Alice Goodwin, England’s Favourite Fan
A football-themed feature that named Alice Goodwin England’s “fittest fan”, in the cheeky headline style of the lads’ mags.
Football and men’s magazines were never far apart. Whenever the national team had a big summer ahead, the glamour pages followed: replica shirts, flags, face paint and a cover line with a wink. This Alice Goodwin feature is a textbook example, built around the idea of a model as the ultimate England supporter.
The “fittest fan” tag is pure lads’-mag language, the kind of title that worked as a headline, a talking point and a light-hearted award all at once. It also told readers exactly what to expect from the shoot: national colours, sporting props and a mood closer to a summer party than to a studio session.
Styling a football shoot
Themed shoots like this lived or died on their props. Stylists reached for the obvious symbols, the white shirt, the red cross of St George, a ball, and then used them with a sense of humour. Locations varied from simple studio backdrops in team colours to pitches and back gardens, with the photography kept bright and upbeat to match the tournament mood.
Because they were tied to fixtures, these features had a short shelf life in print but a long one online, where they were shared again each time England played.
The original photographs belong to their publisher and are not reproduced here. Two more write-ups on this site cover other Alice Goodwin features.
More: Models A–Z · Alice Goodwin: 2010 calendar photoshoot · Alice Goodwin: Alice’s Wonderland · Alice Goodwin and Friends: Group Glamour Shoot · Alice Goodwin: Glamour Model Feature