The Scandalous Ladies Football Club

The Radio 2 Book Club Summer Pick 2026

Frances Quinn author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Simon & Schuster Ltd

Publishing:25th Feb '27

£9.99

This title is due to be published on 25th February, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

This paperback is available in another edition too:

The Scandalous Ladies Football Club cover

The Radio 2 Book Club Summer Pick 2026 

Meet Minnie Newton – 27-year-old spinster, troublemaker and founder of the first ever women's football club…

London, 1887: schoolteacher Minnie Newton is horrified when her female pupils placidly accept the limitations Victorian society puts on their ambitions and their lives. To show them women can do anything, she places a newspaper ad, seeking women to join a football team. 

From a handful of replies, she puts together a motley collection to form a squad that’s keen but mostly hopeless. Soon the women fall in love with the game and decide to play in public and their matches begin to draw big crowds. 

But Minnie has a secret and soon all the attention her notorious team is getting starts to threaten the life she has built for herself. Can she toe the line between independence and safety or will the truth about who she is come out…? 

A story inspired by real-life Victorian women, who showed the world that women can do anything they put their minds to, even if they are ridiculed for it at first…

PRAISE FOR FRANCES QUINN:

'Another fantastic female-centred historical novel from Frances Quinn' WOMAN & HOME

'An uplifting story of camaraderie and courage' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING 

‘An uplifting, warmhearted, glorious romp of a novel where the underdogs triumph and the world is put to rights…Frances Quinn has such a talent for tackling serious historical topics with heart, humour, and humanity.' LOUISE FEIN 

'A triumphant, heart-lifting read about friendship, resilience, and rewriting the rules.’ NIKKI SMITH

‘Frances Quinn remains top of the historical fiction league with this feminist, feelgood page-turner’ PENNY BATCHELOR

‘Packed with wit, humour, and warmth. Frances Quinn scores again.' EMILIA HART 

'This funny, heart-warming story examines friendship, female power and what it really means to be an independent woman in Victorian England.' ELENI KYRIACOU

‘Full of heart and humour … a hymn to friendship and a celebration of female power’ NICOLA GILL 

‘Frances Quinn is the Sarina Wiegman of historical fiction, producing a winner every time!’ TREVOR WOOD

‘Full of humour, friendship, and wonderful characters that leap off the page’ LOUISE HARE

‘Frances Quinn has effortlessly captured the spirit of an era in this delightful page-turner of a novel' JOANNA GLEN 

‘A beautifully written page-turner’ LILA CAIN

PRAISE FOR FRANCES QUINN:

'The latest novel by Frances Quinn, author of That Bonesetter Woman, takes another obscure story from the past — in this case the genuine existence of a women’s football team in the 1890s — and fashions it into a lively, engaging narrative.' SUNDAY TIMES

'The author of The Smallest Man and That Bonesetter Woman has done it again with another gripping historical drama...An uplifting story of camaraderie and courage.' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING

'Another fantastic female-centred historical novel from Frances Quinn' WOMAN & HOME

‘A thoroughly enjoyable novel about being brave enough to grab hold of a second chance and make the most of it’ LOUISE HARE, author of Harlem After Midnight

'A cracking riches-to-rags tale from the queen of the underdog story, which cleverly turns the standard Cinderella story on its head to page-turning effect’ TREVOR WOOD, author of The Man On The Street

'An addictive, page turning read filled with wit, wisdom and a central character to root for’ CAROLINE BISHOP, author of The Lost Chapter

‘A triumphant, heart-lifting read about friendship, resilience, and rewriting the rules.’ NIKKI SMITH, author of They Had It Coming

'Packed with wit, humour, and warmth. Frances Quinn scores again.' EMILIA HART, author of The Sirens

‘This funny, heart-warming story examines friendship, female power and what it really means to be an independent woman in Victorian England.' ELENI KYRIACOU, author of A Beautiful Way to Die 

‘Frances Quinn has effortlessly captured the spirit of an era in this delightful page-turner of a novel' JOANNA GLEN, author of The First Act of Summer

'A vivid story of female empowerment that resonates today. These Lionesses roar.' VICTORIA DOWD, author of Death in the Aviary

‘Fascinating, funny and thought-provoking – the ultimate hat trick in storytelling – I loved every minute in the company of these ladies both off the pitch and on.' FREYA NORTH, author of Little Wing

Frances Quinn scores a hat trick with The Scandalous Ladies Football Club – it’s warm, witty and wonderful! No one can beat Quinn when it comes to feel-good historical fiction.' CHARLOTTE LEVIN, author of If I Let You Go

‘A compelling, heart-warming novel’ GILL PAUL, author of The Secret Wife

‘Powerful and inspiring’ ANNA MAZZOLA, author of The Clockwork Girl

‘A beautifully written page-turner’ LILA CAIN, author of The Blackbird of St Giles

‘Utterly compelling’ ESSIE FOX, author of Dangerous

‘Immersive and intriguing’ HAZEL GAYNOR, author of The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter 

‘A vivid, compelling, and immaculately researched story’ LUCY BARKER, author of The Other Side of Mrs Wood 

‘A wonderful story of friendship and fulfilment’ MATSON TAYLOR, author of Roman Mornings

‘Frances Quinn remains top of the historical fiction league with this feminist, feelgood page-turner’ PENNY BATCHELOR, author of The Woman Next Door

‘An uplifting, warmhearted, glorious romp of a novel where the underdogs triumph and the world is put to rights…Frances Quinn has such a talent for tackling serious historical topics with heart, humour, and humanity.' LOUISE FEIN, author of Book of Forbidden Words

‘Full of heart and humour … a hymn to friendship and a celebration of female power’ NICOLA GILL, author of Identity Crisis

'A story of courage, friendship and the women who refused to stay on the sidelines, this is historical fiction at its finest: uplifting, moving and relevant to our times.' LOUISA TREGER, author of Madwoman

ISBN: 9781398520769

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

416 pages