This season is a special one for both myself (Roger Dickson) and Chris Winter, as we celebrate 40 continuous years of commentating from Selhurst Park – and, in my case, also from many grounds around the country.

It was in August 1962, with Palace’s season-opening match against Halifax Town, when broadcasts began from Selhurst Park to hospital patients at Croydon’s Mayday Hospital, now named Croydon University Hospital.

At this time, they were known as “Croydon Hospital Broadcasts”, made by four commentators: Roy Preston, Roy Topp, Steve Stuart and John Henty.

Dickson pictured with Henty, Eddie McGoldrick, Topp and Winter in a half-time presentation to celebrate 50 years of Radio Mayday broadcasting from Selhurst Park in April 2013

From a few seats at the back of the Main Stand in 1962, then later in 1965 to a new hut on top of the Park Road terracing, and organised by Dick Graham, commentaries were sent via Post Office landlines to Croydon General, Queens Park and Mayday Hospitals.

With promotion in 1969 and the construction of the new Arthur Wait Stand, the then-Chairman himself provided a purpose-built commentary box situated in the back corner of the stand at the Whitehorse Lane end. 

Over the course of the following decade, Croydon Hospital Broadcasts became part of Radio Mayday, the seven-day-a-week broadcasting service at Mayday Hospital.

From 1984, Chris and I took over the running of the commentary service. Using high-quality ISDN lines, links were developed to other Hospital Radio Stations over the country, enabling patients to follow matches when Palace played away, and also for supporters of teams playing at Selhurst Park to receive the commentaries in their own local hospitals across England.

The service continued to grow and in the 1990s, with the support of Selhurst Park’s groundsman, Bill Harrison, blind and partially sighted supporters were invited to attend home matches. 

Technical staff from Radio Mayday installed receivers and headsets on 12 seats in front of the commentary box, which were kindly provided free of charge by the club. At this time, links were developed with Redhill School for the blind.

Through this service, Selhurst was also able to accommodate blind supporters from visiting teams, many of whom became regular visitors each season when their teams played away.

Dickson and Winter in the commentary box in the back corner of the Arthur Wait Stand

The arrival of Charlton Athletic as ground-sharers at Selhurst in September 1985 meant there was football coverage every week for hospital patients. 

Five years later, John Laughland and Graham Kendall took over as commentators for the home matches of another temporary resident of Selhurst Park, Wimbledon, and in the 90s and early 2000s, I organised a number of bucket collections before and after both Palace and Wimbledon matches in SE25 to help boost the Mayday funds.

Over the past 40 years, Chris and I have been joined on the microphone for short periods by Gary Stevens (from 1991-94); Terry Murrell (1995-97), who painstakingly painted the commentary box with red and blue stripes; and Chris Clark. More recently, Andy Bull has joined to become a regular third voice on the microphone.

In 1999, we both received a certificate from Club President Peter Morley to acknowledge 15 years of commentating (below). The 2012/13 season marked the 50th anniversary of match commentaries at Selhurst Park, with both John Henty and Roy Topp returning to the ground to join us on the pitch and receive an award from Eddie McGoldrick (pictured above).

Peter Morley presents Winter and Dickson with certificates for 15 years of match commentaries at Selhurst in September 1999

In 2016, Chris, Andy and I received the “Equality Award” presented by Steve Parish and in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I was honoured to receive a “Disability Champion” award.

Sadly, in 2018, many hospital radio stations over the country closed down due lack of finances, coupled with the cost of bedside units increasing. This included the closure of Radio Mayday.

At a similar juncture, it was determined that the commentary box to that point would be demolished to make way for additional away supporters’ seats. We were instead provided with a new platform adjacent to the Press Box, from where our commentaries now continue via an internal loop, providing audio descriptive commentary for dour edicated blind, partially sighted and disabled supporters.

This season, we are delighted that the club have introduced the “GiveVision” headsets for our partially sighted fans, which have greatly enhanced their view of the games thus far.

