An account of my involvement in the first Tesla Takedown event, outside the dealership at Park Royal, London. Features a special section on the magnificent Park Royal station.
Yesterday saw the first Tesla Takedown event take place outside the Tesla dealership at Park Royal in west London. I was one of the participants, and this post describes my day.
PREPARATION AND TRAVEL
The event was scheduled to start at 11AM, which necessitated catching the 7:42 ntrain from King’s Lynn and then changing to the Piccadilly line at King’s Cross. I had agreed to meet my sister at King’s Lynn station for the oublic transport element of the journey. Given the importance of making that train I planned to leave my house in North Lynn at 7AM to be absolutely sure that there was no possibility of missing it. The journey to King’s Cross was smooth, and the weather was so benign that had I been religiousI might have reckoned thAt someone up there was on our side and ipso facto opposed to Elon the Execrable. It prpved to be just as well that we had lots of time for the cross London journey on the Piccadilly lin, as this part of the journey saw us delayed. Ironically the problem area was what is usually the quickest portion of a journey onn the Piccadilly line, the non-stop run from Hammersmith to Acton Town (the District line has intermediate stops at Ravenscourt Park, Stamford Brook, Turnham Green and Chiswick Park, in a reversal of the situation between Baker Street and Wembley Park, where save for a stop at Finchley Road the Metroplitan line runs fast, while the Jubilee line stops everywhere). We had just past Turnham Green when the train stopped, and we were then told after a substantial pause that it would move forward before stopping suddenly and then rpoceeding slowly. There was then another unscheduled stoo before Acton Town, followed by precisely the same rigmarole, which was then followed by an announcement that the train would now terminate at South Harrow rather than going on to Rayners Lane. The last few stops of our journey passed without further incident. Park Royal is such a fine station that I am giving it a sectionof its own later in the post. Before moving on, here are the pictures taken between King’s Lynn and just before arrival at Park Roya…
I haven’t seen many churches with solar panels on the roof.
TAKING DOWN TESLA
The Tesla dealership is actually visible as you step out of Park Royal station, and it is located just off the A40 (the main road between London and Oxford – the Oxford Tube bus service was in evidence – four Oxford bound buses passed on our side, and although I did not observe them all probably as many coming into London came the other way. We garnered plenty of support from passing motorists. The principal organizer was asked to take down his handmade banner because it featured a swastika (no one actually seeing it could have interpreted it as supporting that ideology, and it features in the photo gallery at the end of this section, but apparently some drivers had seen the symbol and looked no further before contacting the police. The police were very friendly about it, and the banner was taken down. I spoke to a couple of media people who were covering the event for their publications. I left a little early, feeling the need to get home…
A version of the official publicity shot using the Tesla sign as background taken with my camera. I am in the red top, holding a placard made by my sister.
PARK ROYAL STATION
I noticed a number of very distinctive elements about Park Royal Station, including an ornamental tower that sits on top of a circular ticket hall, and a covered walkway which links Platform two (eastbound, towards central London) to the rest of the station. At the top of the tower are roundels on three sides with a concrete ‘shadow roundel’ on the fourth side. I have included on ‘rogue’ picture in this section, a picture of a ‘Middlesex shield’ which is not actually anything to do with the station but cannot be put anywhere else in this post. Enjoy this splendid example of station architecture…
A view of the platforms from the street.A close up of the tower roundel.A map showing times to each station on the Piccadilly line.
HOMEWARD BOUND
As suggested by the last pictures in the Park Royal gallery the Piccadilly line was srill not back on peak form by the time I was heading back. I did consider heading for Hanger Lane on the Central line, but although it is marked as walkable signage outside Park Royal station is non-existent, and so in the end I settled for Park Royal. By the time an eastbound train arrived it was jam packed, and I alighted at Ealing Common, where there was the possibility of a District line train (and change to the Hammersmith & City at Hammersmith), but in the event the next eastbound train was another Piccadilly line service, and had lots of space on it. I got to King’s Cross with a fair wait until the next train to King’s Lynn, and ate the sandwiches I had prepared in the morning while waiting for the train. The journey back to King’s Lynn was uneventful. Here are my remaining photos from the public transport part of the journey…
Another variation on the roundel theme – here there is a roundel shape in the glass, but it has not been coloured.A bronze statue of one of the greats of locomotive engineering, Nigel Gresley.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Of course I have been taking my usual kind of photographs as well…
A look at developments in the Boxing Day test match so far and large photo gallery.
