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Author Helena Pielichaty(third from left) meets fans at the launch |
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Education Officer Peter Evans and Collections Officer Sally Hawley (holding Lily Parr’s boots) with Aniline dressed as an 1895 footballer. |
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Author kicks off new football novels at the National Football Museum.
Author Helena Pielichaty had a great kick off to the official launch of her new book series ‘Girls FC’ at the museum recently with over eighty people turning up to join in the fun. Helena, assisted by some of the children, gave an animated reading from some of the books and pointed out the link between her books and the history of the game. Peter Evans the Museum’s Education Officer and Sally Hawley, Collections Officer gave an entertaining talk about the early days of women’s football and its links to the Women’s Suffragette Movement.
The team in Helena’s books are called the Parrs and the league they play in is called the Honey ball League. The audience heard how they were named after Lily Parr, the star striker from the famous Preston ladies team of the first half of the twentieth century Dick, Kerr’s Ladies, and early ladies football pioneer Nettie Honeyball.
Following the talk the youngsters and adults enjoyed a display of football freestyling skills by seventeen year old Robyn Clancy (who recently appeared on Wayne Rooney’s Street Soccer programme) and Helena signed books for keen youngsters, some of whom were brought to the Museum by Jane Wood of Lancashire County Council Library Services.
The Girls FC series of books aimed at 7 – 11 year olds are published by Walker Books and are available from the National Football Museum shop and other good book shops.
Stop Press
To celebrate the start of the Women’s European Championships the Museum has put on a fascinating mini display on the history of the women’s game. The display gives some background to the domestic and international game and also looks at Preston’s very own Dick, Kerr Ladies. Objects on display include England and Sweden shirts signed by the 2005 squads, boots worn by Dick, Kerr Ladies’ legends Lily Parr and Joan Whalley and a 1970s England shirt worn by Sue Lopez.