Barley Nimmo's 'Honeyball' Reimagines 1970s Women's Football in Photobook

London-based photographer Barley Nimmo has released 'Honeyball,' a photobook that constructs a fictional women's football team in 1970s London. The project is set just after the FA lifted its ban on women's football in 1971, the same year the unofficial England women's team, the Lost Lionesses, played in the Women's World Cup in Mexico. Nimmo, trained as a photojournalist before shifting to fashion and fine art during lockdown, played football for Victoria Park Vixens' male offshoot in East London. The book blends reportage and staged imagery to evoke the fashion, euphoria, and community of early women's football, using warm hues, period-accurate locations, and styling by hair artist Mike Mahoney. Locations included a clubhouse near Nimmo's first studio, sites in Margate, and a local football pitch in Mike's hometown. Black-and-white photographs intersperse the sunny color images to capture introspective moments. Nimmo emphasizes the project's collaborative nature, with contributors motivated by artistic belief rather than financial gain.