Pre 1960 Annuals, Photos and Books

Greetings, and thank you for visiting our website. To provide you with a brief overview, we have been conducting business online since 1996. Notably, in 1998, we were the first website to accept advertisements for ticket sales, a fact that was mentioned in an article by BBC News. We engage full-time in eBay trading, having sold over 5000 items to date, including 1000's of items from our websites.

We buy and sell football books and annuals from the 1940s to the 1960s, as well as The Charles Buchan Football Monthly Magazine and retired players' autographed images. Pre-1960 books autographed by the author are also a specialty, from the publishing firms of the day, such as Stanley Paul, the Museum, and Pelham, to mention a few.

Football Annuals

The Boys Book of Soccer, released by Evans Brothers in 1945, was the first mass-market soccer annual to be produced immediately following the war. It was printed on war-economy paper. The FA Book for Boys 1947, Sampson Low Marston Series 1949, The Big Book of Football Champions 1950, Charles Buchan's Soccer Gift Book 1953, The Topical Times Football Book 1959, and Players Annuals by Billy Wright, Bobby Moore, Denis Law, and many others were also well-liked annuals that appeared in the middle of the 1960s.

We do hope that, among the hundreds of early-year collectors, we may assist a few of you with your collections by providing the missing issues to enhance your collection. We have many versions, all of which are in excellent shape.

The Charles Buchan Football Monthly Magazine

The first edition was published in September 1951, more than 70 years ago. Experienced reporter Charles Buchan of the News Chronicle and the BBC had identified a void in the market: The circulation began at 60,000, a figure that contemporary magazines would kill for. By 1959, it had increased to 120,000, 130,000, and at its highest point in 1967, it was at a staggering 250,000 a month. The "Boys Club" boasted 100,000 registered members in 1968. From its inception until his passing in June 1960 in the south of France, Charles Buchan carried on with his column. There are two pages of tributes from the football world in the September 1960 issue. We buy and exchange 1951 to 1966 issues that are in excellent condition, no newsagent markings, rusted staples, tears of creases etc.

Retired Players Signed Photos

A special kind of photography was employed in football books and magazines from the late 1940s through the early 1960s. The photos were taken using a large format camera, and the negative (the plate) produced an incredibly high-quality final print. After then, the print was manually colored or tinted, creating a unique look. Frequently, further characteristics were added, such as the ball and even the background crowd.
The Big Book of Football Champions, published by L.T.A. Robinson, is the most well-known publication to employ this procedure. Charles Buchan used the same method for both the Football Monthly Magazine and the Soccer Gift Book.