Away from the microphones, over the years, Chris has written and illustrated three books on Palace: A Biased Commentary (1969-1990) and its sequel, which covers 1990-2011; as well as the Complete Biased Commentary (1969 – 2021).

As for myself, I have collected every home and away league and cup programme from the past 74 years, along with match reports, and I also own 85 percent of all home and away reserve programmes! My hope is to one day donate thes.e to the Palace Museum, planned for the new Main Stand development.

**Got a Selhurst story to tell? Let us know by emailing [selhurst100@cpfc.co.uk](mailto:selhurst100@cpfc.co.uk)!**

Selhurst Park isn’t just a Premier League football ground, but the heart of a vibrant and diverse community, whose stories stretch back a century. At this festive time of year, we hear from Roger Dickson (above, right) – an iconic voice of Selhurst Park whose association with the ground now stretches back four decades...

The story of Selhurst's Croydon Hospital Broadcasts

I became a Crystal Palace tragic on 23rd November, 2014. It’s an easy date to remember, trust me.

I was living in Western Sydney in Australia at the time and our Socceroos (our beloved national football team) had just participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup – the lowest FIFA-ranked country in attendance.

We didn’t win a game in our ‘Group of Death’ (Spain, Chile & Netherlands!), but that didn’t matter. We were in the World Cup – and it was awesome.

I remember watching Mile Jedinak taking a brilliant penalty against the Netherlands and hearing the commentator talking about how he captained a Premier League team, Crystal Palace. 

I went straight to Google, read about the Eagles’ amazing history, and waited patiently until the moment I could finally watch a game.

That moment came about on 23rd November, 2014, when Palace hosted Liverpool at Selhurst Park. What do you think the chances would have been that Mile Jedinak would score one of the greatest free-kicks in the history of the Premier League on that very night? Pretty good, as it turned out!

From that moment on, the mighty Crystal Palace was my team. 

I even travelled over 500 miles from Sydney to Melbourne to watch them take on Manchester United at the glorious Melbourne Cricket Ground in July 2022 – the same trip on which I proposed to my now wife, Morgan.

Fast forward to 2023, and my (soon-to-be) wife and I were not only planning our wedding, but also our honeymoon, of course.

We decided that London would be our first stop on our way through to Scotland and, as luck would have it, we found out we would be there at the same time Leicester City were visiting Selhurst Park on 1st April 2023.

I never thought I’d watch the Eagles at Selhurst, but Morgan decided that we should try and get there – we may never get another chance, after all! After becoming a Gold Member to make sure I could purchase tickets, at 10pm Sydney time, I managed to snag us some.

Morgan and I married on 25th March 2023, and three days later jumped on a plane to London to enjoy our honeymoon. April came around fast and Morgan and I – dressed in our Palace best – boarded a train at Liverpool Street Station and headed to SE25.

As the train started to fill with a sea of blue and red, it was hard to hide my excitement – even though we hadn’t won in 13 matches at that point! 

I didn’t care – we were almost there! We followed the crowd through the streets and then, like an oasis in the South London desert, there it was: Selhurst Park.

We found our seats, wide-eyed, and soaked in the atmosphere. The players ran onto the pitch and the singing started. It was absolutely incredible – there’s no sound like it in any football stadium in Australia.

The game kicked off – and Morgan and I were entranced.

This is where things get a little blurry for me, as the game was a whirlwind. I can’t confirm that I cursed him, but I hope wearing my Wilfried Zaha jersey had nothing to do with the groin injury which finished Wilf’s afternoon at half-time. I remember Morgan turning to me and saying: “We’re in trouble now, aren’t we?”

Leicester scored first, almost an hour in, and I thought that on potentially my only ever visit to Selhurst Park, I’d be seeing another loss.

Then, maybe three minutes later, Ebere Eze won a free-kick and took it – snagging us a goal back as it bounced off the woodwork, and then the ‘keeper, for a (technically) Daniel Iversen own goal. As if by magic, Morgan managed to snap a picture just as the ball crossed the line! We were back at 1-1 with 20 minutes to go.

