Upcoming local government changes continue the trend which will eventually clear-up the confusion in the public mind between the historic counties and local government – to the huge benefit of both. A core aim of ABC is to see a clear line drawn between the … Continue reading
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More “county councils” to go – to the huge benefit of our historic counties
27 February 2020
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Shropshire Day – Sun 23rd Feb
Shropshire has the privilege of kicking off the county day season for 2020. Sunday 23rd February 2020 is Shropshire Day, a day to celebrate everything we love about this beautiful shire. And there is much to love. The Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, … Continue reading
22 February 2020
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Gazetteer Gets An Upgrade
We’ve spent the last few months giving the Gazetteer of British Place Names (http://www.gazetteer.org.uk) a major upgrade. We first published the Gazetteer back in 1997 and it quickly became the standard reference work for the geography of Great Britain. Since then it has been hugely … Continue reading
11 February 2020
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Cumberland Day – Tuesday 24th September 2019
Tuesday 24th September is the day to celebrate everything we love about the magnificent historic county of Cumberland. From Millom to Longtown, from Whitehaven to Penrith, from the top of Scafell Pike to the shores of Derwentwater, it is a day to celebrate the extraordinary … Continue reading
18 September 2019
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Westmorland Dales Day July 29th 2018
The extension in 2016 of the Yorkshire Dales National Park into a large area of Westmorland (and a small area of Lancashire) was controversial at the time, with many fearing the imposition of a “Yorkshire Dales” identity on areas not in Yorkshire. Happily, the national … Continue reading
Wiltshire Day Celebrations
We are delighted to report that Wiltshire is the latest county to adopt a county day. Wiltshire Day is held on 5th June and is a chance for Wiltshire people to celebrate the county’s people and places, its rich history and heritage, its remarkable and beautiful … Continue reading
9 June 2018
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Berkshire’s new flag unveiled at official ceremony.
The new county flag of Berkshire was revealed at a ceremony conducted at the Berkshire County Show, Newbury, held on September 17th 2017 and attended by the county’s Lord Lieutenant James Puxley, whose sanction had secured the flag’s registration and High Sheriff, Sarah Scrope. ABC … Continue reading
Doom-mongers have been predicting the death of county cricket almost since it was first established. However, its willingness to re-invent itself every generation has kept it a key part of the English (and Welsh!) summer. After a period of declining crowds, the introduction of twenty-twenty cricket in 2003 re-established county cricket as a mass spectator sport. Fourteen years later it continues to thrive and grow. The T20 Blast competition recorded record attendances in 2017.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/20531121/blast-attendances-record-883000
Many commentators see the buzz around the 2017 county competition as a reaction by fans against plans by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to stage a new twenty-twenty competition from 2020, based around 8 regional teams. The ECB wants to fill the big grounds with a new audience for cricket. It hopes to emulate the mass popularity of such competitions in Indian and Australia. It’s a risky strategy. The whole culture of cricket support is totally different in those countries. Can you create an audience for contrived regional teams? How can you replace a sold-out Old Trafford for the roses clash? Will the crowd which fills Lords for Middlesex vs Surrey really show up for ‘North London’ vs ‘South London’?
The new competition will not replace the county-based T20 Blast though. Whilst the new competition will be played in August, the T20 Blast will be played first, from June to mid-July, a much better slot in terms of the weather and the lack of competition from football. Is there a sufficient audience for both? Which will fare better?
Given the record crowds in 2017, the ECB would be well advised to revisit its plans for a regional competition. A less risky approach would be to build on the success of the Blast. So much could be done. Learn the lessons from counties like Surrey, Middlesex, Somerset and Nottinghamshire who attract capacity, enthusiastic crowds. How do they market their games? Play no international cricket whilst the Blast is on. Allow the England players to play alongside the world’s best stars, especially the biggest stars from the sub-continent. Play some games on smaller grounds where locals rarely get the chance to see top quality cricket. Above all, get the game on terrestrial TV. The ECB’s decision to sell all rights to domestic and international cricket to satellite TV was short-sighted, robing it of a huge audience and its status as our national summer sport. Put the promotion and marketing into the Blast. It’s already a great competition. Some imagination, some proper planning and marketing could make it truly huge.