A Load of Old Balls: The QI History of Sport by James Harkin & Anna Ptaszynski

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. 

REVIEWS

'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

Paperback

Language: English
Extent: 400
Publish Date: 4 Jul 2024
ISBN: 9780571372546
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Publisher: Faber & Faber
Imprint: Faber & Faber