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We all know how it ended. The booze, the bloat, the tragically early death.

But in his heyday, no-one was more alive than George Best.

Today, on what should have been his 66th birthday, we open up the Mirrorpix archives to bring you these incredible shots, many of them unseen or rare.

They'll take you back to a time when George Best was the greatest footballer in Europe and a global sports celebrity on a par with Ali and Pele. When the Belfast Boy was king of the world.

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix) (Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)

(Image: Mirrorpix)