The Leeds United trivia question that has fans scratching their heads

What do the lead singer of a Welsh indie band, a Swedish tennis ace and an Oscar winning actor from Down Under have in common?

The answer, as any Elland Road regular worth his or her salt will know, is that they are fans of Leeds United.

But Stereophonics frontman Kelly Jones, two-time Wimbledon champion Stefan Edberg and Gladiator star Russell Crowe are far from the only famous faces who follow the Whites.

And today the Yorkshire Evening Post is taking a look at some of United’s proud band of celebrity supporters.

Many of them have obvious connections to Leeds – the likes of boxing hero Josh Warrington, actor Ralph Ineson, DJ Chris Moyles and Kaiser Chiefs bassist Simon Rix were all born in the city.

Others, though, have more tenuous reasons for nailing their colours to the Elland Road mast.

The aforementioned Kelly Jones, for example, is from a Welsh mining village and can thank – or possibly blame – his family for turning him into a United supporter.

Speaking to The Observer in 2002, he said: “I’m a Leeds fan because I was born in 1974, when the Don Revie team won the league and Leeds were in their prime – and because my older brothers Kevin and Lee were into them too.

“I remember inheriting loads of old Leeds kits made by Admiral, both the white home one and the yellow away one.”

Russell Crowe, meanwhile, was introduced to the joys of supporting Leeds as a kid in Sydney in the 1970s, when highlights of games featuring Revie’s magnificent side were regularly shown on local TV.

He has stayed loyal ever since, narrating the Amazon Prime documentary about United’s tumultuous 2018/19 season and even being linked with a takeover of the club in 2015.

Celebrity fandom can also spawn some unlikely friendships, not least the one between James singer Tim Booth and Leeds legend Gordon Strachan.

In a 2014 interview, Yorkshireman and lifelong United fan Booth told The Independent: “When we released the album Laid in 1993, I was living in Manchester and going over to see Leeds games when [Strachan] was captain.

“I left some signed copies of my album for the team and Gordon rang me up and invited me to come to a game. He said: ‘Those dresses you wear on the cover of the album – you're not turning up in one of them are you?’.”

Booth added: “He comes with [his wife] Lesley on every James tour. When the band has had issues, he's been my confidant and has helped me make the group more cohesive.”

Other celebrity Leeds fans who merit a mention here include comedians Ardal O’Hanlon and Jon Richardson, Game of Thrones actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Arsenal and England goalkeeping great David Seaman and Roxette guitarist Per Gessle.

One man no longer on the list, however, is former England cricket captain Nasser Hussain, who supported United for 30 years before switching to Arsenal because – believe it or not – he didn’t want to take his children to “lower division games”.

Then there are names such as TV’s Jeremy Paxman, golfer Sir Nick Faldo and chef Ken Hom, each occasionally touted as a Leeds fan without much evidence that they are the real deal.

Even without Paxman and co, it’s clear that any gathering of United’s VIP supporters would be ram-packed with stars of stage, screen and song.

Let’s hope that Crowe, Warrington, Ineson, Moyles, Booth, Richardson and all the rest are celebrating in the spotlight when this season is finally done and dusted.

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