Meet the Spurs fan behind the Last Post

Andrew Lofthouse concedes he was never going to be a footballer, but he’s experienced, in his own words, ‘the next best thing’ in his own, poignant, line of work.

To give him his full title, Corporal (Retired RAF) Andrew John Lofthouse, former Principal Trumpet of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force, played the ‘Last Post’ in both the final Remembrance service at White Hart Lane in November, 2016, and the first at the new stadium on Saturday.

As the players lined-up on the centre-circle and 60,000 fans fell silent, imagine the emotions of the lifelong Spurs fan with the bugle, solely responsible for delivering the music that symbolises our collective tribute to the fallen.

“As a trumpet player in the Royal Air Force it was always an honour and a privilege to play the Last Post at any event,” said Andrew. “Put that together with playing here in front of our fans… I was lucky enough to do it twice before, in the final season at the Lane and then at Wembley. The honour of playing the Last Post coupled together with playing it here (at the new stadium) is amazing.

“In the final season at the Lane, every game was special and to be able to actually play a part in a game in our last season, the nerves, adrenaline, you think ‘wow, this is the last time this will happen at this stadium’ and I had the privilege to do it. You go through all those emotions, but you then have to rein it in a little and get on with it.”

Of course, Andrew played beautifully once again in our tribute, where he was joined on parade by fellow members of Armed Forces Spurs - RAF, Navy, Army and veterans. It should be no surprise though considering his previous Spurs experiences and a ‘CV’ that includes royal events televised to a worldwide TV audience including being a member of the Fanfare Trumpets for both the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate at Westminster Abbey and for the Diamond Jubilee celebration for HM The Queen in St. Paul’s Cathedral.

How did he put all those emotions aside and play? He explained: “It’s something I’ve been trained to do, basically. I’ve been playing the instrument since I was a kid, I studied it at university, spent eight years doing it in the Royal Air Force. I won’t say it’s something you ever get used to but you learn different ways to cope and to a certain extent, you just get out there, focus and once you take the atmosphere out of it, you just get through it.”

So where did Andrew’s support of Spurs start? “I had family who lived down here and that’s where the Spurs influence came from,” he added. “I’ve been a lifelong Spurs fan. My childhood hero was Teddy Sheringham and soon after, Jurgen Klinsmann.

“The first game I remember was the FA Cup fifth round replay at Southampton (March, 1995) when we were 2-0 down and Ronny Rosenthal came on and scored a hat-trick and we won 6-2. I watched that on TV and that’s the first game I really remember watching.

“I lived down in London for about 10 years just before I joined the Royal Air Force and then eight years while I was in the Royal Air Force I was in Uxbridge, so Wembley was easy for me to get to! I’m now fortunate enough to be a Season Ticket Holder in this fantastic new stadium.

“My four-year-old son is the same as I was, he talks about Harry Kane every day, the same as I was with Teddy Sheringham when I was a kid. Look, I was never going to be a footballer but the next best thing for me was to walk down the tunnel, follow the players onto the pitch and feel that atmosphere, going through those emotions. That’s something else.”