The Goodison Gazza

Teen footballing sensation Billy Kenny was dubbed the finest young talent in the country when he made his debut for his boyhood heroes Everton in 1992. A scintillating performance in the first Merseyside derby of the Premier League era saw him nicknamed ‘The Goodison Gazza’ by team-mate Peter Beardsley and cemented his reputation as a man with the world at his feet. Just three years later he had retired, dogged by drug and alcohol issues that took him to the brink of death. He endured betrayal and heartbreak, injury and arrest; it took a devastating family tragedy, a stint in prison and two spells in rehab to finally help him find a more positive path forward. Now three decades on from his dizzying breakthrough, he’s finally ready to tell his extraordinary story for the first time, in typically raw and candid fashion. The Goodison Gazza is written with the help of The Guardian’s Jamie Fahey, who grew up on the same streets as Billy, shared a pitch with the teenage sensation and lived through every kick of his remarkable rise and fall.