At 11:30PM on Christmas Day UK time the Boxing Day test match at the MCG (between India and Australia – the fourth match of a five match series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy – on this occasion) got underway.
DAY ONE
Australia won the toss and elected to bat first. This meant that debutant Sam Konstas, at the age of 19, would not have long to wait for his first bat at the highest level, since he would be opening the innings alongside Usman Khawaja, precisely twice his age, and the biggest age gap between Australian openers since Syd Gregory, induced out of retirement at the age of 42 by a dispute that left Australia without six of its leading players, and Charlie Kellaway padded up together way back in 1912. Konstas selection also meant two other things: he was only the third ever test player known to be of Greek heritage after Xenophon Constantine Balaskas (South Africa) and Athanasios John Traicos (South Africa, and, after a record mid-career hiatus at that level of 22 years, Zimbabwe). Marcus Stoinis, also of Greek ancestry, has played limited overs cricket for Australia, but not test cricket, and Ari Karvelas has played for the land of his ancestors but not as yet for that of his birth, South Africa; and Australia had a top three all born abroad – Konstas (Greece), Khawaja (Pakistan) and Labuschagne (South Africa).
Konstas played a magnificent innings, showing no sign of any nerves. His use of ramp and scoop shots forced India to deploy run-saving fielders directly behind the wicket, which also meant reducing the slip cordon so as not to leave gaps in front of the wicket. Left arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja got him, with, as is so often the case with this bowler, a ball that didn’t actually do anything – it just went straight through and hit a pad in line with the stumps, for a 65 ball 60, which came out of an opening stand of 89. Khawaja completed a much more pedestrian 50, as did Labuschagne, and by the close of day one Steve Smith had also exceeded 50, and it was still there. Bumrah claimed three wickets in the course of the day, and without him Australia would have been well and truly out of sight by the end of this day. A score of 311-6 was still a good effort. Khawaja did not make my all time Ks XI, but his stocks have risen since August 2022, and he would merit consideration now, although I might still stick with Karunaratne. If Konstas’ debut knock was any sort of clue to his future career then he will displace Majid Khan as the right handed opener in that XI before he is done.
DAY TWO
I missed a fair amount of this day’s action due to the inconvenient time of its happening, but I did get to see both India’s best and worst moments of a day that ended with Australia in total control. Australia reached 474, Steve Smith reaching 140, and Pat Cummins boosting the score with a late 49. India lost two wickets fairly early, but then a fine third wicket stand developed between Yashavsi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli. Half an hour before the end of the day it looked fairly evenly poised, and Jaiswal looked set for a century. Then Jaiswal played one towards Cummins, not a fielder whose arm should be challenged, set off for the single, only for Kohli, ball watching, to ignore his partner’s call, which resulted in the end of Jaiswal for 82. Kohli himself then edged Boland to Carey, and nightwatch Akash Deep also failed to survive until the close. Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja were thus together at the end of the day, with India 167-5, still over 100 runs short of avoiding the follow-on. India will have their work cut out to emerge from this with anything other than a defeat, which will mean that only a win in Sydney will see them retain the BGT.
PHOTOGRAPHS
My usual sign off…
There are a lot more pictures from Fakenham than usual in this gallery – I had misread a notice about library opening hours and had a lot of time to kill after work on Tuesday and did so doing a lot of walking.For all that it has Fakenham in its name this defunct train station is actually just into the adjoining village of Hempton.The last picture from Fakenham.This picture and the next were taken on Christmas Day morning – the rest of that gallery will appear in my next post.
An account of my return journey from my Cornish excursion, including a very large photo gallery.
In this post I bring the account of my Cornish sojourn to a close with an account of the return journey.
TIMING PROBLEMS
I was booked on the train leaving Plymouth at 3:15PM and had to be out of my hotel room by 10:30AM at the latest. My hope was that I could find somewhere to leave my bigger bag and spend much of the intervening time exploring Plymouth, but my hotel was not an option, being a place that did not offer full service, and Plymouth station proved not to offer that option either. Therefore I spent a long time in the vicinity of Plymouth station until I could board the train.
