With the football season underway in Britain, it seems fitting to be featuring the whistle of choice for referees the world over.A recent article in The Green Soccer Journal portrayed the whistles of Birmingham based Acme Whistles beautifully. We got in touch and they kindly agreed to let us share the images with you.
Acme Whistles was founded by Joseph Hudson, an inventive toolmaker from Derbyshire who had moved to Birmingham in the Industrial Revolution.
According to the Acme Whistles website, 'in the wash house at the side of his end of terrace home in St Marks Street he made many things to help increase his family's income. His early products were snuff boxes, cork screws and whistles'.
The business was officially founded in 1883, the year that Hudson invented a novel whistle for The London Metropolitan Police who were looking to replace the cumbersome policeman's rattle.
Since then Acme Whistles have been used on the Titanic and in the World Cup final of 1966. Thanks to the company's expertise and commitment to innovation the whistles are used by many professional bodies today, including FIFA, NATO and the UN.
The company is still producing whistles from its Birmingham factory on Barr Street, 128 years after it was founded.
Thank you to James at The Green Soccer Journal for sharing the images
Photography by Alastair Strong
