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FAREWELL TO THE BEAR
Pet Shop Boys pay tribute to ‘folk hero’ of Arsenal terraces
THOUSANDS of Arsenal fans have joined the Pet Shop Boys and the Sex Pistols in paying tribute to a terrace regular known for his near-religious dedication to following the club home and away.
Dainton Connell, 46, – known as The Bear – died late last Thursday in a car crash in Moscow.
In a double outpouring of grief, Gunners supporters and fans of the Pet Shops Boys – he worked for them as a bodyguard for over 20 years – have both passed their condolences onto his wife and three children.
But the most striking tribute came on Sunday when more than 1,000 fans turned up to Arsenal’s home match with Sunderland wearing black. They circled the Emirates Stadium waving flowers and teddy bears.
The Pet Shop Boys said they were “devastated” while the Sex Pistols John Lydon described him, on his website, as “a true Arsenal legend, sadly missed and very much loved.”
Mr Connell was named in a book on hooligans as the leader of a so-called ‘firm’ known as ‘The Gooners’ and reportedly had a fearsome reputation for bruising scraps at away fixtures in the 1970s and 1980s.
But friends said his notoriety came from a different age and that in his later years he had mellowed and was enjoying Arsenal’s resurgence at the top of the league.
“If you were an Arsenal fan, he was your friend, ” said one pal. “And that’s all that mattered.”... > more
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Time, please, landlady told as she hits 60
A PUB manageress who claims she lost her job because of “ageism” won backing from her former regulars this week.
Customers at the Whittington Stone pub, in Highgate Hill, Archway, have called on the brewery to give Beryl Scrimshaw her old job back. > more |
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Family history trail leads to Kew as centre nears closure - ENTHUSIASTS tracing their family history will be dealt a blow when part of a records centre closes... > more
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Coffee alert - A COFFEE day at Islington Fire Station next week will raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support. > more |
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