THE JOURNEY ITSELF
The train set off on time. My booked seat was on the wrong side of the train for the very scenic Newton Abbot – Exeter section, but the train was virtually empty, so I moved across temporarily, moving back as we arrived into Exeter St Davids (I don’t think the reservations were actually being enforced, but one can never be sure). The train arrived into Paddington as per schedule, and aside from the inevitable overcrowding my journey on the Hammersmith and City line to King’s Cross was also uneventful. The last potential problem area was Kings Cross train station where platform details are sometimes confirmed at the last minute. Fortunately on this occasion that did not happen, and I was settled in a seat near the front of the train in very good time. I was due to arrive at King’s Lynn at 9:00PM, and the train stuck to schedule. I made it back to my flat in decent time as well.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are my photographs from this day…
The dragonfly sculpture in San Sebastian Square.The expanse of Armada Way.It is not quite to my taste, but I can see the architectural merits of this building.The beginning of the seaside section of the route.
An account of my return journey from Penzance to Liskeard to bring the Penzance ‘series within a series’ to a conclusion.
I am writing this post from a hotel room in Plymouth where I am spending the last night of my excursion, due to a mix up over holiday dates (I booked my train tickets based on my parents flying out to Crete tomorrow, whereas they are actually doing so today). I will cover the events of today in considerable detail in a later post. Suffice it to say for the moment that I am happy with my room. For today I complete my coverage of my excursion to Penzance with an account of the return journey.
PENZANCE TO LISKEARD
While I was heading east from Penzance to Liskeard my sisters was heading westwards towards Plymouth, from where she would be picked up. In the event although my train reached Liskeard some while after hers reached Plymouth I was back at Fort Picklecombe first due to the shorter journey from Liskeard as compared to Plymouth. There were two short stoppages on my journey from Penzance to Liskeard, but overall it was a smooth run. I got some good pictures along the way.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are the photographs from the return journey…
The photos from the return journey start here.Truro Cathedral in as much of its glory as can be captured through a train window.
Starting a series-within-a-series about my trip to Penzance yesterday. This post deals with the train journey there.
The weather here in Cornwall is much improved from Sunday, an improvement which started yesterday afternoon, while I was visiting Penzance. This post is the first of three I shall be producing, covering Liskeard to the just before arrival in Penzance (Penzance station will feature as the starting point of the third post, about the journey back).
A COUPLE OF MINOR IRRITATIONS
My original plan had to been to catch the 10:33 out of St Germans, but unfortunately that had to be readjusted to catching the 11:12 out of Liskeard as we did not have time to get to St Germans for the earlier train. At Liskeard I joined a small queue for the ticket office (I was third in line at that stage, with two more people having joined the queue by the time the first customer had been dealt with, a mere trifle of 17 minutes later). I still had ample time after completing my purchase of a return to Penzance (fortunately the second customer in the queue was quick, as I was) to get down to the platform and take some pictures at platform level before the train came in (Liskeard has a slightly curious layout, with platforms 1 and 2 both being approached by way of a footbridge, while platform 3 which is the terminus of a minor branch line to Looe is approached by a separate footpath and is at 90 degree angle to the other two platforms).
A SMOOTH JOURNEY
The journey from Liskeard to Penzance passed smoothly, though with the usual frustrations for a photographer in motion of failed shots due to misjudging the precise moment at which to click the shutter to capture the target. I arrived into Penzance at about 12:50 and was ready for the next stage of the day, which will covered in my next post.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here is the picture gallery for this post…
The final approach to Penzance (station building at front of shot).
An account of a trip on the Tamar Valley line, complete with large photo gallery.
Yesterday was the first full of my stay in Cornwall, and this post describes my main activity for that day. Today the weather is truly vile – high winds, lashings of rain and more recently to add to the mix fog as well so that the lighthouse that is usually clearly visible from my parents apartment is currently entirely shrouded from view.
