“From Album Icon to Unexpected Fame: The Surprising New Life of the Man Behind Arctic Monkeys’ First Cover”

Did you ever stop and think about the stories behind iconic album covers? Like, what do those folks do after their moment in the spotlight fades? Well, brace yourself, because the man featured on the front of Arctic Monkeys’ debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, is throwing us a curveball! Remember that cigarette-smoking guy squinting at the camera? His name’s Chris McClure, and you won’t believe what he’s up to now. In a wild twist of fate, he’s not just a figure in music history; he’s become a social media sensation as a fictional football assistant manager, Steve Bracknall! Curious to know how a chance encounter at a university party turned into an unexpected second act? Stick around—this story is full of delightful surprises and laughs! LEARN MORE.

People can’t believe what the man on the front of Arctic Monkeys’ debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, is doing today.

The iconic album cover features a man who is squinting at the camera while smoking a cigarette.

He has previously admitted that he wishes he got paid ’10p of every album sale’, because let’s face it, he’d probably be sorted if that was the case.

Chris McClure was just a student at Manchester Metropolitan University when Arctic Monkey’s bassist, Andy Nicholson, asked him to be the cover man of their 2006 release.

McClure will forever be known as the man on Arctic Monkeys’ debut album cover (Domino Recording Company)

All he needed to do was go on a night out, then come back after midnight after he had gotten ‘drunk’ for the photo for the photoshoot, where he also threw up.

And just like that, McClure became a part of music history.

But in the past few days, fans have discovered what McClure is up to nowadays – and it’s not what you’d expect.

It turns out that McClure is well-known in the football community on social media, though not under his own name, but as Steve Bracknall.

Bracknall is a character portrayed by McClure, who is the assistant manager of Royal Oak FC, a fake Sunday League team.

This might be confusing at first, but basically, he portrays an exaggerated version of an amateur football manager, and often goes viral for his hilarious ‘team-talks’.

He has over 284,000 followers on TikTok, where fans tune in to see the antics of fictional Royal Oak FC, and Bracknell’s overly emotional speeches to his players.

His most popular video includes Bracknall comparing his left back’s smell to a brewery and suggesting that his right back had a rough night out before the game.

It’s pure cinema for footy fans, and a great giggle for everyone else.

People only drew the parallel after one user replied to a photo of the Arctic Monkeys’ album on X, saying: “Just found out this bloke is that Sunday league TikTok manager Steve Bracknall lol”

McClure then went onto his own X account to confirm the rumours, saying: “2024 has been most intense year of my life,

“Loss of my .ad being the most difficult.

“Bringing a baby up.

“Leaving my job.

“Having a business that just exploded across the country.

“All the while pretending to be the assistant manager of a Sunday league football club,” he wrote with a laughing emoji, adding: “Love you dad.”

Videos of the character have done the rounds on TikTok (TikTok/Steve Bracknall)

Fans of Bracknall couldn’t believe the revelation, as one wrote: “NO F***ING WAY, while another was equally shocked, saying: “EXCUSE ME”

A third realised the similarities, again writing in all caps: “ASSISTANT MANAGER OF ROYAL OAK FC!”

It’s fair to say that the online football community went into a meltdown over the news, then.

McClure is also a part-owner of Day Fever, an organisation that throw sold-out day parties in major cities across the UK.