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John Arlott
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Leslie Thomas John Arlott (25 February 1914 – 14 December 1991) was a freelance author, whose main subjects were sport and wine, a poet, and a radio producer and broadcaster; best known for his cricket commentary as a member of the BBC Radio 3 Test Match Special team.
Arlott was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire and attended Queen Mary's Grammar School. Between 1930 and 1934 he was a medical records clerk in a mental hospital.
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Leslie Thomas John Arlott (25 February 1914 – 14 December 1991) was a freelance author, whose main subjects were sport and wine, a poet, and a radio producer and broadcaster; best known for his cricket commentary as a member of the BBC Radio 3 Test Match Special team.
Arlott was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire and attended Queen Mary's Grammar School. Between 1930 and 1934 he was a medical records clerk in a mental hospital. Then, between 1934 and 1946, he served as a policeman.
Broadcasting
From 1946 onwards, he worked for BBC Radio as a freelance talk producer. Many of the programmes for which he was responsible featured readings by well-known contemporary poets such Dylan Thomas (who described Arlott's commentary style as like "Uncle Tom Cobleigh reciting Neville Cardus to the Indians") and Louis MacNeice.
Given the opportunity to use the microphone as a sports commentator, he became for 34 years the voice of cricket on BBC Radio, and his Hampshire burr has been described as "the sound of the summer" .
His commentary was famed for its vivid poetic imagery. When Clive Lloyd pulled a ball into the Mound Stand at Lord's in 1975, Arlott described it as "The stroke of a man knocking a thistle top off with a walking stick". He also memorably likened the Pakistani fast-bowler Asif Masood, who had an unusual run-up, to "Groucho Marx chasing a pretty waitress," and made the pun "Mann's inhumanity to Mann" - based on Robert Burns's "Man's inhumanity to man makes countless thousands mourn!" - when Tufty Mann bowled George Mann. Arlott had the misfortune to be commentating at the moment the first streaker appeared at a Test Match in England, memorably describing the culprit as a "freaker".
Arlott gave his final, typically understated, commentary during the centenary Test match at Lord's on 2 September 1980, concluding without comment and with the customary phrasing "... and after Trevor Bailey it will be Christopher Martin-Jenkins." The crowd gave Arlott a standing ovation, including the entire Australian team and England batsman Geoffrey Boycott, who removed his batting gloves to applaud.
Writing
Arlott was a stylish writer, contributing regularly as a journalist and also writing the occasional hymn. He was The Guardian's chief cricket correspondent from 1968 to 1980. He also wrote poetry. He considered his best poem to be "To John Berry Hobbs on his Seventieth Birthday".
Arlott was also a prolific writer on cricket. His numerous works include Fred (biography of Fred Trueman), Jack Hobbs, a profile of 'The Master, Maurice Tate, Gone with the cricketers, Gone to the Test Match, Basingstoke Boy (autobiography), Alletson's Innings and Arlott on cricket (anthology). He was also a writer and sometime radio commentator on association football. He also did some television cricket commentary, primarily on the Sunday League. He wrote only one work of fiction, a cricket short story called "Ain't Half a Bloomin' Game!".
From 1950 to 1978 and from 1981 until his death, he contributed a review of the previous year's cricket books to Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.
He was a connoisseur of wine and was sometimes accompanied by a good claret to help him through the commentary day. He wrote a regular wine column for The Guardian newspaper.
Politics
Arlott was a Liberal in politics and stood as Liberal candidate for Epping in 1955 and 1959.
Following a visit to South Africa, Arlott became an opponent of Apartheid; when completing an immigration form which required him to declare his race, he wrote 'human'. He played a leading role in bringing Basil D'Oliveira from South Africa (where he was unable to play first-class cricket as he was classed as 'coloured') to Britain in 1960.
Personal life
Arlott's son died in a car accident on New Year's Eve, driving a sports car which Arlott had bought him. This tragedy led to Arlott only wearing a black tie from then on in remembrance of his dead son, and in penance for his own role in the tragedy.
In later years he lived on the Channel island of Alderney.
Famous and favourite quotes
The Times newspaper in March 2006 published a list of 25 favourite sporting quotes - two Arlottisms were included:
We have a freaker - 1975
- "We have got a freaker down the wicket now, not very shapely as it is masculine, and I would think it has seen the last of its cricket for the day ... he has had his load, he is being embraced by a blond policeman and this may well be his last public appearance - but what a splendid one!"
Bradman out for a duck - 1948
- "Hollies pitches the ball up slowly and ...he's bowled...Bradman bowled Hollies nought...bowled Hollies nought...and what do you say under these circumstances? I wonder if you see the ball very clearly in your last Test in England, on a ground where you've played some of the biggest cricket in your life and where the opposing side has just stood round you and given you three cheers and the crowd has clapped you all the way to the wicket. I wonder if you see the ball at all."
Books by John Arlott
Of Period and Place (poetry); Jonathan Cape, 1944.
Concerning Cricket; 1949.
... and many more ...
See also: List of works by cricket historians and writers
Arlott (or more correctly Arlott's voice) made a movie appearance in 1982 as the narrator/commentator in Jack Rosenthal's coming-of-age comedy P'Tang Yang Kipperbang.
An authorised (by the family) biography of Arlott by David Rayvern Allen was published in 1993 and won the The Cricket Society Jubilee Literary Award.
External links
Further reading
- The Times - Sport section 2 March 2006.
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