| Description |
On October 17th the English cricket team will set off for Australia. They?ll slip out, unnoticed, from Heathrow airport ; and their journey will be dull, routine and fast. But for 100 years, from 1861 to 1962, teams went slowly by boat. The voyages could be dangerous, riotous, eye-opening and conflictual. Along the way teams stopped in Italy, Egypt, Aden and Sri Lanka ? often giving players their first taste of foreign cultures. On board cricketers from different social classes were thrown together ? though until the second world war amateurs sailed first class, professionals in steerage.The programme is based on the diaries, memoirs and reminiscences of players who sailed to Australia. Ranjitsinhji, Hobbs and Compton are among those quoted ; Fred Trueman and Tom Graveney remember the last voyage of 1962 ? as does the journalist john woodcock . ?What a wonderful life it was?, he says, ?I was so lucky. I don?t think I could cope today.? |