BIG DUNC
The Upfront Autobiography
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BIG DUNC
Buy Now for £12.06
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Narrated by:
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Duncan Ferguson
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By:
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Duncan Ferguson
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
*THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER*
They don't make footballers - and football autobiographies - like this anymore. The brutally honest, riotously entertaining story of the much-loved Everton legend and iconic Premier League bad boy.
Praised by Wayne Rooney and Sir Alex Ferguson as one of the greatest and most passionate players to ever play the game, Duncan Ferguson, or Big Dunc as he is known, is larger than life in every sense. Measuring a towering 6 feet 4 inches in height, from the moment the striker emerged in British football in the 1990s, he was front and back page news.
On the pitch, fans loved Duncan for his roguish charm, his thrilling goals and his total commitment in every game. Fighting tooth and nail, he was a born leader and took no prisoners. Like his rival Roy Keane, he played close to the limit, and often crossed it. Such as the time he was sentenced to 3 months in Glasgow’s toughest prison for headbutting an opponent – the first and only time a footballer has ever gone to jail for a crime committed on a football pitch.
In BIG DUNC: The Upfront Autobiography, Duncan reveals, for the first time, the full story: the truth about his experiences in prison, his partying with African princes and Liverpool gangsters, his fighting with burglars, his making and losing a fortune, and how he turned his life around through his beloved Everton F.C..
In the process, the book sheds light on one of football’s most charismatic but notorious and enigmatic hardmen. He is a pillar of the community in Merseyside, giving back to stricken children who share a similar tough upbringing to his own. Duncan's book takes readers on a rollercoaster ride of humour, drama and redemption. Buckle up.
'A hell of a read. I couldn't recommend it more. Powerful' Gary Lineker
‘Pure charisma’ The Times
‘The honesty is unrestrained … there is humour … there is much to amuse … He has been through the storm and lived to tell the tales’ Daily Mail
© Duncan Ferguson 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025
Dunc talks of his affections for Everton, the people of Liverpool , and Evertonians in particular. How Liverpool felt like home right from the beginning and how , throughout his footballing career — whether as a player or coach — the lure of Everton remained too much after that first taste in 1994. The “upfront” autobiography reminds me of the famous Frank Sinatra song , “My Way”, where the lyrics of one famous verse feel very apt to the Big Man…
“Regrets , I’ve had a few
But then again, too few to mention
I did what I had to do
And saw it through exemption
I planned each chartered course
Each careful step along the byway
And more, much more than this
I did it my way”
Dunc was largely unapologetic during his early days but age and experience have allowed him to mature, to grow, to look back and refer to himself as “daft”, realising that he could have been so much more, and achieved so much more as a player, That his lifestyle, and that of many British players at the time, was the cause of so many of his injuries, He was also stubborn and these factors all combined to hold him back from his full potential. I watched him on many occasions, and I was there — a schoolboy of 17 — sat in the Gwladys Street with my youngest brother and Father as he headed his first goal in Royal Blue against the Red Sh*te. The Sky cameras picked me up in the crowd after the game and the next day people in school said “I thought you were a blue?” as I had not looked at all happy at the end of the game. I was delirious inside at beating the old enemy but in that moment the sky cameras focussed on me in the crowd, I was reflecting sombrely on how far our great club had sank . Little did I know then that Duncan’s influence and goals would carry us to safety and we’d be celebrating an FA Cup win later that same season.
If you’re a fellow Evertonian, I will be very surprised if you don’t love the man more after finishing the book. I choose to listen to him read it and that created more of a connection to the big man. The tone, the emphasis, the reflections, all served to create an experience that may not have come across in the same way of reading, something I usually prefer to do. In many ways, his life represents the heroes journey and that’s why the book is so absorbing . If you know anything about Hollywood, you will know any epic story tends to follow the heroes journey, popularised by Joseph Campbell.
Big Dunc appears to be very astute as a profiler of players and their potential. He clearly has developed himself as a top coach, perhaps not deserving the credit or recognition he deserves having won plaudits from top managers, not least Carlo Fantastico. He has been mentored by some of the best, from the late great Howard Kendall to Sir Alex Ferguson. I’m fascinated to hear what’s next for him and how he continues to develop and progress in the game. Best wishes big man.
Regrets I’ve had a few … I did it my way
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DUNC
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I hope he gets a job in the Championship or premiership soon. he deserves a break knowledgeable and seems to have an eye for talent.
Honest review of a legend
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Interesting insight to Big Dunc’s life in football.
The honesty!
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Old School. Tough as old boots but with a generous heart.
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