Our next video interview has been filmed with Jody Craddock. Jody is a former professional footballer, and now works as an artist. Jody started his football career with Cambridge United, before signing for second-tier Sunderland and helping them earn promotion to the Premier League, where he would pit his wits against the best players in the country. Perhaps the best part of Jody’s career came during his time at Wolverhampton Wanderers, where he spent ten years after signing for a transfer fee of £1.75m, again earning them promotion to the Premier League, demonstrating his leadership ability by spending a large chunk of his period at the club as captain. Jody eventually retired from professional football in 2013, and was honoured with a testimonial match by Wolverhampton Wanderers as a sign of their gratitude to the outstanding service he provided during his decade with them.
He was a keen artist throughout his football career, and previous to his retirement was commissioned by Sir Jack Hayward to paint a picture of Wolverhampton’s 2003 promotion winning side, before doing the same after the aforementioned 2009 promotion, for which he was the team’s captain. Following retirement, Jody has had his worked showcased at a range of national galleries, including the Antidote Art Gallery in Lutterworth, Leicestershire, in which his first exhibition, known as ‘La Bellezza Della Fusione’ was held in 2015.
Below is a preview of our interview with Jody, in which he discusses his lifelong passion for art, and the satisfaction he gets from the knowledge that people who buy his paintings will be displaying his work in their homes for everyone to see. LAPS members can sign in now to view the full version of this interview, while those who aren’t already members can sign up for free to gain access.