Access All Over | Leicester (H)

Then, a moment I will never forget: Jean-Philippe Mateta’s winner in the 94th minute.

After getting subbed on less than 10 minutes earlier, Mateta controlled a brilliant ball from a rampaging Jordan Ayew and slotted it past Iversen, giving Palace our first win in 14 games.

Selhurst Park exploded with noise. We could feel the stand sway as the crowd jumped and chanted, Roy Hodgson was hailed in his first game back, and we got swept up in the moment. 

It was magic.

Here I was at Selhurst Park with my wife, on our honeymoon, watching Crystal Palace win in person – nearly a decade after I first fell in love with them from the other side of the world.

When we got back to our hotel in Central London, there was only one thing left to do: wear my brand new Selhurst jumper, and head out for a celebratory beer or five with my beautiful wife.

I hope someday I’ll be able to get back to Selhurst Park and watch the Eagles again, but will it ever be as special as the 1st April 2023, whilst on honeymoon?

It’ll be a hard act to follow, but we’re willing to take another 27-hour flight sometime soon to make sure!

**Got a Selhurst story to tell? Let us know by emailing [selhurst100@cpfc.co.uk](mailto:selhurst100@cpfc.co.uk), and you could see your submission in the official matchday programme!**

Selhurst Park isn’t just a Premier League football ground, but the heart of a vibrant and diverse community, whose stories stretch back a century. Here, we hear from Australian supporter Matt Perriman – recently celebrating a decade as an Eagle – about a trip to the stadium that he and his wife Morgan will never forget...

Mile, marriage & Mateta: Matt's decade as an Eagle

Allow us to introduce you, however, to the Prockters, around 39 of whom will be in attendance when [Crystal Palace face Nantes](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/news/announcement/crystal-palace-nantes-tickets-selhurst-park-pre-season-friendly/) at Selhurst Park this Sunday.

With some four or five generations of their family journeying to South London from as far as the West Midlands, Somerset and Gloucestershire – among their number nurses, doctors, bankers and architects, to name but a few – theirs will be among an almighty noise emanating from the Holmesdale Road Stand.

That 39 Prockters will be in attendance would be a feat worthy of celebrating itself – but the family’s connection to Crystal Palace runs even deeper.

Some four generations ago, George Prockter Jnr. – born 1862 – moved from the family’s previous home in Brighton to South Norwood, eventually settling on Holmesdale Road around the turn of the 20th century. 

With Selhurst Park yet to be built at that stage – the stadium officially opened in 1924 – there began a long association between the Prockters and the Palace.

Among those in attendance on Sunday will be Colin Prockter whose father, Charles, was born on Holmesdale Road in 1905, and attended some of Selhurst Park's first matches.

After spending much of his early life living on roads around the ground, and after a short time away, in 1969, Colin himself would move into a flat on the corner of Holmesdale and Park Road – the same building where graffiti artist [Mr Cenz’s iconic, colourful mural](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/news/club/meet-the-palace-fan-behind-selhursts-eye-catching-new-mural/) now adorns the wall – with their kitchen window overlooking Selhurst Park.

Alas, it was not too long before the construction of the Arthur Wait Stand construction obstructed his spectacular view.

Sunday’s family reunion at Selhurst seems more than fitting.

“We’ve probably only done it two or three times,” Colin Prockter – a retired actor who starred across a myriad of British stage and screen productions – says of the family reunions.

“It my son, who ironically was born in Gloucestershire, but has been a Palace supporter all his life, who said we ought to get the family together at a match. The only way we could do it really was to go to a friendly, because we don't have access to tickets that easily.

“It was his idea, and he Facebooked and contacted the family. I don't know what the current count is. I think it's gone up because others have joined – but there will be four of the five generations will be there!

