West Ham United will wear the Club’s new 2024/25 Umbro Home Kit, inspired by our 1960s golden era, in Saturday’s Stateside Cup tie with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Hammers will don the Claret and Blue strip, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of West Ham United’s European Cup Winners’ Cup triumph, at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, for the first match of the Sunshine State Tour.
The cinematic launch film for the new Home Kit features cameos from some of the Club’s well known supporters, including film and TV stars Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Tony Way and Harry Collett, 1965 Cup Winners’ Cup-winner Brian Dear and Roberta Moore, daughter of the late, great West Ham and England captain Bobby Moore, who lifted the trophy at Wembley six decades ago, alongside members of the men’s, women’s and Academy squads.
The film boasts a specially commissioned soundtrack from The Rifles, which was mastered at the iconic Abbey Road Studios in St John’s Wood. Hammers fan and lead singer Joel Stoker was so enamoured with the instrumental version that he wrote lyrics and recorded the track 'Sweet Euphoria' with the band to be released as a single in conjunction with the new Home Kit.
It was shot in E.Pellicci – the best-preserved old school café in Bethnal Green, right in West Ham’s East End heartland – and created, produced and directed by lifelong Hammer Neil Felton from the WTF Creative agency.
The film is filled with details nodding to West Ham’s historic success of 1965, which Felton explained are all part of making the experience of watching it special for every fan…
Neil, let’s start from the start. How does the concept for a new kit film come together?
“Right from the beginning, we look at any ideas behind the concept for the kit and, for this one, it was fairly straightforward as it’s a replica of the kit worn by the 1965 European Cup Winners’ Cup winners. So, from that perspective, it was taking that kit and making it look current and modern.
“The initial idea was to shoot the whole film as if we were in the 1960s, with the current team, stylising them through the fashion they were wearing with the kit. That was the seed of the idea, but we were also conscious of connecting with the UEFA Europa Conference League win and mentioning that, and trying to link the two together.
“We looked at a script that could link the two, so that’s how we came up with the wording ‘remember the glory of ‘65 and ’60 years on, we wear the glory’ and all that. It was fairly simple.”
The film features not just players, but some guest stars, too. How did you select the talent?
“Casting-wise, we wanted to get some guest stars in there, so Roberta Moore acting as a waitress was a natural one with her Dad captaining that team. We have Brian Dear, who played in the final, and he was a great fit for the film as he’s a subtle presence.
“We have Hero Fiennes Tiffin, the Harry Potter actor, who is very much up and coming, has just been cast as Sherlock Holmes in the new Guy Ritchie series, and is a huge West Ham fan. He voices the film.
“Harry Collett, who is in the new Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, is another avid fan and up and coming actor, and is there, as is Tony Way, who was in Game of Thrones, and plays the chef in our kit film. Tony has been a Season Ticket Holder for many years and goes to games with his Dad, and he said he was more excited about doing this than shooting a feature film!
“It was really nice to get people in there as it meant something to them.”
The film starts with Jarrod pulling up on a scooter in a parka jacket, which really grabs the attention!
“We got an authentic 1960s scooter and a fan had branded one in West Ham colours. Then we added the licence plate with ‘WHU 65C’ on it, nodding to them becoming champions, which was a nice little touch. It turned out the model we used was a 1965 Lambretta, so it was perfect!
“We used the owner as a stunt double riding the scooter, as we couldn’t have Jarrod moving on it!”
You shot the film at E.Pellicci, a traditional family-run café in Bethnal Green, east London, and the ambience is perfect, isn’t it?
“Yes, it’s a really iconic establishment in east London. E.Pellicci has been there since 1900 and is still run by the same family as when it opened. Anna and Nev, who run it, are great people, and their Mum used to serve up food to some of the famous gangsters in the 1960s. In fact, it was used in the Tom Hardy film Legend about the Kray twins.
“It’s not been decorated since the 1940s, so essentially it looked the same in the 1960s as it does today.
“Kitting it out, we swapped all the condiments, sugar shakers and salt and pepper pots, packaging and equipment like the coffee machine to authentic 1960s versions, so we sourced old tins and sauce bottles and replaced them. Blink and you’ll miss a lot of the details, but if you look, you can see them in the background. There is a prop house which specialises in stuff from previous decades, and they provided us with various bits and pieces. They all come empty and we filled them up with the sauces!
“If you look carefully, you can also see 1960s adverts for things like Wall’s Pork Pies, too.
