John Fashanu

Early career

Fashanu's footballing career began as an apprentice at Norwich City in 1979, and he turned professional two years later – just as his elder brother Justin was transferred to Nottingham Forest from the relegated Carrow Road club. Norwich were promoted straight back to the First Division in 1981–82, but Fashanu managed just five league appearances and scored once. He managed two appearances in the 1982–83 First Division campaign – which would be his last for the club. He was never a regular player at Carrow Road. He had a brief loan spell with Crystal Palace from Norwich. He also played in the English off-season in New Zealand with Miramar Rangers, and made an appearance in the final of the local equivalent of the FA Cup, the Chatham Cup (he remains the only player to have played in the final of both the English and New Zealand major cup He joined Lincoln City on a free transfer on 23 September 1983, when they were in the Third Division. He scored seven goals from 26 league games that season, and managed four from 10 league games the following campaign before his £55,000 transfer to Third Division promotion challengers Millwall on 30 November 1984. In his first season at The Den Fashanu scored four goals in 25 games helping the Lions reach the FA Cup quarter-finals (where they lost at Luton Town in a game marred by fans who invaded the pitch) and secure promotion to the Second Division. He managed eight goals from 25 games in 1985–86, before leaving to…

Fashanu represented England at full International level gaining two caps – against Chile and Scotland in the 1989 Rous Cup, due to his good form at club level for his then club Wimbledon. He was also eligible to play for Nigeria and since retiring he has expressed regret in not being able to do so.

Following retirement from the game through injury, Fashanu became a television presenter. He presented the UK edition of Gladiators alongside Ulrika Jonsson for six seasons in the 1990s. Fashanu became associated with the catchphrase "Awooga". In 2003, he came second in the second series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here!. Later that year he presented Fash's Football Challenge, a reality television show that followed Fashanu managing an amateur football team. Also in 2003, he fronted a six-part series for ITV1 based on the American format Man vs. Beast; however, following protests from animal rights groups, the series was never broadcast. He also released a video "Focus on Fitness with Fash". In 2007 he was the host of Deal or No Deal Nigeria, airing on M-Net Africa. Since retirement Fashanu has also maintained his sporting connections, becoming involved with the Nigeria Football Association, and as chairman of Welsh football team Barry Town for one year, vacating this post in 2003. In 2000, he also compiled, all with an investigator, a report on corruption in Nigeria in the 1980s and 1990s that came to be known as the Fashanu Report. In 2003, he became the manager of his own Sunday league football team Fash FC as part of a television reality show.1 In September 2005 Wimbledon Old Players' Association was launched. John is involved in the Wimbledon Old Players' Association, an organisation set up by the Wimbledon Independent Supporters Association. He said: "It's…

Fashanu was born in Kensington, London, the son of Pearl Gopal, a nurse from British Guiana and Patrick Fashanu, a Nigerian barrister living in the UK. When his parents split up he was sent, together with his older brother Justin, to a Barnardo's care home. When he was five, he and his brother were fostered by Alf and Betty Jackson and were subsequently brought up in Shropham near Attleborough, Norfolk.