{"product_id":"9780571372546","title":"A Load of Old Balls","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe most improbable, fascinating and endlessly entertaining sporting facts and stories, from prehistory to the present day.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDid you know that Henry VIII owned the first pair of football boots? Or that David Attenborough is responsible for yellow tennis balls?\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA Load of Old Balls\u003c\/i\u003e is the curious story of us and sport. It's about our mind-blowingly determined attempts to be the fastest, the strongest, the most skillful. In this endlessly entertaining tale of play and belonging, astonishing violence and jaw-dropping cheating, we learn what led ancient Egyptian athletes to have their spleens removed and discover why Michael Palin was disqualified from a conker tournament. Crossing millennia, continents and cultures, Harkin and Ptaszynski - the brainy researchers for BBC's \u003ci\u003eQI\u003c\/i\u003e and co-hosts of \u003ci\u003eNo Such Thing As A Fish\u003c\/i\u003e - show us sport as we've never seen it before. \u003cb\u003e\"The trivia book of the season . . . magnificent.\" SPECTATOR\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e** Published in hardback as \u003ci\u003eEverything to Play For\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Faber \u0026 Faber","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59658469998924,"sku":"9780571372546","price":11.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0960\/4163\/2076\/files\/9780571372546-a00e745cddc91048_front.webp?v=1793375183","url":"https:\/\/foxandfable.com\/de-eu\/products\/9780571372546","provider":"Fox \u0026 Fable","version":"1.0","type":"link"}