Ben Thornley autobiography “Tackled”

Commissioned to photograph Ben at Old Trafford Manchester.

About the book

Ben Thornley was the standout player when the Class of '92 won the FA Youth Cup? David Beckham? Paul Scholes? Ryan Giggs? Think again. Tackled: The Class of '92 Star Who Never Got to Graduate is the compelling autobiography of a teenager who had the world at his feet, only for one tackle to shatter his knee - and his dreams of playing for Manchester United.

About the shoot

We had just two hours at the Manchester United stadium, that included setting up and shooting between the tour guides and fan tours. The designer‘s brief explained the image could either be a full landscape bleed so the book jacket could be a wrap around. Therefore composition needed to be balanced to the right and image should show we were at the Old Trafford. Portrait shape cover options were also requested as well as a variation of images for Press/Pr media with Ben and the author Dan Poole. As the story was how Ben’s future was dramatically changed, I felt a more serious mood and feel for the cover would work best.