Kettle’s On, Sit Yerself Down

**Kettle’s on. Sit yerself down.** This is the first episode from the shed. Stanley Common — a retired bobby from Lancashire, many years on the doorstep, now retired and saying his piece — introduces himself, and then turns his attention to the World Cup. Forty-eight nations, three host countries, and players being detained at the airport before a ball is kicked. Stanley asks a simple question that nobody at FIFA seems willing to answer: when you turn the world away at the door, can you really call it a World Cup? And whose fault is it — the man in the White House, or the people who handed him the tournament? Plus Bury market, Gigg Lane, jumpers for goalposts, and the difference between the people’s game and the other thing. The written version is on Substack at View from the shed. If you enjoy this, tell someone — it’s the best way to keep the shed light on.