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Newcastle United Stole My Heart: Sixty Years in Black and White
When 5-year-old Michael Chaplin landed in a strange city of ships in the late 1950s, he looked in vain for something that would anchor him to it, make him feel at home. Then, one Saturday afternoon, it the roar of a crowd, and a football team to support. Young Michael became an avid Newcastle United fan, and has remained one–if sometimes disenchanted–for over sixty years.
In this football memoir with a difference, the celebrated playwright and screenwriter tells the story of his six-decade love affair with the club, each chapter recreating an iconic Newcastle the players who graced the game, the managers in the dug-out, and the backdrop outside the stadium–both the changing face of Newcastle, and the ups and downs of Michael’s own life and career.
This vivid, thoughtful and entertaining book is an absolute must-read for all Newcastle United supporters, and indeed—given that the club is often described as everyone’s second favourite—for football fans everywhere
In this football memoir with a difference, the celebrated playwright and screenwriter tells the story of his six-decade love affair with the club, each chapter recreating an iconic Newcastle the players who graced the game, the managers in the dug-out, and the backdrop outside the stadium–both the changing face of Newcastle, and the ups and downs of Michael’s own life and career.
This vivid, thoughtful and entertaining book is an absolute must-read for all Newcastle United supporters, and indeed—given that the club is often described as everyone’s second favourite—for football fans everywhere
- GenresFootball
352 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 15, 2021
10 people are currently reading
60 people want to read
About the author
Michael Chaplin
25 books3 followersMichael Chaplin (born 1951 in County Durham) is an English theatre, radio, television and non-fiction writer and former television producer and executive.
After graduating from Cambridge University in 1973 with a degree in history he trained as a reporter on The Journal newspaper in Newcastle upon Tyne and then became the paper's Health Correspondent.
In 1977 he moved to London, becoming successively a researcher, producer, director and executive producer in London Weekend Television's current affairs and documentaries department. Among his many credits there was editor of the cult arts/lifestyle show South of Watford which helped to establish the TV careers of its successive presenters, Ben Elton and Hugh Laurie. He then produced the ITV drama series as Wish Me Luck about female secret agents in France during World War II which aired on ITV between 1988-1990.
In 1989 he became Head of Drama and Arts at Tyne Tees Television and was Executive Producer of the early Catherine Cookson adaptations, which ran on ITV with great success for a further decade or more.
In 1991 Chaplin moved to BBC Wales as Head of Programmes where he was responsible for transforming the BBC's output in English on both television and radio. By this time Chaplin had begun to write for Live Theatre the acclaimed new writing company in Newcastle upon Tyne, collaborating first with Alan Plater on 'In Blackberry Time' (1988-9), a play about the life and work of his late father, Sid Chaplin.[1]
His first credit on television was the ITV mini-series 'Act of Betrayal' about an IRA super-grass on the run in Australia, co-written with his friend and former LWT colleague Nicholas Evans (author of The Horse Whisperer and other novels).
His first radio writing credit was Hair In The Gate (1990) for BBC Radio 4, based on a play of the same name staged at Live Theatre the year before.
After graduating from Cambridge University in 1973 with a degree in history he trained as a reporter on The Journal newspaper in Newcastle upon Tyne and then became the paper's Health Correspondent.
In 1977 he moved to London, becoming successively a researcher, producer, director and executive producer in London Weekend Television's current affairs and documentaries department. Among his many credits there was editor of the cult arts/lifestyle show South of Watford which helped to establish the TV careers of its successive presenters, Ben Elton and Hugh Laurie. He then produced the ITV drama series as Wish Me Luck about female secret agents in France during World War II which aired on ITV between 1988-1990.
In 1989 he became Head of Drama and Arts at Tyne Tees Television and was Executive Producer of the early Catherine Cookson adaptations, which ran on ITV with great success for a further decade or more.
In 1991 Chaplin moved to BBC Wales as Head of Programmes where he was responsible for transforming the BBC's output in English on both television and radio. By this time Chaplin had begun to write for Live Theatre the acclaimed new writing company in Newcastle upon Tyne, collaborating first with Alan Plater on 'In Blackberry Time' (1988-9), a play about the life and work of his late father, Sid Chaplin.[1]
His first credit on television was the ITV mini-series 'Act of Betrayal' about an IRA super-grass on the run in Australia, co-written with his friend and former LWT colleague Nicholas Evans (author of The Horse Whisperer and other novels).