“There are some of us coming from Gloucestershire, I think some from Oxfordshire, various people and in-laws… including my daughter's husband, whose father is a dyed in the wool Baggies supporter, so he says he’s going to hide!

“We’re not regular attenders so much, as I say, because we don't have many opportunities, but I've followed Palace all my life. I've been looking through old programmes, and the first one I've got is from 1957. 

"I started when I was 11 – so 67 years, I've been a Palace supporter.”

We all follow avidly – and we rejoice, and we mourn!

Although Sunday’s is not a competitive fixture, Palace’s match against Nantes marks a final opportunity for Oliver Glasner’s team to build on their recent performances and gear up towards their Premier League opener the following weekend.

As such, an entertaining game is expected – but which Prockter does Colin expect will be cheering loudest come Sunday afternoon? “I would say undoubtedly the Kent branch!” he laughs.

“My nephew Trevor, and his sons and his grandsons are probably the biggest supporters, because they're local and they can get to see matches. But we all follow avidly – and we rejoice, and we mourn!

“I suppose one of my favourite players was Don Rogers. I met him some years ago on the rubber chicken circuit, as we used to call it.

“I was an actor in my time, and at one time, I was in Coronation Street for quite a long stretch, so I did these sort of strange celebrity dinner things, and I met Don at one of them and became a pal for a certain length of time.

“I haven't seen him for years, but he was one of the players that I admired most, I think – and Johnny Byrne, right back at the beginning.”

As for the day itself, and with a glorious weather forecast expected for Sunday, will the Prockters be making the most of a somewhat rare – at least this year – summer’s day in South London?

“We’ll try to meet somewhere to have a picnic before we come to the ground,” Colin smiles. “That should be absolute mayhem – but great fun.

“If we’ve got time, I’ll walk around the ground with the family and show them where my father was born, and where it all started. Right up until 1980, I lived all around the ground.

“I would occasionally be sitting at home and see the floodlights go on, because in those days, every match was played at Selhurst Park, and I'd creep out and say, ‘oh, I'll go and see a junior match or go and see the reserves!’”

As for the day itself: “A couple of goals would be very nice!” he laughs.

“It'll be wonderful because we’re such a huge group. I'm one of five children and then, my parents' grandchildren… I think there's 16 of them… and then there's a generation after that… so it's a huge, huge family!

“It’ll be lovely to see those people that we don't see very often. But thanks to my son, Ali, who went round and organised all this. It'll be great.”

Let’s hope Palace can further smiles to the Prockter family faces come the full-time whistle.

**Supporters can head down to see Glasner’s side in their final pre-season fixture this Sunday (11th August, 15:00 BST) from as little as £5, with [tickets NOW ON SALE here](https://www.eticketing.co.uk/cpfc/EDP/Event/Index/423?position=&utm_source=PALACEFC&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=webstory_nantestickets_040724).**

When thinking up a venue for a family reunion, a few ideas likely spring straight to mind: maybe a village hall, a park for a nice picnic, or even somebody’s back garden in which to fire up the barbecue and celebrate in sunshine.

Meet the Prockters: 39-strong family set for Selhurst Park reunion

Organizado por Paramount+, el titular de los derechos de la Premier League en México y Centroamérica, el [**Premier League Fan Tour**](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.lapremierenparamount.com/) reunirá a los fanáticos de México para celebrar el espectáculo del fútbol inglés de primer nivel.

Tras la popularidad del Águila Challenger en la [**Premier League Stateside Live**](https://www-cpfc-co-uk.translate.goog/news/club/pictures-crystal-palace-premier-league-mornings-live/?_x_tr_sl=en&_x_tr_tl=es&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp) a principios de este año, Palace, en colaboración con el centro de conservación fundado en 1996, estará representado por un águila real llamada Maya.

Los seguidores que asistan al evento podrán tomarse una fotografía junto a Maya y su cuidador, mientras aprenden más sobre el ave rapaz y el centro que la cuida.

