Season 1 • Episode 1
LatestDouglas Jardine is introduced at his 9th birthday in Bombay, Lord Harris explains the significance of the soon to be famous Harlequin cap, and his parents bid him an emotional farewell as he departs to be educated in England, first at Horris Hill School later at Winchester College. Andrew Lane teaches the young Jardine that cricket is a thinking mans game 'you don't bowl a batsmen out, you think him out'. Jardine emerges from WW1 tall and athletic, reserved and determined, this determination attracts interest from Percy Fender (Surrey Captain) who is impressed with Jardine's captaincy. Meanwhile a young Harold Larwood is introduced bowling for money at the coal mine where he works and in Australia a certain Don Bradman is selected first for New South Wales and then in 1928 for Australia during Jardine's first tour down under.
Dramatization of the 1932/33 Test cricket series between England and Australia. Played in Australia, the series gained notoriety in Australian and worldwide cricketing history for the fact that the English team (headed by captain Douglas Jardine) applied a bowling technique called "leg theory", or more commonly, Bodyline. This technique involved bowlers bowling the ball directly at the batsman's body, and resulted in many of the Australian team receiving numerous bruises and injuries, with batsman Bert Oldfield sustaining a cracked skull. The series generated much anger and resentment towards the English team within Australia and seriously damaged Anglo-Australian cricketing relations at the time.
Acting
Hugo Weaving's ice-cold Jardine — aristocratic menace personified.
Production
Painfully authentic 1930s cricket grounds and stiff-upper-lip atmosphere.
Hugo Weaving
Douglas Jardine
Gary Sweet
Donald Bradman
Jim Holt
Harold Larwood
Rhys McConnochie
Pelham Warner
John Gregg
Percy George Fender
Heather Mitchell
Edith
Frank Thring
Lord Harris
Max Cullen
Clive 'Chooka' Cooper (Reporter)
John Walton
Bill Woodfull
Ashok Banthia
Nawab of Pataudi
Alan David Lee
Eddie Paynter
Bill Young
Bill Bowes
Richard Carter
Bill Voce
Arthur Dignam
Mr. Jardine
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Bodyline nearly caused a diplomatic crisis; the Australian government considered official complaint to London. Cricket was never just a game in the Empire.
Real Donald Bradman initially refused to cooperate with the production, then quietly advised Gary Sweet on his batting stance after seeing early rushes.
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