{"product_id":"a-load-of-old-balls-the-qi-history-of-sport-9780571372546","title":"A Load of Old Balls: The Qi History of Sport","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe most improbable, fascinating and endlessly entertaining sporting facts and stories, from prehistory to the present day.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDid you know that Henry VIII owned the first pair of football boots? Or that David Attenborough is responsible for yellow tennis balls?\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA Load of Old Balls\u003c\/i\u003e is the curious story of us and sport. It's about our mind-blowingly determined attempts to be the fastest, the strongest, the most skillful. In this endlessly entertaining tale of play and belonging, astonishing violence and jaw-dropping cheating, we learn what led ancient Egyptian athletes to have their spleens removed and discover why Michael Palin was disqualified from a conker tournament. Crossing millennia, continents and cultures, Harkin and Ptaszynski - the brainy researchers for BBC's \u003ci\u003eQI\u003c\/i\u003e and co-hosts of \u003ci\u003eNo Such Thing As A Fish\u003c\/i\u003e - show us sport as we've never seen it before. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"The trivia book of the season . . . magnificent.\" SPECTATOR\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e** Published in hardback as \u003ci\u003eEverything to Play For\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Faber \u0026 Faber","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51183041741074,"sku":"9780571372546","price":11.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_49209005-b520-42f1-abd5-9e0370300593.jpg?v=1744453188","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/a-load-of-old-balls-the-qi-history-of-sport-9780571372546","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}