El evento Paramount+ Fan Tour se llevará a cabo en el Parque Rufino Tamayo en Monterrey, la segunda ciudad más grande de México, entre las 09:00 y las 16:00 hora local CST del sábado (21 de octubre).

Los fanáticos que asistan pueden disfrutar de desafíos futbolísticos, camiones de comida, zonas para fanáticos, oportunidades para tomar fotografías, obsequios y premios, y apariciones de leyendas de la Premier League.

También habrá proyecciones de los partidos en vivo del sábado, Chelsea contra Arsenal (10:30 hora local) y Sheffield United contra Manchester United (13:00 hora local), y repeticiones completas de los partidos, incluido el viaje de Crystal Palace a Newcastle United.

**El evento es gratuito, pero requiere entrada, por lo que [los seguidores deberán hacer clic aquí para registrarse con anticipación](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.lapremierenparamount.com/) , ya que los espacios son limitados.**

Registrar aquí

Regístrese para saber más de Crystal Palace

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="es" dir="ltr">Si vives en <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Monterrey?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Monterrey</a> esto te interesa 😎<br><br>El crack colombiano, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JeffersonLerma?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JeffersonLerma</a> y la banda del <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CrystalPalace?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CrystalPalace</a> te invitan a una carnita asada este fin de semana 🥩.<br><br>Regístrate en <a href="https://t.co/nTWv0OGJBY">https://t.co/nTWv0OGJBY</a> y vive la experiencia del <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FanTour?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FanTour</a> este 21 de octubre ¡Totalmente gratis 😌! <a href="https://t.co/vwoBYMDm96">pic.twitter.com/vwoBYMDm96</a></p>&mdash; Paramount+ México (@ParamountPlusMX) <a href="https://twitter.com/ParamountPlusMX/status/1714808590580793635?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

**El Centro de Reproducción y Conservación Ernesto Gamiz Brito, una organización** sin fines de lucro, se dedica a la conservación y protección de aves rapaces desde 1996, además de educar al público a través de su contenido popular en [**TikTok**](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.tiktok.com/@raptorbehavior?lang%3Den) (1,4 millones de seguidores), [**Instagram**](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.instagram.com/raptor_behavior/) (395k ), [**Facebook**](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.facebook.com/RaptorBehavior/) (324k) y [**YouTube**](https://translate.google.com/website?sl=en&tl=es&hl=en&client=webapp&u=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWtnAPjxK7_ZMHdGfRRqj-A) (171k) bajo el nombre 'Raptor Behavior'.

Con sede en Aguascalientes, el Centro alberga aves que no pueden ser devueltas a su hábitat natural, dándoles refugio y una segunda oportunidad de vida, y transformándolas en embajadoras de su especie. Los ejemplares se ponen bajo la supervisión y cuidado de expertos, médicos y veterinarios.

Su programa de concienciación medioambiental, “Alas para la educación”, ha visitado a más de 1.000.000 de estudiantes durante la última década para enseñar a las generaciones futuras la importancia de cuidar y proteger toda la vida natural.

Las aves rapaces del Centro han aparecido en todo el mundo, incluidos Estados Unidos, Argentina, Portugal y Filipinas.

**¿Quieres saber más sobre el Palacio de Cristal? [Haga clic aquí](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/palace-tv/when-eagles-dare/) para ver nuestro documental, [When Eagles Dare](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/palace-tv/when-eagles-dare/).**

When Eagles Dare Part 1: Back from the Brink | Palace TV+

Crystal Palace estará representado por una nueva Águila – Maya, del Centro de Reproducción y Conservación Ernesto Gamiz Brito AC – en el Fan Tour de la Premier League de este sábado en Monterrey, México.

Club

Club

The story of Selhurst's Croydon Hospital Broadcasts

Mile, marriage & Mateta: Matt's decade as an Eagle

Supporters

Meet the Prockters: 39-strong family set for Selhurst Park reunion

Features

El Águila Maya representará a Palace en el Fan Tour de la Premier League

Club