Selkirk Cricket Club Jubilee Bazaar 1900
Martin Chandler |Published: 2022
Pages: 56
Author: Miller, Richard (Editor)
Publisher: Private
Rating: 3.5 stars
The first of Richard Miller’s Scottish Cricket Memories booklets appeared in December of 2020, so not quite two years ago now. My review of that one, which you can find here, gives a flavour of Richard’s mission statement.
Although Richard seems to be feeling a little guilty that his output in 2022 has not matched that of 2021, Selkirk Cricket Club Jubilee Bazaar 1900 is still number 17 in the series, and it has come out with numbers 18 and 19, so in truth he has been remarkably productive.
Bazaars are an old fashioned idea, being major local events designed to raise funds and cricket clubs the country over took to arranging them. They were by no means confined to Scotland, but they seem to have been embraced there as fully as anywhere and, not unnaturally, substantial programmes were sold, showcasing the attractions, displaying the wares of local advertisers and, most importantly, containing essays and short pieces regarding the subject matter of the bazaar.
This is certainly one of the longer booklets Richard has produced, reflecting firstly the 74 pages that comprised the original book, and the fact that I know cricketing bazaars are generally, for him, an area of special interest. It is also noteworthy that Richard’s introduction, usually no more than a couple of pages, is twice as long this time round, further demonstrating his fascination with the genre, and also enabling him to express some trenchant views on the Boer Wars, opinions which certainly gave me food for thought.
But then it is into the original booklet. A few of the many advertisements are reproduced and, as you would expect, the front and rear covers of the booklet. The actual design of the covers come as something of a surprise and, to my untrained eye at least, seem to have been well ahead of their time. In addition there are a number of other illustrations taken from Richard’s extensive collection.
As far as the content is concerned the original editorial is, naturally, reproduced as are the arrangements for the two days of the bazaar itself. It is no surprise either to see the history of cricket in Selkirk featuring prominently, but an article on the game in Hawaii was unexpected, and a genuinely amusing piece entitled An Umpire for a Single Innings. All are worth reading and, of course, beg the question as to how successful or otherwise the bazaar was? That one is answered by the inclusion, to close a rewarding read, of a report from a local newspaper that was published just under a week after the event.
Once more published in a limited edition of 25 signed copies this issue can be sourced from the author by contacting him at surreymember@btinternet.com
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