Hillsborough Disaster Memories

Image: BBCNews

Remember the 96
22 years ago today, 96 people lost their lives in one of Britain’s worst football tragedies in what became known as The Hillsborough Disaster. They were died at Hillsborough Stadium in an F.A. Cup game between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, not due to any form of football related violence, but due to a human crush brought on by poor policing.

Fans poured into the terrace through a narrow tunnel at the rear, unaware that those at the front of the “standing pens” as they were known, had nowhere to go. A crush developed and people were so tightly packed in that many died standing up of compressive asphyxia next to their loved ones.

Watching the disaster unfold on the television is not something one can forget. I was only 15 at the time, and at first you thought: here we go again, another English football hooligan mess kicking off. But it soon became apparent by the people’s faces who were trapped behind the tall wire meshes, that there was something else going on. As people fought desperately to get over the fence or onto the upper tier, ambulances filed onto the pitch to try and help those that could make it out. Not many did.

The whole thing was horrible and it chokes me up somewhat just remembering it now to write about it. The government report that followed led to all-seated stadia requirements in the UK and changes in the way sporting events were ticketed and policed. In short, it was a defining moment in British sporting history.

So spare a thought today for those 96 souls that were lost on 15th April 1989. They thought they were going to watch a football match and ended up dying next to friends and family in the full glare of the media, trapped by a metal fence so tall and strong that nobody, not even the ones standing centimetres away, could help them.

A New Scene
On my last midweek morning visit to a coffee shop for a few days, I wrote out the final missing scene needed to complete GREENER IS THE GRASS yesterday. Compared to the problems I’ve suffered lately with BACCARA BURNING, I was able to slot back into the rhythm and tone of this book easily. I knew exactly where I was and where I had to take it, and I hadn’t touched the manuscript for weeks since it went out to trusted readers.

The scene sits in my notebook and I’ll type it up into the manuscript over the course of the weekend. I’ll then print it off and give it its final read and polish next week.

Kindle has Arrived
I spent last night dealing with Kindle. With all my books now available in the Kindle format, I needed to start making some changes to my main website. I’m putting together some specific marketing for this, but the first step was to setup a dedicated Kindle page where readers can get all the ebooks.

And here is my new dedicated Kindle page: http://www.colingalbraith.co.uk/kindle.html

The addition of this page also included reviewing the purchase links for all my other books and formats. It’s now much easier and clearer when readers want to purchase the paperback, ebook or Kindle formats, how to do it and how much it will cost.

For example, the Kindle books all start at £1.14! I applied for them to be available at 99p but the system added VAT on automatically. I’ll try and get the price down even further to 99p all in. Only because I love you all.

And To Today
Big day today. The day job is going to take up a fair chunk today, but out-with that I want to finish GREENER IS THE GRASS and have it ready for printing, finalise the plan for the Kindle ebook marketing launch, and prepare and update the second edition of SELEKTION for this years Poetry Superhighway Free-For-All.

Friday Vid
Have you stopped laughing at last week’s Friday Vid yet? It still makes me smile. Here’s another cracker that should brighten your Friday morning. Watch carefully as the streaker meets his fate when one of the players sees red. If can’t see this video on the page, please click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUtiCXQNJks

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUtiCXQNJks

Free Ebooks Giveaway on Twitter
Time is running out in my special Twitter giveaway. I’m giving away ALL my published ebooks for free to the 1000th person to follow me on Twitter. Not only that, but a randomly selected follower from between Friday 1st April right up to the 1000 mark, will also win the same prize! Click here for full details of the great Twitter Ebook Giveaway.

SPECIAL OFFERS
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Get 25% off STELLA, my spy novella with a twist, when you order the e-book from the publisher’s website at www.eternalpress.biz. Simply quote 612JMZN67VZX at checkout.