White Hart Lane stadium tour

The other week I took Olly to White Hart Lane for an early birthday treat, a stadium tour of White Hart Lane, football ground of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and the team he supports, funnily enough! Now, whilst I have seen Spurs play in Milan at the San Siro, I've never been "down the Lane" as they say, so this was a first for me.

I'm not a football fan, but the tour for me was an eye-opener to what goes behind-the-scenes at a football ground. We had two lovely tour guides who were evidently passionate Spurs fans, and this made it interesting for me, someone who isn't a die-hard fan as 99% of the people on the tour with us seemed to be!

The tour starts at the Spurs Megastore, which contains some interesting merchandise... A THFC garter belt for your wedding night, perhaps? How about a branded cat food bowl? Maybe not... You're led from there, down Bill Nicholson Way - he's a very important man to Tottenham, and his ashes are buried under the pitch, along with his wife's - and through to the press room where interviews are conducted after matches. That room is smaller than you think it would be!

Doesn't Olly look like he's made to be the next manager of the club? After that we headed to the Directors' Box, before making our way to the Bill Nicholson suite where hospitality takes place on match days, and where there are trophies that the club has won. There's obviously a great view of the pitch from the Directors' Box.

You can see it's very dark to the right-hand side of the above photo, and that's because that area of the stadium never gets any natural sunlight. 

We visited another bar area with memorabilia after that, before heading to where the mascots hang out before a game. Here you can have a photo with (and touch) the FA Cup and League trophy that Spurs won in 1961, which made them the first club in the 20th Century to achieve this double.

The two tour guides were brilliant at allowing everyone the time to get the photos they wanted, plus took photos for you if you wanted a picture of all the people you are on the tour with. The dressing rooms were next; they are very sparse for the away team, but a lot nicer for the home squad (of course).

Finally, it's through the tunnel you go to see what it's like pitch-side where the manager, coaches and subs watch the game from. On your way out you can see the original bronze fighting cockerel that was made by an ex-player, William James Scott, and then it's off you pop down Bill Nicholson Way and away you go!

We had a great few hours at White Hart Lane seeing the bits you don't usually get to see, and most of that was down to our two wonderful tour guides. If someone in your life is a Tottenham fan, I can't recommend a stadium tour enough - it's a fabulous present that they will love, trust me.

White Hart Lane, N17 0AP
Standard tour tickets cost £20 each for adults, and the tour lasts 90-120 minutes, though there are other tour types which you can find on their website.