WHY I LOVE CRICKET: Bob 'The Cat' Bevan

Bob ‘The Cat’ Bevan MBE, the legendary after-dinner speaker, was nominated as Kent president in 2013, becoming only the second entertainer in history to be awarded the role at a county club

I remember playing football more than cricket when I was younger, but I started playing properly at Wilson’s Grammar School. 

Football is still probably my first love but cricket really is a very close second. I opened the batting for my house, but I was definitely more of a Boycott than a Root – I could stand there forever!

During the Windrush era, a black family moved next door to me and I got quite friendly with them. These guys were playing in the Lambeth League on park pitches, and I dread to think how dangerous it was! I remember getting peppered in a game at Dulwich Park and a fight almost started. I was only young and my team-mates took offence that the opposition were bowling like that to me!

I started off as a trainee rep and builders' merchant in Shoreditch. I saw an advert one day about joining a local newspaper, which ended up being Lloyd’s List and Shipping Gazette, which is the world’s oldest daily newspaper. Besides sport, writing is a big love of mine.

My very first after-dinner speaking was 51 years ago at The Oval, and Micky Stewart was the other speaker. An actor told me afterwards that he thought I had a good sense of timing, and I didn’t really know what he meant by that. He most certainly wasn’t talking about my batting! But I really enjoyed it and started doing various other dinners for sporting clubs in both football and cricket.

When I moved to Bells Yew Green, the local village cricket club asked me to be president. When I attended a committee meeting I found out that someone was planning to build houses on the edge of the ground, which would have potentially stopped cricket being played there. I managed to negotiate a long-term lease on the ground, which stopped some of the building, we built a new pavilion and we asked Chris Wood, the ECB's top groundsman, to come and have a look and give us some advice. He really helped us improve the pitch.

We helped raise over £250,000 to help the club develop. Now the club has four teams, two women’s teams and a good youth section. It’s a fantastic set-up. They talked me back into playing again, so I used to be captain of the Sunday team until about four or five years ago. I’m retired now, though; I can barely move!

I was a guest of Cricket Australia for the last Ashes series. I spent a lot of time with Straussy, and I told him that my highest score was 39. He took the mickey out of me for that. I told him it wasn’t that bad, because it was against the MCC for the Lord’s Taverners. What I didn’t tell him was that MCC was actually Menorca Cricket Club! I was more of a bowler, though, and even took a seven-for once!

I was a good friend of David Bairstow, so I knew Jonny from a young age. David’s death was incredibly sad for me, but I really feel such a strong sense of paternal pride in Jonny now because the Bairstow family were such nice people. He was a very serious kid, and I’d always see him running around with a plastic bat.

I played under the caoptaincy of Mike Denness for the Lord's Taverners. He asked me what end I wanted to bowl from and I told him that I didn’t bowl, and if anything I saw myself as a batsman at the time. He replied that everyone had to bowl, and I was bowling this slow rubbish but it kept getting everyone out! My career-best was 7 for 49 for Mark Benson's Kent XI against Hexham!

As a kid, I used to greatly admire Peter May. When I was at school it was during the time when Surrey had won seven successive County Championships. They had a brilliant team during that period, with players like Jim Laker and Alec Bedser so they used to influence me as a player.

When I got nominated as Kent CCC president back in 2013, it was Mike Denness who put my name forward. Usually a long-serving official or ex-player fills the role, and I didn’t fall into either category. But I’d been speaking at benefit dinners for the last 30 years, and despite being a left-field choice the board unanimously accepted me, which was a nice feeling.

I normally open a lot of my speeches and shows with stories from my presidency at Kent and my career in cricket. I’d usually take the mickey out of Mike Denness for how Scottish he was, or I’ll talk about my wife being a cricket widow.

I met my wife Laura while playing cricket. I was on another Lord’s Taverners tour to Florida about 27 years ago, and she came on the trip as a guest. I went free, but she’s never quite got over the fact that she had to pay!

I remember when I was out in Australia for an Ashes series years ago, and this was at the time Shane Warne had recently started dating Liz Hurley. I did a gag during a speech saying “the last time I was in Australia I leant Warney a thousand dollars, but now I can’t recognise him to get it back!” He took it well, because normally he’s quite a sensitive guy!

My parents weren’t really into sport at all funnily enough. For me though I believe sport just enriched my life hugely. I’ve met some incredible players throughout my career and have made some life-long friends in cricket.

Interview by Joe Langsworthy