A PLAN MISFIRES
I was dropped in Plymouth yesterday with a view to purchasing a Devon and Cornwall railcard (cost £12) to gain a 1/3 discount on all train fares in the region for a year. Unfortunately such a card can only be obtained if documentation relating to an address in the area can be produced and I had no such documentation. However I bought a return ticket to Gunnislake, northern terminus of the Tamar Valley Line, cost £7.90. I had over an hour before the next train to Gunnislake was departing, so filled some of the time by gaining greater familiarity with the environs of Plymouth station. Pedestrian access from the station to other areas of town comes by a way of path that leads under a roundabout. The central area of the under-roundabout path is dedicated to wild flowers and is pleasant walking. The hour of my journey arrived…
A SCENIC JOURNEY
The journey to Gunnislake could be described as a journey of two parts in two different ways:
For the first small portion of line (Plymouth – St Budeaux Victoria Road)the stops are frequent and the surroundings urban, specifically a commercial port area whose best days were long in the past, before the line then becomes very rural in character and the stops become much more widely spaced.
The route has a hairpin at Bere Ferrers, so that the train reverses its direction fo travel for the last three stops on the route (Bere Alston, Calstock and Gunnislake).
Also, as I failed to realize for the outbound journey the windows on the side of the train from which you board at Plymouth and at Gunnislake for the return journey offer much finer views than the other, which is why the majority of my best photos from the two train journeys were taken on the return one where I positioned myself correctly.
GUNNISLAKE
Gunnislake village is down a significant hill from Gunnislake station, and Tamar Valley is still further down (I did not venture right down into the valley). The Cornish Inn offered an acceptable pint, and also a view of what I suspect to be Gunnislake’s most intriguing resident, an African Grey Parrot named Ozzy, complete with warning notice written from his perspective.
THE RETURN JOURNEY
It was sufficiently warm that I removed my jumper while in Gunnislake. The train (a two coach crawler, and fairly basic, though less spartan than the laughably misnamed ‘sprinters’ that used to do the Sheffield to Barnsley run when I lived in that part of the world) was due to depart at 15:14, and it actually did precisely that. The return run went well, and I made up for not having had many successful pictures on the outward run as you will see. I think that if I make a second excursion on this line at some point I will book to Bere Alston, walk from there to Bere Ferrers and pick up the return train at Bere Ferrers.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are the pictures I took yesterday…
This one was taken through the window of my parentt’s apartment.A few pictures from Plymouth Station and its immediate environs.The Tamar Valley section of the gallery begins here.The view from Maker Heights on the way from Plymouth to Fort Picklecombe.The lighthouse mentioned in the introduction, taken from outside the fort yesterday.
An account of my journey from King’s Lynn to Plymouth yesterday, with a fine photo gallery.
I am in Cornwall, staying with my parents for a few days. I travelled down yesterday, and that journey will be the subject of this post.
KING’S LYNN TO LONDON
I was booked on later trains than I would have liked – leaving Lynn on the 1:42Pm and arriving into Plymouth where my parents would be meeting me at 8:13PM. I set off from my home in North Lynn an hour before the train was due to depart from King’s Lynn, and was on the platform with huge amounts of time to spare. The train suffered a couple of minor delays en route to London but I still had over 50 minutes to get from King’s Cross to Paddington. I arrived at Paddington half an hour before the train to Plymouth was due to depart, but it took a long time for the platform information to be confirmed, and I had only a few minutes to make my way to my seat by the time that happened.
PADDINGTON TO PLYMOUTH
I was on a train that was stopping at more places than usual for a journey to Plymouth – Newbury, Hungerford, Pewsey, Westbury and Castle Cary between Reading and Taunton. I got some good pictures between London and Exeter, but it was dark by the time I got to the seaside section of route between Exeter and Newton Abbot, and that meant it was hardly possible to take pictures due to the interference of reflections owing to the extreme contrast between the brightly lit train interior and the near darkness outside. The train arrived into Plymouth almost exactly as per schedule, which I understand is not a frequent occurrence with GWR long distance services. Apart from the overcrowding on the Hammersmith & City line between King’s Cross and Paddington the journey went well overall.
Concluding my account of my Scottish holiday with the return journey.
This will be the final post in my series about my Scottish holiday (28-31 May inclusive. I will briefly mention the birthday festivities which took place a day early – the day itself (May 31) was to be a day of travelling home, before covering the return journey.
