An archive of Wembley Stadium and Arena memorabilia 1921 to date. Anything of interest, let us know. Insta: wembleyarchive1923, Curator: Graham Cooksley
Welcome and thank you to new and old followers of our channel as we recently passed 2K. Two years ago when we started we would never have thought so many would be interested in the history and events held
@wembleystadium
& the
@OVOArena
Wembley and we have learnt so much as well.
On this day
#OTD
1987
@wembleystadium
. We were there:
#U2
play the second of two consecutive
#JoshuaTree
shows as part of their 1987 World Tour. Also the bill are the much missed Lou Reed and Shane MacGowan with The Pogues also opening act Lone Justice with Maria McKee. £17.50
On this day
#OTD
1970
@wembleystadium
: The Wembley Lions
#Speedway
team return to the Stadium and British League after thirteen years under auspices of promotor and ex-Wembley rider Trevor Redmond and Bernard Cottrell. Riding in front of 20K the reboot would only last two years.
@robertmdaws
Note how originally there were no external staircase towers on the end terraces, they were added after the events of the first
#FACup
. Also the familiar players tunnel to the left of the royal box had not been cut out of the terracing in 1923
#wembley100
From the
#wembleyarchive
: Collected
#newspaper
articles 1999-2002 featuring various designs and impressions of the new
#wembleystadium
. By July 99 the mast design was 'in' but took up too much floor space inside the stadium and resolved with an external arch
#wembley100
#PL
#EFL
Fascinating to hear that there is someone still alive who remembers the original
@wembleystadium
being built, would love to hear a longer interview if available
Majorie Hodnett is 110 years old on Easter Monday, she was a resident of Wembley and remembers the building of the stadium
@WembleyArchive
she’s interviewed by
@RogerJ_01
From our archive:
#Speedway
@wembleystadium
End of an Era dinner, 16/09/00. Menu, Ticket, Invite Letter and A4 Poster. 'Wembley and Speedway go together, like a husband and wife, and it is sad that in recent years (last held 1981) the two have divorced, but tonight a reunion'
On this day
#OTD
1986
@wembleystadium
. Chelsea
#CFC
beat
#MCFC
Manchester City in a 5-4 classic in the Full Members Cup Final. Unbelievably both teams played the day before, City 2-2 with Manchester United and Chelsea away at Southampton. Pay on the day entry attracts 67k
On this day
#OTD
1961
@wembleystadium
from our archive: International
#Ski
Jumping comes to Wembley over two consecutive days. The Ski Jump itself takes three days to errect. Snow is made from crushing blocks of ice and soft landing mats greet the forty Ski Jumpers taking part
From the
#wembleyarchive
: The expansion of the
#Wembleystadium
complex in the mid
#70s
saw the opening of the
#Wembley
Conference Centre in 1977. Featuring an auditorium with a capacity of 2500 the Centre was demolished in 2006 but directional signage is still evident
#wembley100
Welcome to new and recent followers and thank you to those still with us. We never thought over 1500 of you would have been interested in the history of
@wembleystadium
and
@OVOArena
Wembley when we started 18months ago and we have learnt so much along the way.
#Wembley100
From our
#wembleyarchive
: Press cutting advertising
#Prince
playing three nights
@OVOArena
in 1990 and you could have been there for £18.50, how much would this cost today?
#Prince
is one of those artists (and L. Cohen) we wish we had seen live, who did you miss out on?
On this day
#OTD
1950
@wembleystadium
. Willington and Bishop Auckland complete in the
#FA
Amateur Cup Final. In a re-run of the 1939 final played at
#Sunderland
's Roker Park, Willington ran out winners 4-0 in front of 90k.
On this day
#OTD
1952
@wembleystadium
. England v Belgium. Two goals from Billy Elliot and Nat Lofthouse and one from Redfern Froggatt give the hosts a 5-0 win in front of 68k skipping work and school for a 2pm Wednesday afternoon kick off.
#ENG
#ThreeLions
#PremierLeague
From our
#wembleyarchive
:
#Speedway
debuts
@wembleystadium
in 1929 and the first line up of the Wembley Lions racing team and maybe the original
#Lionesses
who rode 'occasionally'. The creation of a supporters club locking in fans is credited with saving Speedway at Wembley
From our
#wembleyarchive
: 1948
#London
#Olympics
official souvenir. 5 shillings for a large format 178 page magazine with excellent articles on Olympic sports, venues past and present and the previous 1908 London games, all topped off with a stunning cover.
