Peter Roebuck

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Chapter and flowery verse, Roebuck was like no other

14 Nov 12:35pm

Filed under: Cricket, Deaths, Peter Roebuck, Sport

I will never forget a line that Peter Roebuck wrote in a cricket match report. It was wildly over-the-top and heavy-handed, and it symbolised what made his writing so very unique and special, but also, why he turned others off.

Hats off to a unique talent

The line set the scene for a match report on a typically grey day of Ashes play in England in 2001 and went as follows: “Neither chill winds nor dark clouds that came like Heathcliff’s scowl over proceedings could quite drain the opening day of its tension or occasion.”

Most writers would have been content to write “grey” or “drizzly”. Not Roebuck. For him, only a reference to the chief character of Emily Bronte’s 1847 novel Wuthering Heights would suffice.

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Greg says:

12:09am | 16/11/11

I wonder if a non-journalist would be treated the same way, if the same allegations were made prior to a suicide? Just imagine if the same circumstances applied to a Catholic priest, for instance. And yet still journalists remain totally clueless about why they are consistently held in such low… Read more »
Cynicised says:

02:54pm | 15/11/11

Hear hear! I for one will miss Peter’s writing, as well as his radio commentary. The cricketing world has lost a unique and fascinating figure. We are all the poorer for his passing. The character assassination can at least wait until he’s cold!! Read more »

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