David France

Lore & Background

France was born in Widnes, Lancashire (now Cheshire). Educated in the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany (BSc, MSc, MBA, PhD), he moved to North America in 1978 and worked in the nuclear and space industries before joining the executive of an oil & gas corporation. He retired from corporate life in 1990 to concentrate on consulting and charity work. Although based in Texas, he travelled in excess of 2 million miles supporting the club and his Everton initiatives. Known as ‘Dr Everton’, he was appointed Life President of the Everton Shareholders’ Association. In a 2009 website poll involving eight candidates, he came a close second to manager David Moyes as the person who Everton fans trust the most. The results were David Moyes 35%, David France 34%, Bill Kenwright 19%.

Reader's Guide

France has written 19 books to tell the Everton story. Some involved collaborations with David Prentice, Becky Tallentire, Barry Hewitt and cartoonist Peter King, while others embraced inputs from a cross-section of Everton enthusiasts. The profits from these books were donated to Merseyside charities. Books include: Toffee Cards – The Tobacco Years (1997), Toffee Pages – The Post-War Years (1997), Gwladys Street's Hall of Fame (1998), Gwladys Street's Hall of Fame Edition 2 (1999), Gwladys Street's Hall of Fame Edition 3 (1999), Gwladys Street's Holy Trinity (with Becky Tallentire 2001), Gwladys Street's Big Book for Kids of All Ages (with Peter King 2002), Gwladys Street's Blue Book (with David Prentice 2002), Virgin Blues (with David Prentice 2003), Toffee Cards – The Bubble Gum Years (with Barry Hewitt 2005), Moyesiah (2006), Evertonians Eat Scouse (2006), Everton Treasures – The David France Collection (with David Prentice 2007), Dr Everton's Magnificent Obsession (with David Prentice 2008), Alex Young – The Golden Vision (2008), Everton Crazy - Sixty Seasons, Two Million Miles (2016), Everton Proud (2016), Blue Dragon - The Roy Vernon Story (with Rob Sawyer 2019), Toffee Soccer - Everton and North America (with Rob Sawyer and Darren Griffiths 2021).

Did You Know?

• France conceived Gwladys Street's Hall of Fame after consultation with baseball's counterpart in Cooperstown, New York.
• The Everton Former-Players' Foundation, registered by France in 1999, was the first of its kind in the football world and is considered the UEFA model.
• The David France Collection, now known as The Everton Collection, is housed at the Liverpool Record Office and includes official club ledgers detailing board meetings from 1886 to 1964.
• France donated the priceless ledgers and transferred other treasures at a heavily discounted price, with conditions that items be catalogued, preserved, secured, and displayed in Liverpool.