{"id":52843,"date":"2025-08-08T12:10:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T12:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/52843\/"},"modified":"2025-08-08T12:10:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T12:10:16","slug":"david-lloyd-on-commentary-lancashires-future-and-a-life-in-cricket","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/52843\/","title":{"rendered":"David Lloyd on commentary, Lancashire\u2019s future and a life in cricket"},"content":{"rendered":"

The hour hand nears 11 and David \u201cBumble\u201d Lloyd is holding court. A captivated audience of co-commentators and camera operators giggles away at a tale he tells of a rugby star. Suddenly, on the other side of the glass, a bell rings. \u201cOh, we\u2019re on here,\u201d says a voice familiar to millions worldwide. Lloyd plonks on a pair of headphones, takes a pew and begins talking into a microphone. <\/p>\n

In his 78 years, Lloyd has heard, seen and done almost everything cricket offers. During a 695-game playing career he skippered Lancashire and earned 17 England caps before, upon retirement in 1983 \u2014 he finished with a mic-dropping 123 \u2014 spending several summers as an umpire. Next came coaching stints, first at his beloved Lancashire and then England.<\/p>\n

However, Lloyd\u2019s celebrity stems largely from his commentary work. Around his Lancashire coaching duties, Lloyd was a regular summariser on Test Match Special, and, after he left his England post in 1999, he spent 22 years as one of Sky Sports\u2019 most recognisable figures. Now a talkSPORT regular, Lloyd also stars in Stick to Cricket, a Sky Sports podcast, alongside Sir Alastair Cook, Michael Vaughan and Phil Tufnell.<\/p>\n

He does not, then, either for fame or fortune, need to spend midweek days at a sparsely populated Chester-le-Street adding oral colour to the 1,500 or so tuned in for the livestream of Durham\u2019s County Championship clash with Surrey. Nor is it necessary for him to be a LancsTV \u2014 the county\u2019s in-house channel \u2014 regular or do radio work at Headingley.<\/p>\n

\"David<\/p>\n

Lloyd gives Sam Dalling a few tips on the art of commentating<\/p>\n

CHARLIE HEDLEY PHOTOGRAPHY 07984 013297 INFO@CHARLIEHEDLEY.COM<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a bit like Jimmy Anderson,\u201d he responds when asked what motivates him. \u201cI interviewed Jimmy a few weeks back and I\u2019m just the same as him, really. The game\u2019s been terrific to me. I\u2019ve had some great times and, like every other walk of life, you have one or two demanding times.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, I just love the game. It\u2019s a release to me. I\u2019ve plenty of stuff to do. I like fishing, I like golf. But I love watching the young Lancashire lads. I used to do what they\u2019re doing, and they\u2019re the custodians right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lloyd travelled north in the early hours, leaving behind the cricket pitch he tends on his York property. It has never hosted a match, but \u201cwould do for a village game\u201d, he says, eyes twinkling. An agricultural building that his local council wanted to remove, thinking it was a caravan based on a Google Earth search, is his pavilion. In there, Lloyd stores his air rifle and a stock of Triple Hazy Jane IPA. <\/p>\n

Next summer will be Lloyd\u2019s 40th commentating. His first dabble came at Lord\u2019s as Lancashire\u2019s voice for the 1986 NatWest Trophy final. His great friend John Barclay provided the Sussex slant. He felt no nerves but \u201cnot knowing anything about it, I thought there would be a script! But the producer simply said, \u2018Oh good, you\u2019re here, off you go\u2019 and that was it, straight into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

His aptitude was obvious, and soon a BBC-headed letter landed inviting him to join the TMS team full-time. \u201cVery politely I said, \u2018I\u2019m not sure I can do this, I\u2019m too busy,\u2019 \u201d he says. \u201cPeter Baxter [the producer] just said, \u2018Think again.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

And Lloyd did, enjoying half a dozen happy years in the box alongside commentary doyens such as Brian Johnston, Henry Blofeld, Christopher Martin-Jenkins and a baby-faced Jonathan Agnew.<\/p>\n

\"BBC<\/p>\n

Bumble, right, alongside Blofeld, left, and Baxter during the fifth Test between England and West Indies at Trent Bridge in 1995<\/p>\n