His first radio writing credit was Hair In The Gate (1990) for BBC Radio 4, based on a play of the same name staged at Live Theatre the year before.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
June 28, 2023
The later chapters of the book, which I had lived through as a fan myself, were really nostalgic and enjoyable. But the earlier sections which recalled a world of football which is so alien to me were particularly insightful. Some elements I wish could be brought back (being able to get a hold of tickets on the day of a game) and others we should all be pleased are long gone (the amount of players having their careers cut short in their early 20s). Also of note is the realisation that, despite good times over the years, material success has evaded the club for a depressingly long time. An excellent personal history of Newcastle United and football in the second half of the 20th century. A good read!
December 17, 2023
Mine too. It only took one visit to St James Park back in the 1975/76 season for my heart to be well and truly pinched. Or was it more a case of discovering my drug of choice? In my first season as a regular patron at SJP I got to see a League Cup Final at Wembley. We lost, of course, but to a naïve teenager, it seemed only a matter of time before the silverware arrived. Still waiting!
Michael captures well the roller coaster nature of following a team. Even if NUFC is not your poison of choice I am sure that any devoted fan of any sports team can recognise and enjoy the narrative of this book. Covering six decades of Black and White football, Michael weaves in the fascinating story of his own and his family’s life. Football and life do not stand still and already this book is crying out for another edition, with an update. So much has happened since it was written.
We all have favourite players, those who stick out in our memories. I was so pleased that Michael included, amongst his more obvious choices, Ayoze Perez as one of his 11. Such a delightful player of skill and touch.
There is no arguing that since the 1960s NUFC have had great managers in Joe Harvey, Kevin Keegan and Sir Bobby Robson, but I would also like to add to Michael’s list the name of Rafa Benitez who worked miracles during his time at the club, giving us all hope when hope was gone. And, who knows, where Eddie Howe will eventually rank in the pantheon of Geordie managerial greatness?
The structure of this book works really well. It’s no mean feat to cover almost 60 seasons of football, so many matches and so many players and still capture the essence of it all in 300 pages. Then to include a family’s personal story with an appropriate level of social and political comment lends this book an air of genuine warmth and connection.
My only reservation was that occasionally the flow was disrupted as we moved from one game or one player to another without warning. But that was maybe just Michael dropping his literary shoulder and leaving this slow, unimaginative reader for dead! And a final gripe, not of Michael, but of journalists and writers in general, why is ‘hello’ written as ‘hallo’? Nobody actually says ‘hallo’ do they, ever?
Toon Toon. HWTL.
Michael captures well the roller coaster nature of following a team. Even if NUFC is not your poison of choice I am sure that any devoted fan of any sports team can recognise and enjoy the narrative of this book. Covering six decades of Black and White football, Michael weaves in the fascinating story of his own and his family’s life. Football and life do not stand still and already this book is crying out for another edition, with an update. So much has happened since it was written.
We all have favourite players, those who stick out in our memories. I was so pleased that Michael included, amongst his more obvious choices, Ayoze Perez as one of his 11. Such a delightful player of skill and touch.
There is no arguing that since the 1960s NUFC have had great managers in Joe Harvey, Kevin Keegan and Sir Bobby Robson, but I would also like to add to Michael’s list the name of Rafa Benitez who worked miracles during his time at the club, giving us all hope when hope was gone. And, who knows, where Eddie Howe will eventually rank in the pantheon of Geordie managerial greatness?
The structure of this book works really well. It’s no mean feat to cover almost 60 seasons of football, so many matches and so many players and still capture the essence of it all in 300 pages. Then to include a family’s personal story with an appropriate level of social and political comment lends this book an air of genuine warmth and connection.
My only reservation was that occasionally the flow was disrupted as we moved from one game or one player to another without warning. But that was maybe just Michael dropping his literary shoulder and leaving this slow, unimaginative reader for dead! And a final gripe, not of Michael, but of journalists and writers in general, why is ‘hello’ written as ‘hallo’? Nobody actually says ‘hallo’ do they, ever?
