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Jonny Hurst (born 11 June 1966), originally from Solihull, Birmingham,[1] latterly Wanstead, north London, is England's first (and to date only) Chant Laureate.

Barclaycard set up the competition to choose a Chant Laureate, who would be paid £10,000 to tour Premiership stadiums and compose football chants for the 2004–5 football season. The judging panel was chaired by the Poet Laureate, Andrew Motion, who said "What we felt we were tapping into was a huge reservoir of folk poetry." Ironically, Hurst, a Birmingham City fan, composed the winning entry about Birmingham's local rivals Aston Villa. The chant, sung to the tune of Barry Manilow's Copacabana, refers to that club's star player, Juan Pablo Ángel.[2] Some 1,500 people applied for the role.[3]

A veteran of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Canal Cafe Theatre NewsRevue,[4] Jonny Hurst is both a comedy writer and a lawyer.

He published his first book, 'Becoming a Lawyer', in July 2013.[5]

References

  1. ^ "The Poetry of 'Gimme an A! Gimme an S! Gimme a T!'". New York Times. 4 December 2004. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Football's first Chant Laureate". BBC News. 11 May 2004. Retrieved 13 November 2009.
  3. ^ "Bard of the Boots keeps singing the Blues". The Guardian. 11 May 2004. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  4. ^ "The Poetry of 'Gimme an A! Gimme an S! Gimme a T!'". New York Times. 4 December 2004. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  5. ^ "Becoming a Lawyer: Is Law Really the Career for You?". BPP Learning Media. 26 July 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2021.


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