Darts Miscellany By Matt Bozeat
UK-based darts journalist Matt Bozeat has found an original approach to darts writing by producing what I believe to be the first miscellany of darts of the modern era writes Patrick Chaplin.
Concentrating mainly on fascinating facts and lists of the ‘new age’ of darts, though paying due respect to the past kings of the oche, including Lowe, Anderson, Wilson and Bristow, Matt provides an entertaining read which will appeal to all darts fans.
Encouragingly Matt also makes room for the ladies in a chapter titled ‘It’s A Woman’s Game’ although I felt that a little more space could have been given to Canadian darter Gayl King’s achievement of being the first lady darter to compete against the men in the 2001 PDC World Championship.
There are also lists a-plenty of past winners of major tournaments plus some really original material including chapters on ‘Quickest Throwers’ and ‘Flashes in the Pan’; the latter chapter, which bizarrely includes US darting legend Larry Butler, will I predict provoke some heated discussions on darts forums.
In fact reference to North American darts players (except for the aforementioned Butler, King and the ever-present John Part) are few and far between. But even so this does not prevent Darts Miscellany being of interest to darters ‘across the big pond’.
In the chapter entitled ‘Leighton Rees and the Perfect Legs’ Matt makes reference to John Lowe’s first nine-darter on TV and that John won £102,000 for that achievement and then secured an additional £12,000 for winning the tournament. What is not mentioned is that John also received £1,000 for the highest checkout, making a total payday of £115,000. But that’s just me being picky.
(If I was being really picky I could mention the six blank pages at the back of the book that might have accommodated a few more lists or the lack of a ‘Contents’ page or just wish that the font size was a little larger but I’m not that picky.)
All-in-all Darts Miscellany is a welcome addition to any darts fans bookshelf and Matt is to be congratulated on his achievement.
Darts Miscellany is published in the UK by Pitch Publishing and is available to fans in North America via Amazon.com
Patrick Chaplin
Note: This review first appeared in Bulls-Eye News (BEN), Volume XXXI, Issue 1, January/February 2011.
© 2011 Patrick Chaplin
Review Navigation
- Darts Miscellany By Matt Bozeat
- The Official Bar Guide to Darts by Patrick Chaplin
- The Darts Bible By David Norton & Patrick Mcloughlin (With Steve Brown)
- Played at the Pub - The Pub Games of Britain By Arthur R. Taylor
- Darts in England 1900 - 1939
- Old Stoneface: The Autobiography of Britain's Greatest Darts Player
- The Darts 'B' Team By Colin S. Drury
- The Complete Dartshooter
- John Lowe Reveals ‘The Art of Darts’
- Eric Bristow - The Crafty Cockney The Autobiography
- The Dart League King by Keith Lee Morris
- How to Master The Sport Of Darts (2nd Edition)
- How to Master The Sport Of Darts
- Darts with the Lid Off By Alan And Geoffrey D’Egville
- Trina Gulliver Golden Girl The Autobiography of
The Greatest Ever Ladies' Dart Player - Murder on The Darts Board - Justin Irwin
- The Sun darts Quiz Book by Chris Bradshaw
- ‘Bellies and Bullseyes’- By Sid Waddell
- Make Mine a Double
- Bobby Dazzler – My Story, Bobby George
- Cupid's Dart by David Nobbs
- It's a Funny Old Game, Darts, Life -
The Best of Dartoid - 101 Excuses for Bad Darts
- Know the Game - Darts by Deryk Brown
- 'The Power - My Autobiography' by Phil Taylor
- Planet Darts by Niall Edworthy
- In and Out by Mat Coward
- Unicorn Darts Yearbook 1978
- To The Point - By Dan William Peek
- Premiership 2006 & Eric Bristow's First Embassy Victory 1980
- The Story of darts - Video & DVD
- DIGLS Dartboard
- The Circumluminator -
Shadow Free Dartboard Lighting - ‘Madhouse’ Mobile Phone Application Launched
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