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Dickie Bird: My Autobiography
First published in 1997, this is the story of the Yorkshire miner's son who became a household name as a Test match umpire. Bird provides views on the game and those involved in it, with behind the scenes accounts and humorous anecdotes.
479 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 25, 2020
Back in the days when I used to watch and actually care about cricket,Dickie Bird was considered the best umpire in cricket.His quirky mannerisms also endeared him to the public.
He was the son of a coal miner,his father's life was very hard and he wanted something better for his son.
Playing cricket offered a way out.Incidentally,some other famous English cricketers including Geoffrey Boycott and Fred Trueman were also sons of coal miners.
After his career as a county cricketer was over,Dickie Bird became an umpire.His father had told him to avoid smoking,drinking and women in night clubs.
Dickie Bird took that advice to heart.He went even further and
never got married,saying that he was married to cricket.
Dickie Bird has a lot of hilarious anecdotes to share :
On one occasion,a drunk lady came into the Test match ground and insisted that she would not leave the ground,until Dickie Bird kissed her.He was forced to oblige.
On another occasion,he was invited to a bird show.He was bitten by a big Australian bird.Dickie Bird told the other bird that he was behaving very badly.It was a talking bird and it told Dickie Bird to "fuck off."
After a World Cup final,a crowd raced on to the field.Some of them wanted to take Dickie Bird's cap off his head,as a momento.Dickie Bird was travelling in a bus sometime later,when he found a West Indian man who was still wearing
that cap.He was very proud to have pinched it.
Dickie also talks about the pranks played on him by international cricketers and his impressions of some big names in cricket.
However,a good deal of the book is devoted to his own praise and how much everyone liked him.There is an entire appendix devoted to the nice things said and written about him !
There are some boring bits too,about county cricket and the technicalities of umpiring.But largely,it is an entertaining and hilarious book,which made me laugh again and again.
He was the son of a coal miner,his father's life was very hard and he wanted something better for his son.
Playing cricket offered a way out.Incidentally,some other famous English cricketers including Geoffrey Boycott and Fred Trueman were also sons of coal miners.
After his career as a county cricketer was over,Dickie Bird became an umpire.His father had told him to avoid smoking,drinking and women in night clubs.
Dickie Bird took that advice to heart.He went even further and
never got married,saying that he was married to cricket.
Dickie Bird has a lot of hilarious anecdotes to share :
On one occasion,a drunk lady came into the Test match ground and insisted that she would not leave the ground,until Dickie Bird kissed her.He was forced to oblige.
On another occasion,he was invited to a bird show.He was bitten by a big Australian bird.Dickie Bird told the other bird that he was behaving very badly.It was a talking bird and it told Dickie Bird to "fuck off."
After a World Cup final,a crowd raced on to the field.Some of them wanted to take Dickie Bird's cap off his head,as a momento.Dickie Bird was travelling in a bus sometime later,when he found a West Indian man who was still wearing
that cap.He was very proud to have pinched it.
Dickie also talks about the pranks played on him by international cricketers and his impressions of some big names in cricket.
However,a good deal of the book is devoted to his own praise and how much everyone liked him.There is an entire appendix devoted to the nice things said and written about him !
There are some boring bits too,about county cricket and the technicalities of umpiring.But largely,it is an entertaining and hilarious book,which made me laugh again and again.
December 8, 2019
It's about this time of year that my brain, overwhelmed with work and the printed word, just needs to calm the fuck down with a good old bit of chewing gum for the mind. It needs to take a breather, slip out of gear and just be carried through a book without challenge and eith a prozac-like smile. For this purpose I generally reach for a cricket biography and a glass of whisky.
Dickie Bird is as much a cricket icon as the greats he umpired. I could tell you more but I can't be arsed writing about it any more than you could be arsed reading about it. His story didn't contain any savage murders, femme fatales, radioactive anacondas, political manipulation or nuclear weapons (shy of Michael Holding's bowling). It was just what I needed and makes me warmly anticipate the cricket tournament I'll be in over the summer.
Now, get back to work...
Dickie Bird is as much a cricket icon as the greats he umpired. I could tell you more but I can't be arsed writing about it any more than you could be arsed reading about it. His story didn't contain any savage murders, femme fatales, radioactive anacondas, political manipulation or nuclear weapons (shy of Michael Holding's bowling). It was just what I needed and makes me warmly anticipate the cricket tournament I'll be in over the summer.
Now, get back to work...
December 6, 2020
I really couldn't finish this, because Dickie Bird just won't let up with his silly jokes! However, I read more than half and his anecdotes relating to cricket and travel are not without interest, especially for those of us who remember that era of cricket. He is a nice fellow, Dickie Bird, and reminds us of the fact regularly during the text! A monarchist and practising Christian, he is a man who has nevertheless had an interesting life, during which he has had to temper his natural optimism with the facts of history, including of course the anti-apartheid movement, which he valiantly supported. But oh, those jokes of his! Some may find them tickled pink, but I was in pain most of the time, grimacing and thinking out loud, "Oh, Dickie Bird, you are a card!"
February 7, 2013
A very interesting biography of the much loved Cricket umpire Dickie Bird. A special book for me made more special by the fact that he signed it personally for me. A lovely man.
June 30, 2021
This autobiography was published in 1997 and so it is about 24 years old. While that takes a little away from it, in that it has become a little dated, in some parts it also adds to its charm. His early life reminisces reminded me of those Enid Blyton Secret Seven books I read as a child and of an England that just sounds so charming and friendly. As he got into his career as an International Umpire, it lost a little of its charm and got a little bogged down in stories and opinions that have not aged well eg opposed to circuit training and technology that has been shown to change cricket. All in all, I quite enjoyed it but couldn't help to think that maybe I was just enjoying "the good old days" when sport was just a sport.