ADRIAN MURRELL\/GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an absolute hoot,\u201d he says. \u201cBrian would lead the charge and Fred [Trueman] was fabulous. He could be outrageous \u2014 a lot of his lines aren\u2019t repeatable now \u2014 but the greatest ones came when Brian would set him up by throwing a fly on to the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrian once said that Darren Gough was Yorkshire\u2019s quickest bowler since the war, and Fred replied by calling Goughie a medium pacer and insisting he could bowl faster in his mac and a pair of wellingtons!\u201d<\/p>\n

Years later, when Lloyd asked why Baxter had approached him, the answer was simple: \u201cThe voice is absolutely perfect.\u201d For his three years as England coach, Lloyd was heard only in his capacity as interviewee. <\/p>\n

\"England<\/p>\n

Lloyd, here in New Zealand with Andrew Caddick, left, Nick Knight, centre, and Darren Gough, was England head coach between 1996 and 1999<\/p>\n

ROSS SETFORD\/PA<\/p>\n

However, within hours of the announcement that the 1999 home World Cup would mark the end of his tenure, it was confirmed he had joined Sky, where he stayed until deciding, in December 2021, that it was \u201cthe right time to pass on the microphone\u201d. His friends David Gower, Ian Botham and Michael Holding had all recently moved on and the previous month Lloyd had apologised publicly to Azeem Rafiq, the former Yorkshire all-rounder, for offensive comments made in private messages.<\/p>\n

Having mastered both arts, Lloyd is well placed to explain the differences between commentating for TV and radio. \u201cWith radio, you just keep going and be descriptive, whereas there is a technical side to TV. Richie Benaud would say, \u2018If you\u2019ve nothing to add, shut up.\u2019 And the unwritten law that once this bowler is running in, shut up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everyone does that though, do they? \u201cI won\u2019t name names but one or two very, very seasoned commentators have never mastered it, and I know that down in the edit suite they\u2019re swearing.\u201d<\/p>\n

On further probing, the most surprising finding is that a TV commentator, despite sitting facing the action, should be watching the monitor in the box. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to comment on what\u2019s going into people\u2019s homes. It\u2019s a bit like umpiring. You\u2019ve got two ends, and you go in a split second from watching the front foot at one end to looking for an lbw at the other. Your eyes are moving all the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trick with all of it is to make the people you\u2019re talking to think they are sat next to you. Oh, and have a bit of fun. I ain\u2019t sitting here for seven hours being miserable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"David<\/p>\n

Lloyd joined Sky in 1999 and was a constant voice of the network\u2019s coverage for 22 years<\/p>\n

MICHAEL CRABTREE\/PA<\/p>\n

At Sky, there were no formal planning meetings. Instead commentators and producers would plan the following day over an evening meal or glass of wine. Nasser Hussain and Ian Ward are, according to Bumble, brilliant with ideas for features. \u201cThen you get the running order for the day through.\u201d Stints are 30 minutes, but \u201cfrom a selfish point of view, you don\u2019t want too much of a break. You lose the thread.\u201d To avoid that, Lloyd watches every ball religiously when off-air.<\/p>\n

Others have corporate or written commitments to attend, while \u201cRichie [Benaud] would be at the back on the racing. He\u2019d set his little laptop up and would be tapping away. He weren\u2019t looking at how many runs [Kumar] Sangakkara\u2019s got; he\u2019d be looking at the 3.30 at Ascot!\u201d<\/p>\n

Recalling Benaud\u2019s antics reminds Lloyd of his own dabbles with the bookies, and he is into another yarn. He explains how he and team-mates would regularly visit the on-site bookmaker, whites on, and back themselves to make 20 or more runs in Sunday league fixtures. \u201cYou\u2019d stick a florin \u2014 ten pence \u2014 on at 4-1 and then punters in the betting shop would ask, \u2018Are you in good form? Do you feel all right?\u2019 Just imagine a betting shop with all the players in it now!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lancashire<\/p>\n

Lloyd was captain of Lancashire when they won the Gillette Cup final at Lord\u2019s in 1975, leading players like Farokh Engineer, to his left, and Clive Lloyd, over his right shoulder<\/p>\n

BILL SMITH\/POPPERFOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n

Voice notwithstanding, Lloyd\u2019s greatest assets are his natural warmth and enviable people skills. He is adored by the cricketing public, and, within minutes of entering Banks Homes Riverside, one gentleman mimics bowing to him. The pair end up reminiscing about the days when scorecards were updated overnight, printed in the morning and cost sixpence.<\/p>\n

