Cricket's Historians

Chapter 12 Rowland Bowen causes Ripples Jerry Desmonde’s television programme ‘The 64,000 Question’ would appear an unlikely catalyst for a fundamental change in the interpretation of cricket’s history, but so it proved. The programme ran for three years, from 1956 to 1958. Despite much research it seems impossible to pinpoint the exact date of the specific programme, which brought about this sea change, but a letter written by Roy Webber and dated May 29, 1958 refers to the broadcast being ‘last winter’. Be that as it may, the question which was asked concerned the naming of the counties which had never won the County Championship. The contestant did not include Sussex among those counties and his answer was ruled incorrect. The list of winners published in the 1957 edition of Wisden did not include Sussex, however the book by Roy Webber on the history of the County Championship gave Sussex as joint Champions in 1875. It was not until the 1958 edition of the Playfair Cricket Annual that Webber changed the champions list there to feature Sussex, as joint winners in 1875. The question setter had clearly followed Wisden . However the cricket world was split between the Wisden version and Webber’s ‘discovery’. Sussex of course were delighted, as has been pointed out in the previous chapter’s comment on George Washer and the Honours Board in the Hove pavilion was altered to record the Sussex success. An appeal by the author for the youthful competitor of the 64,000 Question to come forward produced some replies, but not from the person himself. Whether the organizers came to an amicable arrangement with him after 169