R. C. Robertson-Glasgow
Encyclopedia
Raymond Charles 'Crusoe' Robertson-Glasgow (born 15 July 1901 at Murrayfield
, Edinburgh
, Scotland
; died 4 March 1965 at Buckhold, Berkshire
, England
) was a British cricketer
and cricket writer.
Convivial, popular and humorous, Robertson-Glasgow was a right-arm fast-medium bowler who played for Oxford University
and Somerset
. During his career, which lasted from 1920 to 1937, he took 464 wickets at 25.77 in first-class cricket
, with best innings figures of 9-38.
He subsequently won acclaim for his writing, in which his strong sense of humour shone through. In 1933 he became cricket correspondent for the Morning Post
. He later wrote for the Daily Telegraph, The Observer
and the Sunday Times
, and was the author of many books, including:
He also wrote the following non-cricket books:
He retired from regular cricket writing in 1953. He was Chairman of the Cricket Writers' Club in 1959.
His nickname of "Crusoe" came, according to Robertson-Glasgow himself, from the Essex batsman Charlie McGahey
. When his captain asked McGahey how he had been dismissed, he replied: "I was bowled by an old ----- I thought was dead two thousand years ago, called Robinson Crusoe
."
He committed suicide during a snowstorm whilst in the grip of melancholic depression.
Murrayfield
Murrayfield is an affluent area in the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is to the east of Corstorphine and west of Roseburn. The A8 road runs east-west through the north of the area....
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
; died 4 March 1965 at Buckhold, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) was a British cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
and cricket writer.
Convivial, popular and humorous, Robertson-Glasgow was a right-arm fast-medium bowler who played for Oxford University
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...
and Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
. During his career, which lasted from 1920 to 1937, he took 464 wickets at 25.77 in first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
, with best innings figures of 9-38.
He subsequently won acclaim for his writing, in which his strong sense of humour shone through. In 1933 he became cricket correspondent for the Morning Post
Morning Post
The Morning Post, as the paper was named on its masthead, was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by The Daily Telegraph.- History :...
. He later wrote for the Daily Telegraph, The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
and the Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
, and was the author of many books, including:
- Cricket Prints: Some Batsmen and Bowlers (1920-1940) (Werner Laurie, 1948).
- More Cricket Prints - Some Batsmen and Bowlers (1920-1945) (1948)
- 46 Not Out - an autobiography (1948)
- Rain Stopped Play (1948)
- The Brighter Side of Cricket (Arthur Barker, 1950).
- All In The Game (1952)
- How To Become A Test Cricketer (1962)
- Crusoe on cricket: The cricket writings of R.C. Robertson-Glasgow (1966)
He also wrote the following non-cricket books:
- I was Himmler's Aunt (1940)
- Country Talk: A Miscellany (1964)
He retired from regular cricket writing in 1953. He was Chairman of the Cricket Writers' Club in 1959.
His nickname of "Crusoe" came, according to Robertson-Glasgow himself, from the Essex batsman Charlie McGahey
Charlie McGahey
Charles Percy McGahey was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Essex between 1894 and 1921. McGahey also played for London County between 1901 and 1904 and was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1902...
. When his captain asked McGahey how he had been dismissed, he replied: "I was bowled by an old ----- I thought was dead two thousand years ago, called Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
."
He committed suicide during a snowstorm whilst in the grip of melancholic depression.