Toon Toon. HWTL.
November 9, 2021
Perfectly encapsulates what it means to be a Newcastle United fan.
June 23, 2025
An excellent football book, because it actually doesn’t focus on the football all that much, especially in the earlier days. I loved Chaplin’s ability to evoke the feeling that no matter how far you find yourself away from Newcastle, when you’re watching a game or hearing about the score you feel like you are tethered to home. Reading this made me wonder whether I’m really that bothered about football in and of itself, or whether I just feel lucky to support a club that makes me feel close to my family, my friends and to home.
April 11, 2023
This is one of the best books about football and it’s place in society that I have ever read. Michael Chaplin has written a paean to his beloved Newcastle United, but in truth his book is much more than that. Taking as a reference point his well remembered Newcastle games from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s 2000s and later decades, he paints a rich tapestry of the development of football and society over the past 60 years or so. There are so many points of synergy in this book for a 50-something like me and I’m sure it will appeal to anyone with even a passive interest in the beautiful game. There’s politics in the book too and much emotion and warmth. Chaplin writes well and from the heart - a beating organ that, according to the book’s title, Newcastle United stole from him at an early age. Notwithstanding all the pain the club has put him through over more than six decades, Chaplin seems content with the larceny.
August 26, 2023
I really enjoyed this book and don't hesitate to recommend it to anyone wanting to find out more about life in the NorthEast, where football is a giant part of so many lives. I've been a Newcastle United fan since I moved to the North East age 15, and the writing perfectly captures the ups and downs and drama. I also loved the insights and character sketches and all the interviews with players, learning the history of Sir Bobby Robson and his links to nearby Langley Park, and insights into the massive role of agents watching endless cold and rainy school matches. Woven into the soccer memories are strands of personal biography of his successful writing career, and rousing accounts of his plays staged in Newcastle, and insights into family life past and present. It will be interesting to see a sequel book or article, and whether he has bought a new season ticket yet.
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October 22, 2021Michael Chaplin‘s new book uses 11 memorable football matches to trace a chunk of Newcastle United history, offer a degree of autobiography and provide a few history lessons along the way. It has a wide cast of characters and is written with the typical Chaplin warmth and humour. The matches themselves are really a peg on which to hang reflections on the football club‘s corrugated performances since he became a fan 60 years ago and although the book includes some happy memories, the author is never afraid to tackle some problematic issues - to put the boot in, as it were. It’s a book which is hard to put down and certainly one of the best books on sport that I have read for a long time. Highly recommended.
May 3, 2022
Wonderful love letter to a football club over several decades. I'm a bit too young for some of the earlier years but have read about them extensively. Found myself reminiscing when the stories caught up to the players and teams that I was around for. A few trips down my own memory lane inspired by this.
June 24, 2025
Newcastle United Stole My Heart: Sixty Years in Black and White by playwright and screenwriter Michael Chaplin serves as a hybrid between heartfelt memoir about growing up in the North East and a historical biography of Newcastle United's most memorable moments.
I was born in the early 2000s, and Newcastle United has been such a prominent and formidable part of my life thus far. My dad had me at St James' Park as soon as I could walk and talk, I would grow up hearing both my maternal grandad and paternal grandad rant and rave about results and league table positions, my paternal great-grandad always made sure my brother and I had an NUFC shirt at the ready. I couldn't escape the football club even if I wanted to.
The earlier chapters of Newcastle United Stole My Heart encapsulates everything it means to be an NUFC fan. The moment you fall in love and everything clicks. The moment you throw yourself headfirst into the deep end and suddenly your entire mood depends on 11 men on the pitch. I really enjoyed reading a first-hand experience of what Newcastle United looked like decades ago: from the ticketing, to the players, to the atmosphere. Chaplin does a brilliant job of weaving historical research into vivid memories of his childhood and upbringing.
In this book we follow the highs and lows of the club we hold so dear to our heart, and I vaguely remember many of these anecdotes on the basis of my dad and grandad conversing about them on a weekend, but I was too young to really understand what was going on. I remember sitting in a pub in Gateshead when we got relegated during the 15/16 season and my dad being utterly devastated. It was bittersweet to read that it wasn't just us who felt hopeless at the time.