“It then came down to the West Hamification of the venue, so to speak, so it looked like a home café, so there are various scarves dotted about to give it a Claret and Blue feel, behind the till and on the back of a chair.
“Around the walls, there are pictures from the era featuring the players, and then we’ve got one photo of Jarrod Bowen lifting the Conference League trophy. Even though that’s out of context, it’s done sympathetically in black and white and in the same frame as all the others, so it blends in.”
For the customers, the dishes available to order had a West Ham taste to them, didn’t they?
“I created a ‘Hammers Specials’ menu which was from the 1960s programme, so it felt of the era. We researched how much things cost and made sure Bobby’s Bangers with Moore Mash were the right price!
“We just came up with names for dishes, so we also had Sealey’s Sizzlers which was a bacon bap, nodding to Alan Sealey who scored the two goals in the final, and Hurst’s Hot Pot with Chips, recognising Geoff Hurst.
“There are lots of little Easter eggs in there, in that sense, and it was nice to nod to the stars of that game.”
So, when is the film meant to be shot?
“It’s meant to be the day after the Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1965 - that’s how I’ve set it. So, the newspaper they’re reading is dated Thursday 20 May 1965, and features headlines similar to those published on that day.
“I made up a newspaper called The London News and the headline reads Hammers Triumph In Europe, then inside there are write-ups, so it actually makes sense as a newspaper. Brian Dear loved it, and he took a few copies home!
“Brian really fits in, as he has the right style, wearing a suit as he would have done back in the 1960s.
“Then, we sourced 1960s gear for the others to wear, but obviously the film is about selling the Home shirt, so you have to reveal that more and not cover it up!”
You shot the whole film in one day?!
“It was a massive challenge! Because the café is so small, there wasn’t a lot of room for the crew. We also had to hire the pub across the road, The Star of Bethnal Green, and base the crew, styling, hair and makeup over there.
“Another challenge was to do all this without people noticing so, even though it was only 100 yards from the pub to the café, we put them in a van with blacked-out windows, then they dived inside. We also blacked-out the windows of the café, so people couldn’t see in.
“Along with the film, we had to do still photography too, covering all the bases with all the right combinations of people.
“It took about an hour to stylise each person, then two hours to shoot, so it was a really right schedule. It was really ambitious, but it all came together on the day!”
The film not only features nods to the 1960s and actors, but also represents the men’s, women’s and Academy, recognising the diversity of the Club?
“Yes, we have Jarrod Bowen, Mo Kudus, James Ward-Prowse, Dinos Mavropanos and Alphonse Areola from the men’s team, Anouk Denton and Emma Harries from the women’s team, and George Earthy and Lewis Orford from the Academy.
“The 1965 team essentially came through the Academy of Football and became giants of the game, as the script explains, and changed the Club and the way the game was played. I felt strongly that we had to have young players in the film, and they were buzzing to take part in it.
“We made sure we mixed everyone up, so Anouk is with Mo, Emma is with Areola and Dinos, so it all looks very organic and natural. We just told them to act naturally and have their own little bits of banter.
“It helped having the actors in there, as it gave them something to talk about. For example, Harry and James were chatting about Game of Thrones for ages, and that gave the film a natural feel.”
The music is a song specially written by the band, The Rifles, whose lead singer Joel Stoker is a big Hammer?
“The Rifles are an Essex-based band who’ve had a few indie hits down the years. Joel is the singer and main songwriter and he wrote a bespoke song with a 1960s sound. He delivered a really catchy tune and it gets in your head every time you watch the video. Now, he’s put lyrics to it and released it as a single.
“They also feature in the film, dressed in the mod style of the 1960s. The song starts on the radio, then they appear, so it segways nicely.”
Finally, Neil, you’ve worked with the Club on a number of creative projects, but you must be really proud of this film, due to the amount of work that went into creating a film that is one minute long?
“Anything you’re doing for West Ham, you want to put your heart and soul into it because you know how much it means to the fanbase.
“I’m fortunate enough to be in a position as a professional designer and a lifelong fan working with my Club, which is a dream job, from designing the new crest back in 2016 to getting involved in kit designs, lounge designs and typography.
“When you get to a position of making a film like this and have some fun with the creativity, I really wanted to get something special in every frame for the fans to discover. I wanted to enrich every frame with detail which meant something to someone.
“I am really proud of it.”