THE BIRTHDAY MEAL
One of the shops Comrie possesses is a butcher, and the centrepiece of the meal was three large rib eye steaks purchased from that establishment. We also had Jersey Royals and locally grown asparagus, while there were locally grown raspberries for pudding. There was sparkling wine before the meal, and still wine with it.
THE RETURN JOURNEY
I was due to leave Perth at 11:15AM on May 31st, a time which was tailored to the fact that we had to be out of the building in Comrie by 10 at the latest – it was late enough not hurry our departure and early enough that the wait at Perth station would not be too long. This train was running a Perth to Edinburgh route and stopped at a number of places. There were some fine views, although I had put myself on the less good side of the train. I was worrying at one point as it ran late, and indeed I had only eight minutes to make the connection at Edinburgh, but I was never actually in any danger of missing that connection. The train from Edinburgh to Peterborough ran smoothly, though my reserved seat was on the less good side of the train for photography. At Peterborough I had a wait of about 20 minutes for the bus to King’s Lynn. This part of the journey also ran smoothly, and I arrived at the bus station a little before 6:40PM, and was home just before 7PM.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Here are my photographs from the return journey..,
The train for the Perth-Edinburgh leg of the journey.
The public transport elements of my journey from King’s Lynn to Comrie.
This is the first of what I plan to be a series of posts about my recent holiday in Scotland. This post looks in detail at the public transport elements of the journey there.
KING’S LYNN TO PETERBOROUGH
I booked my train tickets to and from Peterborough because it is significantly cheaper that way and also the train journey to Peterborough involves a change at Ely. With the train on which I had a reserved seat leaving Peterborough at 10:18AM I assessed that the right bus to be on was the 8:30AM bus, which meant I needed to leave before 8 o’clock to be sure of catching it. This did not prove to be any great problem. The bus ran smoothly and I arrived at Peterborough with plenty of time to find the correct platform and the correct place on that platform to wait to board the train at the right point (I was in coach H, which was shown on the information screen as needing me to be in zone 5 of the platform…
PETERBOROUGH TO EDINBURGH WAVERLEY
This was the longest leg of the journey, but compensated by also being the fastest. Finding my reserved seat was straightforward, and no one had unthinkingly occupied it, so I was able to seat myself without having to ask anyone to move (even though reservations are very clearly indicated as such it is not unknown to find a reserved seat already occupied, and I will get the person occupying it to move if that is the case). I had booked a forward facing window seat, and on this occasion that was what it proved to be – and it was on the better side of the train for photography. This route provides plenty of fine views, especially between York and Edinburgh (though there a few good bits south of York as well). The task at Edinburgh was to locate the train I was to travel on as far as Stirling, which I did…
EDINBURGH TO STIRLING
This was on a stopping service which was ultimately headed for Dunblane, and passed through a few interesting places. At Stirling I had to change trains for the final leg of the journey to Perth, but this did involve moving platforms, for which I was grateful.
STIRLING TO PERTH
This was a non-stop journey on a Scotrail Intercity service heading towards Inverness. Unfortunately I was unable to secure a window seat for this final leg of the journey, though I did spot one or two interesting things on arrival at Perth. The train arrived at Perth at the scheduled time, which meant that seven and a half hours of public transport travel involving one bus and three trains had ended with the traveller in the right place at the right time – which in 21st century Britain comes close to qualifying as miraculous.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Taking photographs through the windows of buses and trains is often frustrating, but yields enough good pictures to be worthwhile….
The first 15 pictures are King’s Lynn pictures, some taken on the Monday evening, a couple while walking to the bus station on Tuesday morning.This picture and the next two were taken while passing through Wisbech.The train pictures start here.Our first stop.On the approach to Alnmouth.The train would soon be crossing this viaduct.Looking along the Tweed as the train moves from England into Scotland.This is now a Radisson hotel, but it would have been built by the original railway company as the station hotel.
An all time XI of players whose given names begin with R, a particularly important and detailed honourable mentions section and a multi-part photo gallery.
I continue my tour of cricketing given names with a look at the letter R, skipping over Q on the grounds of insufficient candidates being available for that letter. R offers a very different kind of challenge – there are huge numbers of players with overlapping skills sets and only 11 can make the final cut. I hope that the honourable mentions section, in which offer an alternative team formation that I elected not to go with will clarify these issues.
