Card of the Day - 2023-10-21

Kiddys Favourites Popular Footballers
Kiddy`s Favourites Ltd. [trade : confectionery : UK] "Popular Footballers" (1948) 20/52 - KID-140.1 : KHM-5.1

The clue here was that Billy Wright played for Wolverhampton Wanderers, also known as Wolves. They started in 1877, but they were then called St. Luke's Football Club. However, two years later, they were renamed to Wolverhampton Wanderers, and in 1888 they were one of the teams which founded the Football League.

As to how the wolves got involved, some say it was a natural shortening of the team name and the discovery that the first five letters almost made the whole of Wolves, which also gave them a spirit animal/mascot. But a wolf only leapt (quite literally) on to their badge in the 1960s, and gained two other leaping wolves in the mid 1970s. They were then thought a bit too busy, and so in 1979 they were changed to the single wolf`s head we know today

But there is also another connection, because Wolverhampton is named after Lady Wulfrun - who was given this section of land, later called Wolvrenehamptonia, by Ethelred the Unready in 985. 

Kiddy`s Favourites is often thought to be a brand but it was actually a limited company. Their address, 128 Hope Street, Glasgow C.2, is a pretty famous address because at one time the wife of the artist Charles Rennie Mackintosh had a studio there, with her sister. 

The header for the company in our British Trade Index part II, RB.27, issued in 1969, tells us that the cards were "issued about 1948-52, as singles, joined pairs, or stapled in batches in booklet form. Premiums offered for complete sets. Small size, very variable, about 63-69 x 38-50 m/m". The premiums were gifts, and included a proper football, quite an incentive to a young boy, at that time. The fact that they were issued in "joined pairs" explains the "very variable" exactly - as in why often some cards are slimmer than others, and also why the back description has a tendency to not be centred exactly. It`s all, as they say, in the trimming, and as these cards were designed for children, you can understand they did not, or could not, wield the scissors in the careful way an adult would. 

Our set is described, scantly, as :

POPULAR FOOTBALLERS - Sm. Nd. (52) ... KHM-5

However that gives us space to tell you that at that time it was recorded that the company issued eight sets, all but one of which started with the word "Popular". They appear as : 

  • NEW POPULAR FILM STARS. Sm. Nd. (52) ... KHM-1
  • "POPULAR" BOXERS. Sm. Nd. (52) ... KHM-2
  • "POPULAR" CRICKETERS. Sm. Nd. (52) See D.353 ... KHM-3
  • "POPULAR" FILM STARS. Sm. Nd. (? 65). Two portraits at No.65 (Adele Jergens) - (1) side-face to L (2) full face ... KHM-4
  • POPULAR FOOTBALLERS. Sm. Nd. (52) ... KHM-5
  • POPULAR OLYMPICS. Sm. Nd. (52) ... KHM-6
  • POPULAR PLAYERS. Sm. Footballers. Nd.  ... KHM-7
        1. Five red hearts at top of front (75)
        2. Three red shamrocks at top of front (52). 
  • "POPULAR" SPEEDWAY RIDERS. Sm. Nd. (52) See D.353 ... KHM-8

The two sets which appear at D.353 in the back of the British Trade Index part II, namely "Cricketers" and "Speedway Riders", were not actually issued by another company, as usual with a "D" code, but they are known in an anonymous printing, having green borders and black captions. It seems strange that only these two sets were printed in that way, but more information may come to light.

There is an update in British Trade Index part III, rather confusingly telling us that the "Popular Speedway Riders captions are in (a) green (b) grey-black". This could just mean that the usual caption was green and the anonymous version grey-black, adding the information in from D.353, but if so then why not mention that this also applied to the "Cricketers"? 

Another update occurs with our Trade Index part 4, and this regards our set. I have scanned this listing, after trying, and failing, to work out how to use the table function (again) - and here it is :

Kiddys list

In our updated British Trade Index, there has been a change in both the order of the sets, and in  the details of our set. The listing now reads : 

  • FAMOUS RAILWAY ENGINES 55 x 32-34. Cards anonymous outside titled booklets. In a) black b) mauve. Nd. (48) ... KID-020
  • FOOTBALL STARS. 1947. Have 3-4 stars a) black b) red across top of front Nd. (52), between 53-120, as follows 53/7, 59/65, 67/70, 72/6, 79/81, 83/5, 87/8, 91, 93/5, 97/111, 113/5, 120 (52). Anonymous, 2 issues a) normal card b) curved edges, rounded corners. No.70, MacPhail, found die-cut with shorts a) blue b)white  ... KID-040
  • INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALLERS. 1951. 55 x 32. Nd. (48). Issued in booklets holding 8 cards. Title taken from booklet. Back "Kiddy`s Favourites Ltd., 128 Hope Street, Glasgow, C.2". Cards anonymous. As set of 52 "Popular Footballers", but numbering changed. See HK-29 ... KID-60
  • NEW POPULAR FILM STARS. 1950. Nd. (52) ... KID-070
  • "POPULAR" BOXERS. 1950. 63-67 x 38. Nd. (50). No.10 has black border front & back ... KID-080
  • "POPULAR" CRICKETERS. 1948. 67-70 x 37-39. Nd. (52) See HX-149. Seven of these cards have mis-spelt names. Booklet "Collect these Series of Famous Sportsmen" ... KID-100
  • "POPULAR" FILM STARS. 1950. Nd. (65). No.65, Jergens, found a) facing left b) facing right ... KID-120
  • POPULAR FOOTBALLERS. 1948. KID-140
       1. 65-66 x 36-38. Nd. (52). No.52, Lowrie, is not an "International", name in different type face, with cancelled back. 
       2. Size as above, no title, back "Buy `Yanky` Bubble Gum - it`s best", on a) blue, b) pink board. Unnd.  (14 known). See HK-30. Sm. Nd. (52)
  • POPULAR FOOTBALLERS. 55 x 32. Five red hearts across top of front. Nd.as "Series of 75", only 52 issued. Nos. omitted 10/11, 13, 19/20, 25/9, 34/8, 44/6, 50/2, 65, 73. Issued in booklets of 10. KID-160
  • POPULAR OLYMPICS. 1948. 64-66 x 38-/40. Nd. (52), a) with b) without "Cancelled" on back ... KID-180
  • POPULAR PLAYERS. 1950. Nd. Three red shamrocks at top of front. 66-67 x 41 (52).  ... KID-190
  • "POPULAR" SPEEDWAY RIDERS. 1950. Nd. (52) Captions in a) green  b) grey-black. See HX-150. Back a) normal descriptive, b) . Buy `Yanky` Bubble Gum - it`s best". ... KID-200

The H references lead you to the updated handbook, which I will get in a minute. 

  • HK-30 simply lists the fourteen "Popular Footballers" known, and does not include whether they are A or B, so I will stick with the scan of those which appears further up this page. 

By the way the cards which were issued in a booklet which bore the issuer`s name may have been listed somewhere in the early British Trade Indexes under anonymous, and given a "Z" number, and one day I may hit upon them.

And reader John Levitt tells us that you can read a whole lot more about our set at The Cartophilic Info Blogspot/KF 

He also points out that the wrappers quote slightly different titles to those printed on the cards, and that our set "Popular Footballers" is actually quoted as "Club Footballers". Does anyone know more about this?