Tommy Charlton pays emotional tribute to Jack and Bobby – and reveals why he missed the 1966 World Cup final
Tommy Charlton said his siblings Jack and Bobby “died as my brothers – not as famous footballers”, as he remembers the legacy they left behind.
Speaking to Sky News, Charlton shared memories of his brothers and his sadness since their deaths – as well as how he missed the 1966 World Cup final because he couldn’t afford the fare to Wembley.
Sir Bobby Charlton died last month at the age of 86 and is remembered as one of the heroes of England’s World Cup-winning 1996 squad.
His brother, and fellow World Cup winner, Jack died in 2020 aged 85, after a long career both on and off the football pitch.
“They were real big brothers,” Tommy said of Sir Bobby and Jack, telling Sky News he “hated it” when they left home to go and play football.
Jack, Tommy and Bobby Charlton
“I didn’t know what was happening,” he said.
“I didn’t know why he had to go away. I didn’t know why Jack had to go.
“My uncles, Jack, George, Jim and Stan all went away to play football, so I’ve experienced the fact that we had relatives who didn’t live at home. They had to travel all over the place playing football, and I was quite used to that.
“But when Bob left, I didn’t really understand it because it was my brother leaving, and it was like: ‘where’s he going?'”.
Tommy added: “They were my brothers, and I was proud of them. I always have been sincerely proud of my two brothers.”
The Charlton brothers with their mother – Jack, Tommy, Gordon and Bobby
England’s Jack Charlton and Sir Bobby Charlton
‘Heart-warming’ to hear from people
In the weeks since Sir Bobby’s death and the years since Jack died, Tommy said it has been heart-warming to hear people talk so fondly about his brothers, and expects people to line the route for Sir Bobby’s funeral this month.
“It’s been very heart-warming to have so many people telling me that they were really proud of Bob.
“I’ve never thought of Bob and Jack as anything but my brothers – they died as my brothers, not as famous footballers.
“And that is difficult for me. It’s difficult to separate the two. And it’s heart-warming to see that the number of people, thousands of people, telling me that they respected Bob and they respected Jack.”
Tommy said he expects people to line the procession route for Bobby’s funeral “and they’re going to clap”.
“Wonderful. That’s my brother they’re clapping.”
Sir Bobby and his mother. Pic: Daily Mail/Shutterstock
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘End of an era’: Fans pay tribute to Sir Bobby
‘He remembered the life’
The trio were brought up in Ashington, Northumberland, where Tommy explained despite their “hard” upbringing, Bobby never spoke ill of his home town.
“He always spoke in a proud way he always remembers those mates from Ashington, and he remembered the life.
“It was a hard life. We had a hard upbringing. My dad worked at the pit, he didn’t make a lot of money… Bob remembered that with pride.
“He didn’t speak in a derogatory manner about Ashington ever.”
Sir Bobby in Ashington after the Munich Air Crash. Pic: Daily Mail/Shutterstock
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘A champion on and off the pitch’
‘We both started crying’
Tommy recalled the last time he spoke to Sir Bobby on the phone before he died.
“It got to be that we only conversed on the telephone because I’ve stopped driving, and we used to meet at football matches… but Bob didn’t end up doing that,” he told Sky News.
“Bob never got very far.
“And I remember the last time I spoke to him. We were on the telephone, and he broke down and started crying while I was crying.
“His wife, after that, Norma, said, ‘it’s probably best not to put Bob on the phone’, so she kept us updated on how he was, and, well, she was a saint.”
Read more:
‘Never a more popular footballer’: Sir Bobby Charlton obituary
Sir Bobby Charlton was ‘forever a gentleman of English football’
England players including Sir Bobby and Jack Charlton, right, parading Wembley after winning the World Cup
Sir Bobby in his Manchester United days
‘It was just my brothers playing a game’
Despite both his brothers playing in the 1966 World Cup final, Tommy revealed to Sky News he never actually made it to Wembley to watch them.
“Before the final, Bob managed to get me a ticket to the final,” he said.
“And I lived in Ashington and Ashington is a long way from London. I’d never been to London. I’d very rarely been out of Ashington, if the truth was known.
“I didn’t have any money to get there. Nobody in the family had that sort of money, and I didn’t want to ask brother Jack to help me, because they had far too much on the plate at the time.
“And that was just not the thing that I was willing to do, so I watched the match at home on the TV, and, well, it was actually with my girlfriend at the time – it was at their house
“But I regret that now. I regret that I should have, actually got a bank loan or something to get there.
“But to me, it was just my brothers playing a game… it was playing for England again, you know?
“I don’t know what he probably makes of that.”
Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
Read more:
Sky’s Beth Rigby running marathon in honour of ‘dearest friend’
Badenoch does not rule out local coalitions with Reform
Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
Counter-terrorism police are investigating after an incident involving a crossbow and a firearm left two women injured in Leeds.
Police were called to Otley Road at 2.47pm on Saturday to reports of a “serious incident involving a man seen with weapons”, West Yorkshire Police said.
Officers arrived at the scene to find two women injured – and a 38-year-old man with a self-inflicted injury. All three were taken to hospital, with the man held under arrest, but their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
“Two weapons have been recovered from the scene, which were a crossbow and a firearm,” Counter Terrorism Policing North East said in a statement.
The incident happened on the ‘Otley Run’ pub crawl, with one venue saying it was closed for the evening due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Officers guard one of the crime scenes
Officers inside the cordon in Leeds
Counter Terrorism Policing’s statement added: “Due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, Counter Terrorism Policing North East have taken responsibility for leading the investigation with the support of West Yorkshire Police.
“Extensive enquiries continue to establish the full circumstances and explore any potential motivation.”
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described it as a “serious violent incident” and said she was being kept updated by police.
“Thank you to the police and emergency services for their swift response,” she said. “My thoughts are with the victims and all those affected by this attack.”
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway