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How long have you supported Everton?
Born not manufactured! All of my thirty-one years since 1991.
Who or what was responsible for being an Evertonian – or were you ‘chosen’?
Could be my sins in a past life, but my Dad is a Blue, so I blame him. His father was a Blue too.
First Everton game attended?
At home to Coventry in 1994, I was only two years old. We lost 0-2, Dion Dublin scored.
Most memorable match attended?
Probably the Arsenal game, when a certain sixteen-year-old walloped in a last-minute winner off the crossbar from thirty yards. I was only ten, and we all stuck around going nuts after the final whistle.
Where do you generally sit at Goodison?
I’ll always remember the feeling of walking out onto the Top Balcony with my Dad when I was really small. I’d cover my ears when goals went in back then, but these days I instinctively and loudly react to every kick of the ball, so I’m quite sure I belong on my feet in the Lower Gwladys.
At the Hall of Fame night held at the Adelphi Hotel in 2001, Lewis was the offical mascot onstage throughout the evening, helping to present the awards
What aspect of being an Evertonian do you like most?
It’s hard to narrow this down to one simple answer, Everton is all encompassing and I’d hate to be anything else. There’s a sense when you meet another Evertonian that you’ve found a family member. We’re loyal and proud beyond belief to this incredibly historic institution that has been so responsible for shaping the game as we know it. I live for that feeling of being in the middle of Goodison knowing that 40,000 noisy Scousers are instinctively experiencing the exact same emotions, just like so many generations before us. Even when we’re rubbish, we’re still better than all the rest.
In what year did you join EFCHS?
Summer of 2023. At the time of writing I’m the newest member and I’m very proud to have been welcomed into the Society to work alongside people I have huge respect for.
What is your particular area of interest or expertise in Everton’s history/heritage?
My career has been behind cameras and I love seeing the different ways in which so many people over the years have chosen to document this club that we all hold in our hearts, whether that’s through photographs, videos, books, memorabilia… I’m always interested in seeing aspects of the thing I love through other peoples eyes and through our shared passion.
What is your main activity/involvement with the Society?
I’m dedicated to filming reports on the Society’s wide range of social activities, as well as operating some of the social media pages, but I’ll primarily be creating documentaries to bring life to the countless incredible stories that so many of the members have to tell. I have read countless books and articles by EFCHS members over the years, and while I do love the written word, we live in an increasingly digital world, and I want to use my ability to give a different kind of platform to the tales of our club’s history, enabling them to be shared to many more people via the magic of the internet.
In your opinion, what is the best thing about the Society?
For me it’s the intricate knowledge of its members. While the society is responsible for so many brilliant things in the community that bring a great sense of pride, I find it amazing how each person can tell you something fascinating about the club that you had never heard before. Stories of players, fans, moments, decisions, occasions, there are endless insights into an ancient Blue history. It’s a bottomless pit of passionate stories on all sorts of toffee-related topics.
Your favourite Everton-related book?
There are a few shelves to choose from in my house, all of them have their place. I always enjoy biographies on my favourite players like Cahill and Big Dunc. James Corbett’s catalogue of work is fascinating, I often find myself dropping onto a page in Faith of our Families or the Everton Encyclopaedia. I think today’s favourite though is Ken Rogers’ Born not Manufactured. His deep understanding and passion for the club spanning so many decades of journalism really comes through in his writing, it’s an honour to be working along side him in the Society to be quite honest.
If you could travel in time, what match, before your lifetime of attending matches, would you choose to attend?
I’d do anything to see Everton win a cup final, I’m very envious of those who lived through our greatest years, but cup finals don’t happen at Goodison Park and it’s my favourite place in the world, so for that reason I’m going to say the semi final vs Bayern Munich in ’85.
The best player you have seen in Everton’s colours?
This is really tough – I’ve been more of an Everton sufferer in my time, so I think I’d have to categorise my answers haha! I saw Southall in goal when I was young so that has to count. It’s crazy to think I’ve watched players like Gazza and Ginola in our midfield, albeit in their twilight years, and I love that I’ve seen Samuel Eto’o score for the Toffees. But the best Everton player of my lifetime would be Wayne Rooney. I loved watching Mikel Arteta too, and I will always talk of the combined ability of Baines and Pienaar.
The player you wish that you could have seen, from the past?
We all want to see great creative midfield players and goal scorers, the Holy Trinity and Dixie are the obvious ones, but one of my favourite aspects about Evertonians and Goodison is our seemingly unique ability to celebrate big tackles louder than other teams celebrate goals. With that in mind I’d have loved to have watched Brian Labone from the Street End.
Anything else to add?
There was nothing wrong with that goal, and Pierluigi Collina was a dreadful referee.