TV Not To Be Missed

It’s a common complaint that there’s now too much football on TV, but Friday evening’s schedule on BBC 2 promises a programme that simply cannot be missed by any supporter who has an interest in the history of the game, especially those who follow Manchester United or Burnley.It’s a common complaint that there’s now too much football on TV, but Friday evening’s schedule on BBC 2 promises a programme that simply cannot be missed by any supporter who has an interest in the history of the game, especially those who follow Manchester United or Burnley.

It shows archive footage taken in 1902 by pioneering film-makers Sagar Mitchell and James Kenyon during a Manchester United match at Burnley.

The film is part of a discovery in a derelict shop basement in Blackburn and is being screened tonight as part of the series ‘The Lost World of Mitchell and Kenyon’.

Mitchell and Kenyon lived in Blackburn and their footage provides a unique insight into life in late Victorian and early Edwardian Britain.

The football film was part of a set of 800 reels in all, containing more than 26 hours of footage, which was very nearly lost forever. Workmen clearing out a shop in Blackburn found a stash of sealed barrels, which were destined for the skip.

Please click here for tonight’s full BBC 2 schedule.