This book was published just before the takeover, and it feels weird knowing what we've gone on to achieve since then. Some of the players that were mentioned at the end of the book are still here, and some have left us. Eddie Howe has transformed this club and has led us to things that we could only dream about. Our current squad ended our 70-year trophy drought and are already Newcastle United legends (I'm not sure anyone would argue with me on that).
I just love this club so much.
I was born in the early 2000s, and Newcastle United has been such a prominent and formidable part of my life thus far. My dad had me at St James' Park as soon as I could walk and talk, I would grow up hearing both my maternal grandad and paternal grandad rant and rave about results and league table positions, my paternal great-grandad always made sure my brother and I had an NUFC shirt at the ready. I couldn't escape the football club even if I wanted to.
The earlier chapters of Newcastle United Stole My Heart encapsulates everything it means to be an NUFC fan. The moment you fall in love and everything clicks. The moment you throw yourself headfirst into the deep end and suddenly your entire mood depends on 11 men on the pitch. I really enjoyed reading a first-hand experience of what Newcastle United looked like decades ago: from the ticketing, to the players, to the atmosphere. Chaplin does a brilliant job of weaving historical research into vivid memories of his childhood and upbringing.
In this book we follow the highs and lows of the club we hold so dear to our heart, and I vaguely remember many of these anecdotes on the basis of my dad and grandad conversing about them on a weekend, but I was too young to really understand what was going on. I remember sitting in a pub in Gateshead when we got relegated during the 15/16 season and my dad being utterly devastated. It was bittersweet to read that it wasn't just us who felt hopeless at the time.
This book was published just before the takeover, and it feels weird knowing what we've gone on to achieve since then. Some of the players that were mentioned at the end of the book are still here, and some have left us. Eddie Howe has transformed this club and has led us to things that we could only dream about. Our current squad ended our 70-year trophy drought and are already Newcastle United legends (I'm not sure anyone would argue with me on that).
I just love this club so much.
April 21, 2022
I am delighted and proud to know the writer Michael Chaplin who was a valued trustee for many years at New Writing North and I have had the pleasure of listening to his crafted wordsmithery on many an occasion. It seemed an easy decision to devour his latest book, Newcastle United Stole My Heart (Hurst Publishers), as an audiobook and enjoying Michael narrating the tale of his emotional roller coaster affair with Newcastle United FC - and also his life. This is not just a love letter to the sporting, and possibly social, focal point of this marvellous city. It’s a warm and inviting story of growing up in the Toon, moving to various places around the country with a growing family, developing a career that follows in his father’s footsteps as a writer. Chaplin has written novels, non-fiction, plays, as well as for TV and theatre, and eventually returned to the North East, to the land the he loves best. The book’s story is told in 11 chapters with each one focused on a Newcastle match and meandering through what was going on at that point in the author’s life, as well as with the club. Each chapter ends with the match score, goal scorers, man of the match, and the song that would best encapsulate that time as its soundtrack. If you also love Newcastle United then this book is a must. If you like football and a good tale, you will probably love this. If you like a beautifully written, evocative memoir that takes you back - and by the second chapter it includes mentions of Lolly Gobble Choc Bombs and a visit to Piz Gloria on a school trip (without revealing it was Blofeld's hideout in the following year's Bond movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service!) - then you will enjoy this too.
September 6, 2025
Michael Chaplin is your stereo typical champagne socialist. He hangs around with the Islington elite luvvie brigade, has lived his life in the rich belt of Newcastle, Jesmond or Edinburgh or London. The book is well written and does spell out some great memories for NUFC fans like myself who was probably at all the matches he talks about however he spoils it by constantly trying to pretend he is working class or trying to align footballers to working class. He talks about Chris Hughton having wrote for the communist papers (Hughton was on 400k as a coach at NUFC and a lot more as a manager), he drops names in he has lunch with like Tony Blair (War Criminal) or Ken Livingstone ( a man so inept he was investigated for fraud before they found he had just wasted millions of tax payers money due to total incompetence) and thinks we think better of him for it. His final chapter calls Ashley rightly or wrongly and asks when the book was written how much Ashley's desired buy Joelinton is worth now! The answer history shows is a lot more than we bought him for, so perhaps the people Chaplin hates know more than him. Recommended for avid NUFC fans who live still believing that Labour ever did anything for the North east, otherwise avoid.