On air, Lloyd has perfected the cocktail of cricket and tale-telling. Some stories are seemingly random, like the time Mike Ashley \u2014 the billionaire former Newcastle United owner \u2014 haggled a 40 per cent discount on the \u00a370 asking price to land his helicopter at Accrington Cricket Club, or a youthful Derek Pringle\u2019s appearance as an extra in Chariots of Fire.<\/p>\n

\"David<\/p>\n

An accomplished county player, Lloyd played nine Tests for England, averaging 42.46<\/p>\n

BOB THOMAS SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY VIA GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n

Others stem from the action, such as the one about the Surrey head coach, Gareth Batty. As Batty kneels pitchside barking instructions, Lloyd recounts an England Under-19 tour to Bulawayo in Zimbabwe that he led as coach. \u201cWe had a 6am leave and the hotel manager said there were a couple of unpaid bills. I asked him for the names so I could sort it. <\/p>\n

\u201cI got on the coach, told the driver to turn the engine off, and said, \u2018Would Prince Monolulu and Elvis Presley come and settle their bills, please.\u2019 Gareth stood up and when I asked which one he was, he said, \u2018Both!\u2019 \u201d <\/p>\n

Occasionally Lloyd even begins crooning, with a full rendition of Stanley Holloway\u2019s The Return of Albert filling gaps between balls during one Sam Curran spell.<\/p>\n

Yet amid the light-hearted tales, there is also a sharp cricket brain. It should not be forgotten that this is a man with a Test-match double century, a career in which he banked north of 27,000 runs and who has led an international side. He switches back into game mode easily, spotting subtle changes in fields, in stances, in a bowler\u2019s intentions instantly. He is clearly an admirer of Emilio Gay.<\/p>\n

He also keeps up with events elsewhere, regularly checking the Lancashire score. His dismay on discovering that they need a mammoth 473 runs to defeat Glamorgan is real. A win would have boosted promotion hopes but they ultimately fall 154 short.<\/p>\n

\"Lancashire<\/p>\n

Lancashire, spearheaded by Anderson, have struggled in the County Championship this year<\/p>\n

GEORGE FRANKS\/PROSPORTS\/SHUTTERSTOCK<\/p>\n

He is buoyed by the uplift in his county\u2019s form during the T20 Blast North Group, which they topped thanks to the \u201cstardust\u201d from the likes of Anderson, Chris Green, Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone. The wider picture concerns him, though. \u201cThe club itself is wrestling with whether it is a cricket club, or a stadium\/arena. Well, it is very clearly a cricket club, and we seem to have lost track of that.<\/p>\n

\u201cI fully accept that you need business and finance to pay the bills, and the stadium is gorgeous, as good as any there is in the world.\u201d Quickly Lloyd catches his own faux pas. \u201cI shouldn\u2019t call it a stadium. I should call it a ground. And as I say, it wouldn\u2019t take much to get back to everybody understanding that it is Lancashire County Cricket Club, not the Emirates Old Trafford Arena.\u201d<\/p>\n

Have they asked for your help? \u201cNo, not at all.\u201d Would you like them to? \u201cYes.\u201d Have you offered? \u201cSort of. I\u2019d have a lot to offer. I can\u2019t believe I haven\u2019t been asked, but that\u2019s the way it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lloyd would also happily give his input into the future of the game. He believes the Hundred will soon become a T20 competition, making the Blast obsolete, and urges the powers that be not to neglect domestic red-ball cricket. \u201cDon\u2019t put it in a backwater. I know it doesn\u2019t bring money in, but it breeds cricketers. Make it important, and I tell you how I would make it important: \u00a320million to win the County Championship. Now they\u2019d play, and you\u2019d get some good pitches. And there is another thing \u2014 I\u2019ve got a cunning plan. Let\u2019s play county cricket in summer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lloyd has fingers and toes in many pies and admits that perhaps he ought to slow down. But he doesn\u2019t really mean it. It is not his style. He hopes to be working in Australia for the Ashes and has recently participated in a couple of features with Sky. \u201cI don\u2019t discount going back,\u201d he says. The twinkle becomes a burning star. \u201cI would very much like to go back.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The hour hand nears 11 and David \u201cBumble\u201d Lloyd is holding court. A captivated audience of co-commentators and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":52844,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,740,85],"class_list":["post-52843","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cricket","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52843"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52843\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}