All episodes:
Series One
In our opening episode, host Jarek Zaba wanders the streets of Tolworth Broadway to find out just how much the man and woman on the street know about their local football side, Corinthian-Casuals FC. An apparent lack of local knowledge is contrasted to São Paulo resident Rafael Pedroso, an enthusiastic recent visitor to Tolworth, while first team manager James Bracken explains more about the challenges of running an entirely amateur football side in a largely semi professional league. In episode 02 of Broadway To Brazil, the team connect the dots between the Victorian era, where the original Corinthian FC were almost the Harlem Globetrotters of their time, to the present day, which has seen Corinthian-Casuals continuously struggle to secure its own future. Father and son cricketing legends Alec and Micky Stewart explain their links to the club, while ex-player and Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler helps paint a picture of proud amateurs playing for the love of the game. Full transcripts of these interviews can be found on our articles page. In the 2017/18 season the Corinthian-Casuals first team, led by charismatic manager James Bracken, defied the odds and challenged for promotion despite not paying their players. This episode explores the short yet success-ridden coaching career of Bracken thus far, including two recent heartbreaking seasons at the Casuals, speaking to players past and present – as well as a big name visitor in the form of Stan Collymore – to try and establish just what it is that has enabled the young coach to propel the team up the league. Having looked at the on-field success yielded by the club’s players and management, Broadway to Brazil was also there to explore the Corinthian-Casuals’ tight knit community of volunteers, whose behind-the-scenes devotion ensures the club’s survival week in week out. From beanie hats to pitch maintenance via cheesy chips and stadium construction, this bumper length episode is a tribute to the unsung heroes of non league football whose incredible efforts keep clubs like the Casuals alive across the country. Broadway to Brazil is there to chronicle the thrilling conclusion to the 2017/18, as Corinthian-Casuals aim for promotion to the Bostik Premier Division following heartbreak in the previous two years. Late goals, penalty shoot drama and unexpected twists and turns all contribute to a rollercoaster ride. To help tell the tale, the podcast delves deeper into a fanbase that has grown significantly since it was once just one man and his infant son behind the goal. From South Africa to Japan, via a hugely significant stop in Brazil, these tales more than any other underline just why the Casuals are such a unique entity in English non league football. After Jarek recounts how Corinth’s original journeys led to the birth of a São Paulo club who became champions of the world, Dominic catches up with former players who had the fortune of touring far flung corners of the globe while representing the pink and brown. To conclude the series we hear from a wide range of Brazilian voices who express their joy of visiting a small ground just around the corner from Tolworth Broadway. In June 2019 the Corinthian-Casuals were given a special opportunity to travel to Hungary to participate in the inaugural Egri Erbstein Tournament and compete for the new Corinthian Cup. Broadway to Budapest travelled with the club for a bonus episode, telling the story of the tournament’s origins with one of football’s forgotten pioneers, and covering the action as James Bracken aims to win his first ever Corinthian-Casuals trophy.1. Broadway to Brazil
2. Crush The Shamateurs
3. Bracken to Broadway
4. It Takes A Village
5. Hythes and Lows
6. Big in Brazil
7. Broadway to Budapest
Series Two
Since the first season of Broadway to Brazil, the Corinthian-Casuals have continued punching above their weight. Surviving in the Isthmian Premier League, the club went on to win silverware in Budapest in 2019 at the Egri Erbstein Tournament. But like everyone else at this level, they have been left frustrated by lockdowns and league cancellations over the last year and a half. Yet the club still serves as a beacon to its local community, and was even able to squeeze a bit of FA Cup drama into ‘The Season That Wasn’t’. For three years in the early 1980s, Billy Smith transformed the fortunes of Corinthian-Casuals. When he took over as manager, the team had finished bottom of the league for three straight seasons. By the end of his time at the club, they had reached the first round proper of the FA Cup for only the second time in their history, with future stars like Alan Pardew, Andy Gray and Tony Finnigan among their ranks. This is the story of how they did it, with Jarek and Dominic once again joined by sports writer and non league specialist Tony Banks. 140 years ago – after Scotland hammered England 6-1 to record what remains their record away win in football’s oldest international rivalry – the Scottish captain decided to move south of the border to help an English club side master the passing game. He was one of the best players of his era. His impact on the game has been likened by some football historians to Pele. He was also the first black international footballer, and in 1882 he joined the Corinthians. This is the remarkable story of Andrew Watson, told through the voices of three experts who have researched his life and football career extensively. Socrates is one of the icons of Brazilian football. His effortless grace on the pitch, and his political activism off it, made him an unmistakable symbol for a generation of Brazilians. Lesser known is the 17 minutes he spent playing for the Corinthian-Casuals. Having just scored for the opposition, he swapped his number 8 shirt and took his place alongside his Spartan League teammates. This is the story of this iconic moment in 1988, when the Corinthians travelled to Brazil for the first time in 75 years for a showpiece friendly against their brothers in football, Corinthians Paulista. In 1898, the Corinthians broke their own code and agreed to compete for silverware for the first time. They did so in a showpiece game played between the best amateur and the best professional team in the country. The winner took the mountainous Sheriff of London Shield, an oak leviathan too big for any captain to lift in celebration. But since the club were forced to sell the Shield in 1996, its whereabouts have been unknown to Corinthians and football historians alike. We set out to track it down, speaking to a Andy Gray, who competed in the last Sheriff of London Shield game in 1983; Brian Wakefield and David Harrison, two Corinthian-Casuals committee members who oversaw the sale of the Shield; and Massimo Ferragamo, the present day owner of the trophy. The list of international teams that the Corinthian-Casuals have visited is long, weird and wonderful. But perhaps one of the most unusual ties in the club’s history features them as hosts rather than visitors. In 1991 a squad of the Soviet Union’s greatest former player came to Tolworth. As if this wasn’t weird enough, their home country was all but being dissolved at this precise moment. We’ve delved deep into this remarkable fixture, speaking to Steve Bangs, the first time manager at the time who played in the Veterans game; Gary Brigden, at the time the club’s first time goalkeeper but a spectator for this tie; and Manuel Veth, a Soviet football historian who places this bizarre tour into context. The footballing paths trodden by the Corinthian-Casuals side are long and varied. From as far afield as Australia and Belgium, and featuring clubs right at the very top of the English game, the players have often seen it all before they walk through the gates at King George’s Field. But they all have one thing in common – they’ve all fallen in love with this famous old club hidden away off a slip road on the A3. These are the stories of the men who make up the team today, told through four voices in the present day first team dressing room: Robert Paratore, Ben Cheklit, Danny Bracken and Kieron Cadogan. Football is a sentimental culture. Where do you draw the line between heritage and progress? And when you represent a club that has chosen to set itself apart, with its own respected ethos, how do you move with the times and maintain your unique identity? These are the questions that have faced custodians of the Corinthian-Casuals legacy from the 1880s through to the 2020s. So how have things changed over the course of those 14 decades? In our final episode, we set out to answer the overarching question behind this entire series: What does it mean to be a Corinthian?S2 EP1: The Season That Wasn’t
S2 EP2: Billy’s Heroes
S2 EP3: The Remarkable Story of Andrew Watson
S2 EP4: Socrates in Chocolate and Pink
S2 EP5: The Search For The Shield
S2 EP6: The Russians Are Coming!
S2 EP7: Current Crop
S2 EP8: What Does It Mean To Be A Corinthian?