Now the clue here was the team, Blackpool - and as for why, well the match between Blackpool and Blackburn Rovers in 1965 the last English league match to be played on Christmas Day. So that gives us the first of our Winter Sports links.
We are not sure why this long time practise ended, though some say it was because there were other, perhaps even better things to do. It certainly was not the cold, because it has slowly grown warmer, as you will find out later in the week. However the Christmas Day match was a big thing once, and, in 1888, Everton actually played two matches on that day, as well as one on Boxing Day.
Indeed on the 1925 set of British American Tobacco "Famous Footballers" the card of our man mentions "he has not missed a league match since Christmas Day of 1920"
If you look up this set, as Adventure Series of Coloured Photos of Star Footballers, in our original British Trade Index part I, it says “ADVENTURE (Periodical) – see D. C. THOMPSON. Once there, the title is listed slightly differently, as :
COLOURED PHOTOS OF STAR FOOTBALLERS. Md. 85 x 55. Coloured half-tones, glazed. Unnd (12)
Because they are unnumbered, a list follows, giving the names of all the players in alphabetical order. I did say that if I could not find that online I would scan it by the weekend, but I found something way better at 1920sHeaven - which even explains that the (12) in the set is not actually the truth.
In our updated British Trade Index it is listed as :
COLOURED PHOTOS OF STAR FOOTBALLERS. (AD). 1924. 85 x 55. Coloured half-tones, glazed. Unnd (12) See HT-21
HT-21 is the handbook and it is again a list of the players.
Now our man `s full name was George Wilfred Mee and he was born on the 12th of April 1900. And our card tells us that he was born in Nottingham, though it was actually Bulwell, in Nottinghamshire, not the county town. There are only three cards of George W. Mee at the Trading Card Database/GWM, but there is another, namely card 589 of Godfrey Phillips` "Pinnace Footballers", where he is also shown for Blackpool. Which begs the question, do you know of any more?
Now George had a younger brother, Bertram, born on December 25, 1918, and he eventually managed Arsenal. He seems not to have ever appeared on a cigarette card, unless you know of one, though he does appear in the 2016 series of Futera`s "Unique Arsenal - Mythicals Memorabilia". He can also be found on a modern set by Philip Neill, "Arsenal Double Legends of 1970-71", card 15/15.