In this week’s edition of In Search of West Indies
Cricket Roger Seymour recalls one of the colourful
characters who was an integral part of the local cricket scene from the War Years (1940s) through the Fabulous Fifties and Swinging Sixties to the Disco Decade of the 1970s.
One of the staples of cricket in the Caribbean has been the presence of a bunch of eccentric dramatis personae at grounds during matches throughout the entire region.
These characters fall into two groups: entertainers and cricket aficionados, with the odd exception capable of donning both hats. The gathering of exhibitionists consists of musical contributors, impersonators, amateur cricketers, and exquisitely dressed local nobility. The last mentioned are a walking collection of cricket encyclopaedias who serve as the ‘Supreme Court’ on cricket disputes in the stands.
These crowd favourites always garnered the attention of radio commentators during crucial moments in Test matches and quite often were the subject of lunch-break interviews.