July 17, 2021
Amazing incite into a truly inspirational fella. Having grown up watching cricket with my father and Dickie Bird featuring through both international and Natwest trophy games it was an interesting read and brought back great memories....
September 21, 2019
Some great anecdotes and stories from 50 years of cricket but overall lacked a clear narrative and I did not feel I still really did not know enough about him
October 29, 2021
Very enjoyable read with lots of interesting insights but I can’t believe how dated so much of it seems now
October 7, 2023
If you know 70s to 90 cricket then it is an funny and excellent read
February 17, 2024
Interesting anecdotes and quite amusing in parts, but it gets a bit repetitive in the final third.
January 14, 2013
Dickie Bird is a legend in cricket. What makes it all the more remarkable is that his status in cricket largely comes not from an illustrious playing career, but from his time and position as an umpire. Even after retiring from umpiring test cricket in 1996 (he retired from umpiring county cricket in 1998), Dickie still holds a warm place in many cricket adorers’ hearts.
His autobiography simply titled My Autobiography, charts his time as a youngster, a cricket player and arguably most interestingly, his time as an umpire. His status as one of the best umpires, if not the best umpire in the history of cricket, is attested to in the way he has handled many different situations and in the words of praise that players have given him. Of particular interest are the numerous stories he tells of particular situations (the bomb scare and the final of the inaugural Cricket World Cup amongst two highlights). His personal mannerisms are peculiarly Dickie and they come through in the book.
Published in 1997, this book predates current features like the DRS and Twenty20 cricket. That is not a criticism of the book, and it is interesting to see Dickie’s comments about the role of technology and umpires, and the state of cricket at that time in light of those developments.
Dickie has never married; he said that he is married to cricket. Not only is this book an interesting read about the life of one of cricket’s great umpires and characters, but it is also a remarkable tale of a man so distinctly wedded to something he has devoted his life to.
His autobiography simply titled My Autobiography, charts his time as a youngster, a cricket player and arguably most interestingly, his time as an umpire. His status as one of the best umpires, if not the best umpire in the history of cricket, is attested to in the way he has handled many different situations and in the words of praise that players have given him. Of particular interest are the numerous stories he tells of particular situations (the bomb scare and the final of the inaugural Cricket World Cup amongst two highlights). His personal mannerisms are peculiarly Dickie and they come through in the book.
Published in 1997, this book predates current features like the DRS and Twenty20 cricket. That is not a criticism of the book, and it is interesting to see Dickie’s comments about the role of technology and umpires, and the state of cricket at that time in light of those developments.
Dickie has never married; he said that he is married to cricket. Not only is this book an interesting read about the life of one of cricket’s great umpires and characters, but it is also a remarkable tale of a man so distinctly wedded to something he has devoted his life to.
November 16, 2015
Lent to me by Steve at work this is not a book that I would have gone out of my way to read.
This is not to besmirch Dickie Bird in any way, his rightful place as one of the finest umpires in cricket history is rightly honoured – but knowing of him what I already did from his public profile would not have lead me to seek out this book in the expectation of any new enlightenment.
His passion for the game shines out as does his drive to ensure the game is played in the proper manner and umpired to the highest of standards. This is to be admired. The book, however, feels like a connection of anecdotes stitched together, a trawl through any number of diaries with occasional views added about the state of the game in the late 90s when this was written.
Amusing and endearing mostly, the odd cultural jarring note brought me up short – also his need to remind the reader regularly just how well thought of he was by the great and the good….as well as the ordinary people gets a little wearying after a while.
A light read from a man who rightly made his mark on the game.
This is not to besmirch Dickie Bird in any way, his rightful place as one of the finest umpires in cricket history is rightly honoured – but knowing of him what I already did from his public profile would not have lead me to seek out this book in the expectation of any new enlightenment.
His passion for the game shines out as does his drive to ensure the game is played in the proper manner and umpired to the highest of standards. This is to be admired. The book, however, feels like a connection of anecdotes stitched together, a trawl through any number of diaries with occasional views added about the state of the game in the late 90s when this was written.
Amusing and endearing mostly, the odd cultural jarring note brought me up short – also his need to remind the reader regularly just how well thought of he was by the great and the good….as well as the ordinary people gets a little wearying after a while.
A light read from a man who rightly made his mark on the game.
July 9, 2011
This was one of the worst written books I have read. For the most part it simply did not flow, but simply jumped randomly between anecdotes. That said most of the stories were interesting and if you remember Dickie Bird as an umpire you'll almost certainly enjoy the book.
November 4, 2011
Considering how boring umpires are preceived to be, this makes for a wonderful read. Full of all the character you would expect from Dickie Bird on the field is captured in the pages of this book. Makes a nice change to hear about the field of play from a different point of view.
February 21, 2016
Jeff Boycott is remembered for his ability to bat through an innings, yet Mr Bird kept stumps through everyones innings.
A very enjoyable read my favorite bit is in regards to Bishan Bedi and his turban.
There are many moving and funny moments in this well scripted autobiography.
A very enjoyable read my favorite bit is in regards to Bishan Bedi and his turban.
There are many moving and funny moments in this well scripted autobiography.
July 29, 2010
A man that I admired growing up as a cricket fan, was told many stories from my parents. This book held many more. Excellent read for cricket fans.
February 22, 2011
There are probably two many autobiographies that appear mid career, so it is good to read one that appears post event. I guess it helps in translation if you have yorkshire blood.
February 12, 2012
You obviously need to not only like cricket but you will need to love it. It's a fantastic cricket book.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews