Bill Gardner (born 29 January 1954) is an English football supporter, former football

hooligan Hooliganism is disruptive or unlawful behavior such as rioting, bullying and vandalism, usually in connection with crowds at sporting events. Etymology There are several theories regarding the origin of the word ''hooliganism,'' which is a d ...

and co-author of books on football hooliganism. Born in

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, Gardner came to prominence in the 1970s as a supporter of

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

and as a member of the Mile End Boys and not

firm A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

, the I.C.F. Gardner was arrested by the

Metropolitan police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

in 1987 as part of Operation Fulltime. The aim of this police operation was to bring football hooligans to justice. Following a renewed interest by the public in the 21st century in

football hooliganism Football hooliganism, also known as soccer hooliganism, football rioting or soccer rioting, constitutes violence and other destructive behaviours perpetrated by spectators at association football events. Football hooliganism normally involves ...

of the 1970s and 1980s, Gardner featured prominently on the cover of fellow I.C.F. member

Cass Pennant Carol "Cass" Pennant (born 3 March 1958), is an English writer and former football hooligan. Background Pennant's mother emigrated from Jamaica while pregnant and he was born in Doncaster, Yorkshire. Six weeks old, he was abandoned and was plac ...

's 2003 book "''Congratulations, You Have Just Met the I. C. F''." In 2005 Gardner published his autobiography "''Good Afternoon, Gentlemen, the Name's Bill Gardner''" detailing his involvement in hooliganism. The book was co-written with Cass Pennant. Gardner was portrayed by Stuart Moore in the 2007 film ''

Rise of the Footsoldier ''Rise of the Footsoldier'' is a British crime and gangster film franchise written and directed by Julian Gilbey, Will Gilbey, Ricci Harnett, Zackary Adler, Andrew Loveday and Nick Nevern, distributed by Optimum Releasing. The franchise and i ...

'' which details the life of another member of the I.C.F.,

Carlton Leach Carlton Leach is an author, occasional actor, and a former criminal. Early life Leach was born in Canning Town. A fan of West Ham United F.C., he became involved in the Inter City Firm, a gang of hooligans who followed the East London club. ...

. The film shows an incident involving Gardner and the I.C.F. fighting supporters of

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

, the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

, on the terraces at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

where he starts a fight by throwing a hot

Bovril Bovril is the trademarked name of a thick and salty meat extract paste similar to a yeast extract, developed in the 1870s by John Lawson Johnston. It is sold in a distinctive bulbous jar, and as cubes and granules. Bovril is owned and distribut ...

drink over an opposing fan. This mirrors a real life incident where Gardner himself had hot tea thrown over him by Manchester United fans. In 2020, Gardner published another autobiography "''Bill Gardner: The Man, The Myth, The Legend''", written with Abe Atchia. The book details the abuses and crime in his life.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Bill Living people Association football supporters 1954 births People from Hornchurch English autobiographers West Ham United F.C. Organized crime memoirists Former hooligans