He was the world’s most famous cricket umpire but also a true son of Yorkshire.
Dickie Bird’s funeral in Barnsley drew cricketing greats, but also members of the public who wanted to remember the man – the miner’s son – whose name is synonymous with this town.
He died last month at the age of 92, after a career in sport of many decades.
In 2000, Harold “Dickie” Bird was granted the Freedom of the Borough which, he once quipped, meant he could “drive sheep through the town” but still didn’t give him “free parking”.
As you would expect, the service was full of stories of Dickie – a man who was so beloved by fans and respected by players for his “integrity, humour and unmistakable style”, as one speaker described it.
The eulogy was delivered by cricketing legend Sir Geoffrey Boycott, who played with Dickie, along with broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson, in their early years at Barnsley Cricket Club.
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Boycott described how Dickie’s “nervous energy” held him back as a player, but helped him make “great decisions” as an umpire.
“Eccentric yes, but genuine. Comic and loveable.”
“And,” he added, “people all over the world adored him.”
But it was an anecdote, shared with me by former England captain Michael Vaughan, that really summed up Dickie Bird’s spirit.
He told me how, as a young player, he was in the middle, playing awfully.
“And there was Dickie, saying to me: ‘don’t worry, you’re doing really well’.”
“He was just such a kind man”.
