Random Royal Moments: Pudding The Pitch Invader

Reading’s FA Cup quarter-final replay win over Bradford City in 2015 was one of the greatest nights in the club’s history, and it was an evening that one man in particular will never forget.

With the Royals 3-0 up and assured of their place at Wembley, 20-year-old Woodley native Charlie Sumner, affectionately nicknamed ‘Pudding’, invaded the pitch to celebrate.

Pudding emerged from the North Stand and somehow managed to run the entire length of the pitch, take his shirt off and perform four front flips, landing on his back each time, in front of the away fans.

All four corners of the Mad Stad cheered him on, and whoever was operating the public address system seized upon the opportunity by playing circus music to match his light-hearted antics.

With the match being shown live on BBC One and Pudding’s antics captured on numerous phones, he quickly went viral and is generally considered one of the most entertaining pitch invaders in recent years.

Pudding would end up being fined £265 for his antics and also got a three year banning order from Reading games, not that he would have been too bothered - he was a Liverpool supporter.

“It started off as banter really, with my mates,” he later told Vice. “I don’t really go to matches and it was my first match with my mates and they just started off by saying, ‘go on the pitch, go on,’ and I thought about it and went for it.

“I’m actually a Liverpool fan. So, yeah, but I do support Reading as obviously I’m from Reading and they done brilliant, but I just happened to be there with my mates.”

Sumner also admitted that all the stewards and police officers all found the whole affair pretty funny:

“They all saw the funny side of it and were laughing, but said that by law they have to do their job and do what they have to do. They were all coming to my cell saying, “Were you the one on TV who went on the pitch?”

A true Royals legend.