On this day
#OTD
1993
@wembleystadium
connected by
@EE
.
#U2
bring their ZooTv tour to
#London
for four concerts intersped with dates in Leeds Glasgow and Cardiff (we were there). Featuring multiple screens projecting satelite links and video, Salman Rushtie is a surprise guest.
On this day
#OTD
1988
@wembleystadium
, not only from our archive but also our only
#FACup
Final attendance to date.
#Wimbledon
beat
#LiverpoolFC
#LFC
1-0 to win the Cup. Dave Beasant saves the first Cup final penalty and Lawrie Sanchez scores the winner
Normally you'd expect the two FA Cup final programmes to be the pick of any donation but not this gift from the late Dick Giddens
We were also given the two very hard to find
#cafc
war cup finals from 1943 and 1945, both in very good condition
On this day
#OTD
1969
@wembleystadium
. Third tier Swindon Town
#stfc
cause a major upset beating First division
#Arsenal
#afc
in the Football League Cup Final now
#caraboacupfinal
. Don Rogers scores twice in extra time on a infamous pitch made worse by horses during summer 68
On this day 1973
#OTD
@wembleystadium
, from our archive: Second division
#Sunderland
beat the mighty
#LeedsUnited
in one of the most famous
#FACup
Finals. Ian Porterfield scores the winner and keeper Jim Montgomery makes that infamous double save. Wembley’s jubilee year.
@robertmdaws
Watkins Folly as it became known was a failed attempt at creating an Eiffel Tower type attraction for London on the site of what became
#wembleystadium
. It reached no higher than the first level. The craters from the legs remain in the picture of the original post
#wembley100
@philharrison192
The craters are the footprints of Watkins Folly, originally designed as a tower to rival the one in Paris. The
#Wembleypark
version only got as high as the first level
1922 Construction brochure, 12x9.5inch 10pp, compliment slip and 7x5 press photo. Note no external staircases at the West and East ends, added after the 1923 final and the difference in the upper concrete terracing and the lower 'dug from the ground terracing
#Wembley
On this day
#OTD
1975
@wembleystadium
.
#Oxford
v
#Cambridge
#University
Football. The annual Varsity match took place at Wembley on various December dates from 1952 to 87. Without wishing to bore you with this fixture on an almost daily basis we will only feature notable games
#Onthisday
1985 Live Aid
@wembleystadium
.Not in our archive but used with thanks & permission. Production running order and info document.
#Queen
steal the show,
#U2
push the 15mins traffic light signals, Green =good, Orange =3mins, Red =1 min and off, to the limit
#wembley100
On this day
#OTD
1973
@wembleystadium
. The United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark celebrate joining the Common market with a football match against West Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, France and Luxembourg with 1966 managers Sir Alf Ramsey and Helmut Schon taking charge.
On this day
#OTD
1929
@wembleystadium
. The
#Rugby
#League
Challenge Cup Final is first held at Wembley. Wigan (13) and Dewsbury (2) attract 41K paying 10s6d for seats to 2s for terraces, gate receipts total £5,614, Jim Sullivan scores the first points
@Wigan_Heritage
@RL_Guru
From our
#wembleyarchive
. Built between November 1933 and July 1934
@OVOArena
Wembley turns 90 in 2024. Built at the western end of the former
#Britishempireexhibition
lake, not much excavation for the pool basin was needed with the lake doubling for boating and sun bathing.
On this day 1978
#OTD
@wembleystadium
, from our archive:
#Ipswich
Town beat Arsenal 1-0 through a Roger Osborne goal to win the
#FACup
in Wembley’s 50th final. 48page programme for a massive 50p, does anyone still have any of the Wembley merch?
Concluding 2023, back on April 28th, 100 years to the day from the opening of
@wembleystadium
and tweeting a timeline of all the major the events from that day culminating in the
#whitehorse
and
#BWFC
beating
#WHUFC
in the first Wembley
#FACup
final. Happy
#NewYear
2024