Trust team up with the Storytellers of Nottingham

Do you have a football story to tell?

Perhaps you have a particular recollection of a former player or manager, an anecdote from the dressing room or a tale of elation or utter despair from your time supporting the Magpies?

From this season the Supporters’ Trust are teaming up with the Storytellers of Nottingham – a local group of writers and performers - to try and capture some of your memories, with the aim being to share these to a wider audience whether through performance, an exhibition, publishing a collection of stories or having the stories printed in the match programme (or possibly all or some of these things).

Having met Pete Davis who runs the Storytellers of Nottingham he was keen to emphasize that one his group’s aims is to try and preserve the ancient art of storytelling, both by promoting storytelling (they meet monthly at Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem to tell yarns on a host of themes from ghosts to crime, and supernatural stirrings to drinking tales) and by encouraging others to have a go at storytelling through running workshops.

In many ways football and storytelling is an ideal marriage. As supporters we all love talking football – for some the narrative of football is a kind of male therapy, for others it is the celebration of what it is to be a fan. Like football, storytelling is a game of two halves – firstly you must write (or record) the story and then you perform it for your audience.

From the start of the new season Pete and his team will coming down to Meadow Lane on match-days to encourage children and adults to share their football memories and stories. We have already got a number of ideas in the pipeline in terms of how best to preserve and promote these stories to a wider audience, but we are also keen to hear from you. If you have got any suggestions – perhaps we could run a story-writing competition for younger supporters or get current and former players to tell us their stories – or would like to get involved please get in touch.

For more information on the Storytellers of Nottingham, visit their website: http://www.storytellersofnottingham.co.uk/