Book of the week: All In It Together by Alwyn Turner
The hugely enjoyable fourth instalment of Turner’s series looking at Britain’s recent past

In this absorbing book, Richard H. Thomas tells the “long and involved” history of cricket through some of its most colourful characters, said Marcus Berkmann in The Spectator. Luckily for him – and for us – the sport has always attracted eccentrics, from oddballs such as W.G. Grace to Geoffrey Boycott, to the many less familiar figures in Thomas’s account.
One such figure is Wilf Wooller, who captained Glamorgan to the championship in 1948 and later became the club’s president. In the latter guise, Thomas portrays him as a “terrifying figure”, prowling the boundary in his sports jackets and brown suede shoes, often commandeering the public address system to denounce the negative tactics of opposing teams.
“Drinkers, adventurers and shaggers abound” in these pages, said Patrick Kidd in The Critic. A century ago, the Hon. Lionel Tennyson (grandson of the poet laureate) found himself summoned to make his Test debut for England the next day while “deep into a night at the Embassy Club on Bond Street”. He struck an extravagant bet with one of his companions that he would score a half-century – and duly made 74.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
And it’s not just “Boys’ Own stories”: Thomas doesn’t neglect the “great female legends of cricket”. Eileen Ash, an England player in the 1940s (who is still alive, aged 109), “flew in a Tiger Moth on her 100th birthday and kept one of Don Bradman’s bats by her bed to repel burglars”. Nancy Doyle, the “volcanic” head cook at Lord’s, once responded to Mike Brearley’s request for lighter fare than steak and kidney pudding by telling England’s then captain: “You worry about the f***ing cricket, and I’ll worry about the f***ing food.”
Heavy on research but light in touch, this is a book with something for everyone – “even those who find the game dull”.
Reaktion Books £20; The Week Bookshop £16.99
The Week Bookshop
To order this title or any other book in print, visit theweekbookshop.co.uk, or speak to a bookseller on 020-3176 3835. Opening times: Monday to Saturday 9am-5.30pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
A wine-themed tour of beautiful Uruguay
The Week Recommends Secret paradise in South America boasts beautiful vineyards
By The Week UK Published
-
Romanian democracy: no place for the 'TikTok messiah' Calin Georgescu
Talking Point State is 'fighting back' against poster boy for right-wing conspiracists
By The Week UK Published
-
5 terrifically taxing cartoons about tariffs
Cartoons Artists take on rising prices, dumb ideas, and more
By The Week US Published
-
A wine-themed tour of beautiful Uruguay
The Week Recommends Secret paradise in South America boasts beautiful vineyards
By The Week UK Published
-
Marbled tea eggs recipe
The Week Recommends With a beautiful exterior, these eggs are also marked by their soft yolk
By The Week UK Published
-
Gene Hackman: the death of a Hollywood legend
The French Connection actor had an extraordinary gift for making characters believable
By The Week UK Published
-
Superboys of Malegaon: 'uplifting' Indian love letter to scrappy filmmaking
The Week Recommends 'Feelgood' comedy about a group of friends who make their own versions of Bollywood hits
By The Week UK Published
-
Properties of the week: residences for croquet enthusiasts
The Week Recommends Featuring homes in Devon, Dorset and Oxfordshire
By The Week UK Published
-
James Daunt picks his favourite books
The Week Recommends The founder of Daunt Books and managing director of Waterstones reveals his top five reads
By The Week UK Published
-
6 grand homes in Boulder
Feature Featuring a mountain-facing balcony in Lower Chautauqua and a clover-shaped home in Flagstaff
By The Week US Published
-
Gilbert & George and the Communists: an 'illuminating' look at the 'peculiar' world of the art duo
The Week Recommends The collaborative art pair's journey to Moscow in 1990 is chronicled in this 'excellent' book
By The Week UK Published