Allison was born in Darlington and took up a career in London journalism. He gave the first radio commentary on an FA Cup Final in 1927 (Arsenal v Cardiff). After the sudden death of the legendary Herbert Chapman in 1934, Allison took over as manager of Arsenal. Chapman had won the league title in successive years, and Allison completed the hat-trick with a win in 1935. He also won the FA Cup in 1936 (Sunderland were champions that year) and took another league title in 1938.
In the film The Arsenal Stadium Mystery Allison played himself. One of his lines at half-time was: 'One-nil to the Arsenal. That's how we like it.' It has been a popular score for Arsenal over the years and the chant can still be heard today.