An exciting day today as a team from Bradford Industrial Museum went to Birmingham to secure the loan of the original design drawing for the current FA Cup produced, by Bradford's own Fattorini & Sons, back in 1911. From tomorrow it will take pride of place in the exhibition When the FA Cup Came Home.

This image does not do it justice. Be sure to go and see it yourself.

When the FA Cup Came Home - Now Open

The exhibition celebrating the centenary of Bradford City's epic FA Cup win is now open! First comments are most encouraging. If you're going to Bradford Industrial Museum to see it, be sure to take your camera so you and your loved ones can be pictured with the team.

Glorious 1911: France and Belgium 2011 - Fully Booked!

Our trip to visit the final resting places of the nine Bradford City players killed during the Great War is now fully booked. However, if there is sufficient interest we may be able to offer a further eleven places. Though the price for the additional places will be under £300, until we contact Eurostar we cannot give a firm quote.

If you are interested in making the trip, please contact David Pendleton as soon as possible, either by email or by dropping into the bantamspast museum before home matches. We will make a decision on the additional places after the Shrewsbury match on 26 March.

The trip departs Bradford on the morning of Thursday 2 June and returns on the early evening of Sunday 5 June.

When the FA Cup Came Home - Setting Up

As you can see, preparations for the forthcoming exhibition at Bradford Industrial Museum are coming together well. When the FA Cup Came Home is open from Saturday, with a special viewing on Thursday 7 April (more on that to come). It's going to be good!

Glorious 1911 - Visit to France & Belgium 2011

If Glorious 1911 was Bradford's finest hour, then the years 1914-18 were the bleakest the city has ever faced. The fate of Bradford City's FA Cup winning captain Jimmy Speirs perhaps epitomises the era. In 1911 he held the glittering FA Cup aloft to the cheers of 100,000 people packed onto the streets of Bradford; six years later he lay dying in a muddy shell hole.

As we celebrate the centenary of Bradford City's greatest triumph we will also remember the nine Bradford City players who lost their lives in the Great War. As we have seen among that number was the captain and goalscorer in the 1911 FA Cup final, Jimmy Speirs. Also killed was the man-of-the-match of the FA Cup final Robert Torrance. Sadly, Torrance has no known grave and is thus commemorated among the 36,000 names on the Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing near Ypres, Belgium. Others with no known final resting place include City's England internationals Jimmy Conlin and Evelyn Lintott.

Bradford City fans will have an opportunity to visit the last resting places of the nine players during a trip to France and Belgium in June. As well as the nine players the visit will also take in Serre where the Bradford Pals attacked on the first day of the Battle of the Somme and the grave of Bradford Park Avenue's Donald Bell - the only professional footballer to be awarded the Victoria Cross.

The trip will take place between Thursday 2 June and Sunday 5 June 2011. People can book an early bird price of £270 if they pay before April. It includes all travel to and two nights accommodation in Lille and one night in Arras (including breakfast). The trip is strictly limited to twenty places and will be sold on a first come first served basis. To register interest please contact David Pendleton by email davidpendleton1@gmail.com or drop into the bantamspast museum at Valley Parade prior to home games.

Working on the FA Cup Came Home Exhibition

Things are really hotting up at Bradford Industrial Museum in readiness for the exhibition about Bradford City’s FA Cup triumph 100 years ago. On Tuesday we went across to Preston, to the National Football Museum (currently in the process of moving to Manchester) to collect a splendid Newcastle United shirt from the game.
Having been loaned the pristine City shirt of centre forward Frank O’Rourke, we now have an example from each team. How splendid they look!