THE XI IN BATTING ORDER
*Rohit Sharma (India, right handed opening batter, captain). A naturally aggressive batter, his test record is eminently respectable even if he is better known for his exploits in limited overs cricket. As both opener and captain he can be expected to lead from the front.
Robert Baddeley ‘Bob’ Simpson (Australia, right handed opening batter, occasional leg spinner, vice captain). Although both my chosen openers are right handers it would be harder to find a more contrasting pair in terms of approach. At Old Trafford in 1964, the same ground where Ian Johnson’s side had spectacularly come to grief eight years earlier, Australia went into the match one up in the series and needing only a draw to ensure retention of The Ashes. The groundsman at Old Trafford produced one of the flattest pitches ever seen, and Simpson ensured that Australia would keep the Ashes, quite literally off his own bat – he won the toss, chose to bat first and was only dismissed on the third morning of the match, for 311. England responded in kind, and there was barely time for the second Australian innings to begin before the umpires called time – such bowling as was required in this third innings of a scheduled four was done by Titmus and Barrington with an old ball. In addition to his impressive test batting record Simpson’s leg spin was good enough that he enjoyed some success with it even at test level, and he was an outstanding slip fielder. I have named him as vice captain as a nod to his leadership qualities.
Rahul Dravid (India, right handed batter). A test record that speaks for itself.
Ricky Ponting (Australia, right handed batter, occasional medium pacer). One place down from his usual slot as I feel he would handle the lower position better than Dravid, though if Sharma were first out I might send him in to avoid having Simpson and Dravid bat together.
Rohan Kanhai (West Indies, right handed batter). The Guyanese was rated a genius by CLR James, and almost 7,000 test runs at 47 provide some solid achievement to back up that assessment.
Ryan ten Doeschate (Netherlands, right handed batter, right arm medium fast bowler). The Dutchman established a superb record in limited overs international (his country are not a test playing nation as yet), and his record in FC cricket, mainly over the course of a long and distinguished association with Essex is eminently respectable.
Ravindra Jadeja (India, left handed batter, left arm orthodox spinner, outstanding fielder). A magnificent all round cricketer.
R Ashwin (India, off spinner, right handed batter). Over 400 test wickets, and a batting record that includes five test match centuries.
Ray Lindwall (Australia, right arm fast bowler, right handed batter). One of the best fast bowlers ever seen in the game, and good enough with the bat to have scored two test centuries along the way.
Richard Hadlee (New Zealand, right arm fast bowler, left handed batter). The best bowler of any type ever to play for New Zealand, and a handy lower order batter, though the first in this line up to have had a test career and not scored a century at that level.
+Rhianna Southby (England, wicket keeper, right handed batter). The most controversial pick of all my XI, but although there were many options for this letter I wanted to showcase one of the very best of contemporary wicket keepers. Her position in this order is less a reflection on her batting than an acknowledgement of the fact that all of my chosen bowlers were also talented in that department.
This XI is very strong in batting, keeping and spin bowling, with the seam/ pace element of the attack a little light, since the only pace/seam support for the Anzac new pall pairing of Lindwall and Hadlee would come from ten Doeschate.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
This will be a multi-faceted section and I start with…
THE WICKET KEEPER/ ALL ROUNDER CONUNDRUM
Although there is one absolutely genuine all rounder in Jadeja available for this letter, there was no one available for the number six slot. Ron Archer of Australia might have become the perfect fit for that slot had he not suffered a freak injury when Australia visited Pakistan on their way home from the 1956 Ashes. The injury occurred at Karachi, where Archer caught his studs in a piece of matting and wrenched a knee, and it ended his bowling career at the age of 23, though he played one more season for Queensland as a specialist batter. Had he not suffered that injury he might have gone to become the replacement for Keith Miller that Australia were hoping he would, in which case selecting this side would have been a lot easier. There were three potential alternatives to Southby for the wicket keeper’s slot: Robert William ‘Bob’ Taylor, who made more FC dismissals than any other wicket keeper in history, Rod Marsh, holder of the record for test career dismissals at the time of his retirement, and Rishabh Pant of India. A possible alternative to my chosen line up which addresses the seam/ pace bowling potential issue would be to pick Pant in place of ten Doeschate and Robert George Dylan ‘Bob’ Willis in place of Southby at number 11, giving an XI of *RG Sharma, RB Simpson, RS Dravid, RT Ponting, RB Kanhai, +R Pant, R Jadeja, R Ashwin, RR Lindwall, RJ Hadlee, RGD Willis.
