Birthday plans for Neil 'Nello' Baldwin's 80th
BBCA weekend of celebrations is planned for legendary former Stoke City FC kit man and circus clown Neil "Nello" Baldwin as he prepares to mark his 80th birthday.
Baldwin, whose story was showcased in the 2014 Bafta-winning BBC film Marvellous, turns 80 on Sunday.
As part of the celebrations, he will walk out onto the pitch at the Bet365 Stadium at half-time during the Potters' game with Watford on Saturday.
He told BBC Radio Stoke he was looking forward to the weekend and spoke of how "wonderful" it was to be a fan of his beloved Stoke City.
"I'm proud and happy to have done what I have in my life," he said. "It means a great deal to be happy, to make people happy and to love Stoke City as my team."
Baldwin, from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, grew up with learning difficulties and joined the circus after leaving school.
After he left the circus, he became Stoke City's kit man, often being the source of joy and laughter at the club.
During a special screening of Marvellous in Hartshill on Thursday, former Stoke City manager Lou Macari, who gave Baldwin the job, spoke of how much he admired him.
"From the moment I met him, I knew there was something about Neil," he said.
If anyone needed a lift, Baldwin was "your man", Macari added, and it was always "a laugh a minute".
"It was brilliant. All the lads loved him and they all bought into what it was all about," he said.
Baldwin also has close ties to Keele University, where his mum worked as a cleaner, and in 2013, the university awarded him an honorary degree.
Following the success of Marvellous, in which Baldwin was portrayed by Toby Jones, he was presented with the Freedom of Stoke-on-Trent.
He received a British Empire Medal in the 2019 New Year Honours for services to the community in his home city.
Malcolm Clarke, who helped to write Baldwin's autobiography, described him as a "lifelong friend" who was "always positive".
"He's completely lacking in any self-consciousness," he added, "which means he'll go and talk to people whether they're famous or not in a way the rest of us wouldn't dare.
"There's a wonderful line in the film that says 'you can't get things by just asking' – I say that in the film - and Neil says 'I can' - and of course, he can."
Asked about his experiences, Baldwin spoke fondly of his parents, how their deaths affected him and how the community of the city helped to fill the hole they left behind.
He also mentioned the importance of his faith, having become a Christian in 1957.
Of his achievements, he said: "It's been a great privilege doing what I wanted to do. When I was at school, everybody asked what I wanted to do as a job and I said 'a circus clown'.
"What have I done since? Had a medal off the Queen, gone to Buckingham Palace twice - and everybody at school said I wouldn't make it."
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