The Crafty Cockney

Eric Bristow MBE (1957-2018) might just have been the greatest darts player of all time. An unmistakable figure on the oche during his 1980s heyday, 'the Cheeky Cockney' became renowned not just for the number of world titles he won but for his arrogance on stage and off it. In this candid account, Bristow reveals how darts saved him from his early life as a cat burglar, shoplifter and thug - and introduced him to a new world of beer, babes and success beyond his wildest dreams. In his rapid rise to the top, he gives fascinating insights into the characters that pioneered darts in those early days and how, when his own career began to slide at the end of the decade, he trained his protégé Phil 'The Power' Taylor, turning him into the most successful player darts has ever known. Bristow holds nothing back as he reveals his battle with dartitis, a psychological condition which left him unable to let go of the dart and almost destroyed his career; his relationship with girlfriend and former women's world darts champion Maureen Flowers; and his occasional all-too-public falls from grace. Bristow's life story is a thrill-a-minute ride through the raucous world of darts and how it helped to shape and drive his life.