The first episode of Empire of Cricket tells the story of the game in the country of its birth, England.

The English invented cricket, created its rules and a whole moral code for the game. They then exported this elegant game of bat and ball to the wider British Empire. But England began to struggle when the natives began to play the game so much better.

The English game was also divided by class and held back by its own traditions. Until the 1960s, cricket was literally divided between upper class gentlemen, the amateurs and lower class players, the professionals. Even the way players addressed the ball had class connotations, with exuberant off-side shots being presented in training manuals as somehow having greater value than more workmanlike leg-side scoring.

In telling the story of cricket in England, Empire of Cricket explores the careers of great cricketers from Grace to Hobbs, Hutton to Illingworth, Botham to Pietersen. It also shows how cricket in England has been influenced by historical and cultural factors that have shaped the game we know today.

Includes interviews with cricketers Tom Graveney, Ray Illingworth, Trevor Bailey, Brian Close, David Gower, Bob Willis, Graham Gooch, Nasser Hussain, Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen. Show less