Legends of the Ashes

The 2005 Ashes is widely thought to be the greatest Test series in the history of the competition. It enthralled two nations and catapulted Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff to icon status.

A titanic battle between bat and ball, featuring one of the closest ever test match finishes, it was the series that had it all and breathed life back into English cricket.

Its dramatic ebb and flow is retold by the likes of Michael Vaughan, Adam Gil...

Four players have dominated Ashes series more than any others: Donald Bradman, Ian Botham, Shane Warne and Freddie Flintoff. In this episode, their immense impact, most dramatic moments and behind the scenes antics.

You'll hear how the phenomenon Bradman shunned his teammates and never socialised, quite the contrast to Botham who lured leading members of the opposition out for the night so they couldn’t perform the next day.

You'll ...

The 1932/3 Ashes in Australia was one of the most volatile contests in sporting history.

This was down to the phenomenon that was Donald Bradman and England’s desperate attempts to stop him scoring masses of runs, something they were far too familiar with at that point.

The plan was a revenge mission called Leg Theory, which involved targeting Bradman’s body with quick, hostile bowling.

The brutal approach created bad blood between th...

The Australian batsman Vic Richardson played in the first Bodyline series and was terrorised by the English bowlers. His grandson was the gimlet-eyed Australian captain Ian Chappell. Having heard so many of his grandfather’s stories, he vowed revenge.

In 1974/5 he unleashed the marauding Dennis Lillee and the supersonic Jeff Thomson on England – the fastest, nastiest pair of bowlers in history. England were battered to a chastening ...

In 1981 Ian Botham became a national sporting hero.

From the depths of despair after being sacked as England captain, he fought back to lead a remarkable resurgence. All while playing some of the most scintillating cricket the game had ever seen.

In this episode you'll hear from the key protagonists of one of English crickets finest moments. Botham himself explains how he managed to transform his mindset after being unceremoniously s...

No-one has burst onto the Ashes scene as dramatically as Shane Warne did in 1993. With his first ever delivery in an Ashes contest he dramatically clean bowled Mike Gatting with a ball that turned and bounced ferociously.

It became simply known as “That Ball”. It transformed not just Ashes matches but the way spin was used worldwide.

The tales of Warne’s words and deeds are legion, and in this episode we reveal new insight into his i...

Australia reinvented the game in the late 1990’s with three aggressive opening batsmen: Matthew Hayden, Michael Slater and Justin Langer. 

To compound England’s woes, they were followed by greats Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and adding the coup de grace – Adam Gilchrist, wielding his bat like a Samurai sword.

They intimidated England’s attack, sending them into submission, then Warne and McGrath cleaned up the batsmen. England bar...

England planned their 2010/11 campaign in Australia, where they had not won a series for 25 years, with military precision.

The strategy of captain Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower was based on patience, stamina, consistency and making mountains of runs.

The Ashes were sealed at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when England bowled Australia out for 98 on Boxing Day in front of 90,000 Australians.

Key participants Andrew Strauss and Gr...

Many Ashes series have been won by pairs of great bowlers. In this episode, the most potent combinations – from Lillee and Thompson, Botham and Willis, Warne and McGrath to the most recent deadly duo, Anderson and Broad.

James Anderson and Stuart Broad explain how they work together to methodically analyse conditions and opponents and recognise when they need to do the heavy lifting and cover for their mate.

Glenn McGrath and Shane W...

In the summer of 2019 England hosted the Cricket World Cup and the Ashes. 48 one-day internationals and six Tests in 14 crazy weeks, it was the stuff of dreams for all cricket lovers. And every dream needs a hero. Step forward Benjamin Andrew Stokes.

After his heroics in that chaotic World Cup final, things looked to be taking a turn for the worse when Australia were about to go 2-0 up in the Ashes at Headingley. But Stokes bowled h...