Reverse Swept Radio - cricket books, films and history

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy has a new mug - with a deep cricket backstory, and Toby plays an unconventional game of T20

"If at any point you see me, I'll likely be drinking or making tea."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (11'20): Ajit Agarkar's debut century - England vs India, Lord's, 2002

"Agarkar had recently returned from an Australian tour where he had been taunted as Bombay Duck after recording seven consecutive wicketless innings."

THE...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy and Toby head to Lord's for the annual Reverse Swept Radio day in the Pavilion

"You gave me false advice with just the right amount of confidence to truly screw me."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'33): Alex Tudor's Nightwatchman Heroics - July 1999 

"Thorpe comes back to the dressing room, fresh from being abused by the crowd, to the abuse of his team-mates."

THE REVIEW (20'40): Cape Summer (2009)

"What part o...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy puzzles over a forgotten childhood poster, and Toby applauds Wisden taking the gloves off.

"Mind you he wasn't massive, so you could probably print him on A3."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (09'20): Stump Cricket, or Podex

"At its core this is an issue with the length of time you spent pulling out tree roots."

THE REVIEW (19'00): Godfrey Evans: A Biography by Christopher Sandford (1990)

"After getting hit by a ca...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: An announcement about the next chapter in the history of the Gabba (play Olympic cricket there, then knock it down); Andy's summer begins when his county wallchart arrives.

"My oldest daughter made a move for it, and while I am usually tolerant of her playing with my dearest property, in this case I had to say 'No, this is sacred stuff.'."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (08'45): The India vs Pakistan bowl out - Kingsme...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy's brother revives a promising career, and Toby wonders whether cricket and politics can ever be entirely separated.

"It may astonish you, but he's actually better than me."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (08'04): The Curious Tale of Billy Midwinter - The Kidnapped Cricketer

"WG Grace dragged him bodily out of the Lord's pavilion and over town to the Oval."

THE REVIEW (19'52): Cricket Calling by Roland Ryder (1995)

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Maiden's new female cricket kit, and encounters with the game in Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy

“I will absolutely be selling my daughters on the idea that cricket is the finest way to waste a large chunk of one's life, but it's far better when that message is being communicated by their peers ."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'10): The final day of the 2010 County Championship

“Notts were presented with an imitation ...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Darren Lehmann embarks on a County Cricket chapter, and Toby attempts to pass on the flame to a new generation

“We’re recording 60 years to the day since possibly the most one-sided match in first class cricket history: a victory by an innings and 851 runs."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'15): The strange beginnings of the super sopper

“Does it just make a huge mess? That’s actually a really good question."

THE REV...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy receives a message from a listener, and Toby ponders whether cricket's efforts to reduce carbon emissions may have some unintended consequences

"As a podcast host, it makes you feel very differently about the whole enterprise."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (12'00): England's victory in the dark: Karachi 2000

"England would later celebrate in the dressing room with a chorus of “Who let the dogs out?”,  Duncan Fle...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy plays fantasy cricket, and Toby comes across some retro technology on the train 

"I went to take out my headphones, and then my ear was caught by the message coming out of his phone."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'15): The Canterbury Lime: Cricket's most famous tree

"That particular rule is completely rational, but something of a shame."

THE REVIEW (22'40): Herbert Farjeon's Cricket Bag, published 1944

"'Is t...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy donates his Cricketers to a good cause, and Toby ponders the Shakib al Hasan scandal.

"There's a bandaged batsman sitting in hospital leafing through my old magazines."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (08'54): Cricket in the poetry of Philip Larkin

"'...an Odeon went past, a cooling tower, and someone running up to bowl...'"

THE REVIEW (19'00): The Great Cricket Con (BBC Radio 4 / BBC Sounds), 2024

"When you step b...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy overhears a conversation about cricket discipline; Toby plays in a family grudge match

"The pavilion had the most perfectly positioned loo."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'00): When Left-Handers were in danger of being banned from the game

"Most things you Google, you get pages and pages of results. For the Academy of Statistical Studies, you get just three hits."

THE REVIEW (21'50): One Long and Beautiful Sum...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy and Toby spend a day in the Lord's pavilion

"We can't let this go without talking about the picnic provision."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (08'30): Underwood triumphs in the nick of time - 5th Ashes Test at The Oval, 1968

"There were apparently knitting needles being used to dig holes for drainage."

THE REVIEW (19'20): Hitman for Hire: A Year in the Life of a Franchise Cricketer (2024)

"He wins the Pakistani T2...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy makes his debut in the Long Room, and Toby reflects on Jimmy Anderson's retirement

"Harry Brook came past joking about handwarmers. This was an April day much more winter than spring."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'28): The Precursor to DLS: the Average Run Rate Method

"Under the Average Run Rate Method, the target was 61. If DLS had been used, it would have been 131: more than double the number of runs requi...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: French cricket levels up, and Liam Dawsons resigns from trying to play test cricket

"The Ghost Cricket Leagues of France - a superb title for anything, really."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'50): The Unstoppable Sonny Ramadhin is stopped

"His 588 deliveries over 98 overs remain the most balls bowled in a first-class innings."

THE REVIEW (21'20): Cricket's Greatest Game (2022)

"We need more people who find Trevor B...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy reports back from the Logan Cup, and Toby enjoys the small (and futile) parts of Sunday cricket

"Clearly the Reverse Swept Radio coffers will be extensive enough to fly me back to Australia every three weeks to record the podcast?"

FROM THE ARCHIVES (11'00): the Tied Test between Australia and India, 1960

"Richie Benaud walked onto the outfield as Australia begins their chase, and sees clover flowers ...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Reflecting on the West Indian victory against Australia

"So I woke up last Sunday morning in a Gothic temple, as you do."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'50): Benjamin West's The Cricketers, and the battle to take the painting to the US

"One bat is being leant on like a walking stick, the other has been discarded on the floor."

THE REVIEW (21'55): Shane Warne: A Hampshire Love Story (BBC Radio Solent, hosted by Robb...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy ponders the lot of the groundstaff of waterlogged British pitches; Toby reports back from day 1 of the SCG test

"You presumably need a super super blotter, when it comes to a flood."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (10'50): When Cricket Added a Fourth Stump: the innovations of Cricket Max

"This is a niche question: where do you take guard when you've got four stumps?"

THE REVIEW (22'40): Evita Burned Down our Pavil...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy becomes a Middlesex member, and Toby finds himself hopelessly out of his depth

"We have a running joke that our shirts are our best player. This has come back to bite us in the arse: bonus points for wearing the same shirt got us promoted up a division."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (11'10): The One Ball Walkout: Transvaal vs the Rest of South Africa, 3 April 1971

"We create so many assorted reasons for play to ...

THE TEN MINUTE FORTNIGHT: Andy reflects on a rare summer without cricket, and Toby enjoys Mark Ramprakash's insights into England's woeful World Cup

"To lose me and Sir Alastair in just a few weeks would be a lot for the nation to take."

FROM THE ARCHIVES (13'48): The Greatest Australian Cricketer you've never heard of: Greg Mail

"Perhaps the secret to his success is not being quite good enough."

THE REVIEW (26'18): First of the Su...