When you think of summer in England a few things spring to mind – unpredictable weather, strawberries and cream and cricket! Cheltenham cricket festival is the place to be for both avid cricket fans and people who are new to the sport, and from 15th July, Gloucestershire cricket festival will be held in the beautiful setting of Cheltenham college.
The festival has a long history, beginning in 1872. The first cricket match was won by Gloucestershire against Surrey, with one of the greatest cricketers that has ever lived, WG Grace taking 12 wickets from Surrey and helping Gloucestershire win the match. Since that year, the festival has always been held and matches have been played on the same grounds that the 1872 match was played on. This makes it the longest running cricket festival in the world to be played on the same ground, and it is also the longest in the world, lasting for 12 days.
James Lilywhite who founded the festival, was passionate about cricket and was the first captain of the English cricket team in a test match. He wasn’t just a talented player, he also umpired cricket matches, including test matches. When he died in 1882, his son in law Edwin Lawrence took up the reins and helped take the festival from strength to strength.
Today the festival is still going strong attracting cricket fans from near and far to come and enjoy what promises to be many fantastic matches played by top class cricketers, not to mention a wide range of fantastic food and drink.
If you really want to enjoy the day in style, there are a range of hospitality packages – perfect for groups to relax and enjoy some great cricket. What better way to spend a summers day than enjoying a cricket match – and hopefully some sunshine!