Dickie Bird's white cap, twitching shoulders and forearm stretch became as much a
part of the day out as the battle between bat and ball. He seemed to attract
minor incident, without ever allowing the day to be soured by controversy.
Burst pipes, reflecting windscreens and bomb scares all conspired to trouble
him, but each impostor was met with humour and Yorkshire-bred common sense.
Notorious for being an early Bird (he once made it to The Oval at 6am, so
nervous was he about being late and was five-hours early to meet the Queen
on one occasion), and plagued by bad weather he made the transition from
cricketing figure to something close to a national institution.
A favourite among the public who took to his idiosyncrasies, Bird was
equally admired and respected by the players. He diffused many a situation
that a lesser umpire may have allowed to escalate, typically with common
sense and good humour. Most importantly, he simply made few mistakes. "They
all rated me the best: Sobers, Richards, Lillee and Botham. That means a lot
I can tell you," he admitted.
Harold "Dickie" Bird was born in Barnsley in April 1933. 5'10" and a
right-hand batsman, Bird played in a Barnsley side that included Geoff
Boycott and the journalist Michael Parkinson, with whom he remained friends.
A good enough player to have represented Yorkshire during their period of
dominance (debuting in 1956 against Scotland), a regular first team place
eluded him in such a strong side (his career best performance 181* against
Glamorgan at Bradford in 1959 was rewarded with omission from the next game
as the senior players returned from Test duty) and he moved to
Leicestershire at the end of that year. He won his county cap in his first
season, 1960, in which he topped 1,000 first-class runs, but later referred
to the decision to leave Yorkshire as "the biggest mistake of my life".
Bird retired relatively early, aged just 32, and spent a few years
coaching and playing as a club professional. He later admitted to regret
that his playing career had not been more successful (first-class average:
20.71): "I just wish I'd have believed in myself as a batsman the way I do
as an umpire," he told The Cricketer (November 1998) during his final match
as an umpire. "I had the ability I can tell you. If you had compared me to
Boycott in the nets you would have picked me as the Test player. Ray
Illingworth said I played as straight as anyone he'd ever seen. Umpiring has
been good to me, but it is the second-best thing to playing."
Bird officiated his first game in 1970, with his first Test coming
against New Zealand at Leeds in 1973. In 1992 he stood in Zimbabwe's
inaugural Test as the first ICC panel umpire. A guard of honour by the
players and a standing ovation from the crowd as England took on India in
1996 marked his final Test, at his beloved Lord's. Bird, always an emotional
man, was reduced to tears. In all he officiated in 66 Tests and 69 One-Day
Internationals, overtaking Frank Chester's record (of 48 Tests) in Zimbabwe
in 1996. His final first-class game was at Headingley, between Yorkshire and
Warwickshire in 1998.
Bird was awarded the MBE in June 1986 in the Queen's Birthday Honours
List ("It means more to me than my life," he commented) and became a
frequent tea-time visitor at the Palace, apparently attending more than 20
times. He gained other remarkable friends, including former Prime Minister
John Major, billionaire cricket fanatic John Paul Getty and the thriller
writer Stephen King. "I wish I'd had a family. That's where I missed out in
life," he lamented on his retirement but his oft-repeated phrase was that he
was "married to the game."
Bird's real legacy will be top-quality umpiring. Calm, despite his
nervous disposition; consistent, despite his erratic body movements; and
unimpeachably impartial despite his obvious love for all things Yorkshire
and England, Bird added to the enjoyment of the spectators without ever
detracting from the cricket. Maybe a little reluctant to give lbw decisions,
(he would argue "the Laws state I have to be certain"), he has expressed
reservations about the marginalisation of umpires by technology in recent
times.
A busy retirement, in which he revels in the new role of a media
personality, has seen the ubiquitous Bird appear on quiz and chat shows,
embark on a speaking tour where his routine of anecdotes provokes great
amusement and improve upon each telling. He has produced several books,
including My Autobiography with Keith Lodge, the biggest selling sports
book of all time and the follow-up White Cap and Bails, another
best-seller.
George Dobell