OTHER HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Robert William ‘Bob’ Barber had his moments as a left handed attacking opener for England, including scoring 185 against Australia in an innings win in Australia, but his career record lacks the overall heft to displace Sharma. Richard Barlow who played for England in the 1880s, and remains the only person ever selected for an England men’s test team on the understanding that he was going to open both the batting and the bowling was another potential candidate, and his left arm seam bowling would have added variation to the attack, but if I apply my usual conversion method to his career averages his record adjusts to an average of 34.08 with the bat and 33.83 with the ball, not really good enough in either department. Roy Park was highly rated by some of his Australian contemporaries, including Warwick Armstrong, but his sole test innings lasted precisely one ball. Robert ‘Bobby’ Abel, the first England batter to carry his bat through a test innings, was clearly a very fine right handed opener of the more cautious type, and a case could be made for him getting Simpson’s slot.
The unluckiest middle order batters of those to miss out were a pair of West Indians with fine test records, Richie Richardson and Ramnaresh Sarwan. Neither of the individuals concerned would be out of place in the number five slot I awarded to Kanhai. Robin Smith was a fine number three for England, but he is a mere candle to the Alexandrian lighthouses of Dravid and Ponting.
Ryan Higgins, now re-ensconced at Middlesex after a few years away at Gloucestershire, has a fine county record, but he has not yet been picked for England. Rikki Clarke had a very fine FC record, but did not make the most of such chances as he got at international level. Rich Pyrah of Yorkshire was a very fine limited overs player but his record in long form cricket was no more than respectable. Rehan Ahmed, the young England leg spinning all rounder, may well force his way in in due course, but at the moment, especially with Simpson able to bowl a bit of leg spin if needed, he has to wait. Robert ‘Bob’ Relf of Sussex was a good enough county all rounder to deserve a mention. Robert ‘Bobby’ Peel of Yorkshire and England was a great left arm spin bowler who could bat, but not good enough to dislodge Jadeja. Similarly, Ray Illingworth was a fine cricketer, but no one is convincing me that he comes particularly close to challenging R Ashwin for that slot. Richie Benaud was a high quality leg spinning all rounder, and would have been captain had I been able to accommodate him in the XI. Since I cannot do that, he would be the ONLY candidate to head up the TV commentary team. Roy Kilner, with 14,000 Fc runs at 30 and 1,000 FC wickets at 18 was unlucky to be up against Jadeja for a slot. Given the galaxy of talent already covered, for all her unique status as an international captain who has turned out for The Metronomes there can be no place for the Brazilian all rounder Roberta Moretti Avery.
Rashid Khan, the Afghan leg spinner, was probably the best of the bowlers I could find no place for. Rangana Herath of Sri Lanka was a very fine left arm spinner, but like Peel and Kilner mentioned in the all rounders section suffered due to the overlap with Jadeja.
Richard Peter Borgnis as he appears in the record books (his actual full name was Richard Peter Hammond-Chambers-Borgnis) had an astonishing first class career – one match in which he scored a century and took a three-for.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz of Afghanistan would be in the mix were I picking with limited overs cricket in mind, but he is as yet unproven in long form cricket.
PHOTOGRAPHS
A multi-part photo gallery today. James and Sons had an auction this week, and I focus on two lots. Lot 304 was a Hassalblad camera in an aluminium case with a lot of extra bits and pieces and attracted considerable interest. I produced an extended gallery for it in order to deal with queries that were coming in, and the result was very pleasing – it sold for £1,000.
The second lot I focus on was number 574. This lot, a collection of cigarette/ trade cards, was knocked down to me for £10. I produced a good gallery for it…
Having taken possession of it I have been through it in much more detail than imaging for auction allows…
It was natural to start with London Buses that had been my main reason for buying the lot.The Route Master, London’s most iconic bus.These grandee cards featuring wildlife of various kinds were a welcome bonus.These cards featuring birds are splendid.More wildlife themed cards.These aeroplanes were not of particular interest to me.The ships however were.
aspiblog 