Visit the Champions Champions Corridor at Fratton Park for free!
Posted on 18th Apr 2023 by Colin Farmery
Fans can visit the club’s Champions Corridor for free this Sunday as the Pompey History Society stages its annual history day and programme fair in the Victory Lounge.
The 60m-long exhibition was pulled together by the society between 2019 and 2021 and tells the story of when the club were the best team in England in 1949 and 1950 through the eyes of the fans who were there at the time.
More than 40 of them were interviewed by society volunteers as part of the Pompey Champions of England book.
Supported by the Heritage Fund, as part of the project legacy every year the club and society opens its doors to allow the public to see the display which weaves together fan memories of the era with a timeline of the team’s march to two successive titles.
To book your space on one of the guided visits (10am-1.45pm) to the corridor click here. Please note access to the display, which is in the South Stand, involves climbing two flights of stairs.
In addition, the society is mounting a display of the effects of Dan Clarke, who was the club secretary in the immediate post-war period.
Colin Farmery, Chair of the society, said: “The Champions Corridor is a fantastic display and this is the perfect opportunity to appreciate it in full. The half-hour guided visits will allow the public browse it at their leisure and immerse themselves in an amazing period of the club's history.
“We are also really excited to be able to put Clarke’s effects on display to the public for the first time. He was at the heart of the club as it swept all before them back in the late 1940s and there are some items here which have been previously unseen.
“However, his story is a bitter-sweet one and Mick Comben from the society will be on hand to share it.”
The Pompey Pals charity will also be at the event and, in particular, will have a display of medals and memorabilia relating to AE Knight, who played for the club in the 1910s.
Chris Pennycook from the Pals added: “We will be telling the story of Arthur Egerton Knight and some of the Pompey Pals, accompanied by our First World War Soldier. We’ll also be telling the story of the Bombing of Portsmouth during the Second World War, accompanied by our ARP Warden.”
As well has being able to browse six programme and memorabilia stalls, there will also be the replica division one trophy on display in the Victory Lounge and fans can take a selfie with it in exchange for a small donation to the society, which is now a charity.
The society will also have Pompey Champions of England (£15) and signed copies of The Official History of Pompey Cards and Stickers (£15) available. The copies were signed by former players who came to the 125th anniversary game on April 1.