treated me for many years, almost as considering I was then reduced to at the same hospital, came to much as the way his name was left getting up at 3.45am to earn a liv- comfort him, having remembered off the photo. ing). John and his superb left-foot from He reassured me that he knew those heady days of the 80s. I think it says a lot that it has Ian Cheeseman — my friend from I also talk about the incredible taken 27 years to right that wrong, BBC Radio Manchester — and likeness of Zac to John. with John’s name finally added to author Gary James, but it was the On Tuesday night, Teenage Kicks the photo and further, that it was fact that he told me that he knew co-author Andrew Waldon organ- corrected by the authors of the what it was like to lose a brother, ised a reunion of the players in book and not by the club. having lost his own, David, which Reddish. I will be forever grateful to Phill brought immediate empathy. Zac was asked to represent my and Andrew for this and for giving He told me, very modestly, as if I brother in the recreation of the me the chance to write about my didn’t know, that he had written squad photo that appeared in the brother and for putting John the Morrissey books, but was also 1986 New Year programme which Bookbinder’s name back into City a serious City fan and was intend- now graces the back of the book. history. ing to write the story of the 1986 I managed to persuade Zac’s Next month, I will be writing about our YOUNG HEROES: The Manchester City youth team squad with John Bookbinder squad which won the FA Youth headteacher that he should have a trip to Abu Dhabi, which Zac won in the on the front row, third left Cup. day off school for what promised to Samir Nasri lookalike competition.