January 8, 2023
This book took me back to 1962 when I was 10 and saw my first Newcastle game.
The man with the wicker basket, the doors in brick walls and the press box perched precariously are all things I remember.
Standing in the crowd you surge forward if they are close to scoring and you climb backwards when they fail.
This is a must read for Newcastle fans of a certain age, or young fans who have only experienced seats.
Names of players I had forgotten and names you will never forget!
A wonderful book.
The man with the wicker basket, the doors in brick walls and the press box perched precariously are all things I remember.
Standing in the crowd you surge forward if they are close to scoring and you climb backwards when they fail.
This is a must read for Newcastle fans of a certain age, or young fans who have only experienced seats.
Names of players I had forgotten and names you will never forget!
A wonderful book.
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September 1, 2024Howay the Lads!
Makes me a bit sad that I had an opportunity around 2009 to fall in love with the club completely, and I still have the lime green third jersey from that season as proof, but happy to be in for life now. This book is a great reminder of how professional sports, which I despise for alot of things, can still be worth it. Shoutout to my nephew for reminding me about the good parts of being a fan 3 Christmases ago.
Makes me a bit sad that I had an opportunity around 2009 to fall in love with the club completely, and I still have the lime green third jersey from that season as proof, but happy to be in for life now. This book is a great reminder of how professional sports, which I despise for alot of things, can still be worth it. Shoutout to my nephew for reminding me about the good parts of being a fan 3 Christmases ago.
June 30, 2025
Perfect read for the off-season.
My God, we don’t know how good we’ve got it; I was turning page after page of us being absolute shite for seventy years!
It killed me whenever Chaplin would introduce a famous player like he was a Marvel superhero. Loved it.
My God, we don’t know how good we’ve got it; I was turning page after page of us being absolute shite for seventy years!
It killed me whenever Chaplin would introduce a famous player like he was a Marvel superhero. Loved it.
October 25, 2021
Probably a 3 and a half star book (would have been 4.5 if had been about Leeds)
I liked the evocation of time and place and the obvious passion displayed for club and city.
I liked the evocation of time and place and the obvious passion displayed for club and city.
July 8, 2022
Brought back some great memories of matches and decades past.
December 21, 2024
A great look at the life of Geordie and a honest supported
September 10, 2025
My dad would have loved this.
The further back you can remember, the more you will enjoy this book.
The further back you can remember, the more you will enjoy this book.
April 16, 2022
A nice walk down memory lane for any Newcastle fan who’s lived through the highs (Keegan and Robson) and the lows (lots), Chaplin tells the story of his love (and heart break) with Newcastle through 11 memorable matches in a Chronicle-reading-bloke-in-the-pub-on-a-Saturday-morning style
Really enjoyed reliving some of those great games and being reminded of some of the car crashes with snippets of forgotten small stories that happened at the time
Gave 4 stars because I’m a little biased as a Newcastle fan, but it’s probably more of a 3.5 as, if I’m being honest, I switched off a little for the family stories halfway through and the style maybe strays more into Chronicle-reading-bloke-in-the-pub-on-a-Saturday-evening-and-a-few-pints-down style
Would love him to add another chapter now the Saudis have taken over - perhaps the 2-3 first game with Spurs if he managed to get a ticket!
Really enjoyed reliving some of those great games and being reminded of some of the car crashes with snippets of forgotten small stories that happened at the time
Gave 4 stars because I’m a little biased as a Newcastle fan, but it’s probably more of a 3.5 as, if I’m being honest, I switched off a little for the family stories halfway through and the style maybe strays more into Chronicle-reading-bloke-in-the-pub-on-a-Saturday-evening-and-a-few-pints-down style
Would love him to add another chapter now the Saudis have taken over - perhaps the 2-3 first game with Spurs if he managed to get a ticket!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews