White Cap & Bails

by Dickie Bird

White Cap and Bails

Genres: Autobiography, Sports, Biography

470 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Harold Dennis "Dickie" Bird (19 April 1933 – 22 September 2025) was an English cricketer and international cricket umpire. During his long umpiring career, he became a well regarded figure among players and the viewing public, not only due to his high standards as an umpire but also for his many eccentricities.

Bird played first-class cricket for Yorkshire and Leicestershire as a right-handed batsman, but only scored two centuries in 93 appearances. His career was blighted by a knee injury, which eventually forced him to retire at the age of 31. He umpired in 66 Test matches (at the time a world record) and 69 One Day Internationals, including three World Cup Finals. Bird's autobiography, published in 1997, sold more than a million copies.

Reviews

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Dad & I have always liked dickie and the book s brill plus he talks the same language as me as we are both Yorkshire men old lad it was tat good I am looking for some more of his books.

[Gary K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book, loads of stories and facts , really enjoyed it . Up there with Simon Wildes books as great cricket books.

[Marco · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once again Dickie Bird provides an interesting view of a life spent on the cricket field with some of the games greatest characters.

[Neal Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even as a mad cricket fan, sometimes there was too much padding in this book