Bernard Whimpress (born 1948) is an Australian historian and author, most active in the area of

sports history The history of sports extends back to the Ancient world. The physical activity that developed into sports had early links with ritual, warfare and entertainment. Study of the history of sport can teach lessons about social changes and about the ...

and especially

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

. He was curator of the museum at

Adelaide Oval Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the city centre and North Adelaide. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby le ...

Early life and education

Whimpress was born in 1948. He is a graduate of Flinders University in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

Career

Whimpress was publications manager of the South Australian National Football League from 1979 to 1984, during which time he edited the ''Football Budget'' and wrote his first book, ''The South Australian Football Story''. From 1994 to 2009 he was curator of the Adelaide Oval Museum. He published and edited the journal of Australian cricket history, ''Baggy Green'', from 1998 until 2010. Whimpress has also published two volumes of memoir and other books on family history, oral history, art history, and poetry.

Journalism/history

Articles, reviews and journalism by Whimpress on sporting and other subjects have appeared in numerous magazines and journals in Australia. He edited the journal ''Baggy Green'' from its inception in 1998 until 2010. He has written several entries about sportsmen in the '' Australian Dictionary of Biography''.

Work with sporting organisations

Whimpress was curator of the

Museum and Historian for the

South Australian Cricket Association The South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) is the peak body for the sport of cricket in South Australia. The association administers the Southern Redbacks based in Adelaide. SACA is the controlling body for the South Australian Grade Cri ...

(SACA) from 1994 to 2009. He is a member of the

Australian Society for Sports History Australian Society for Sports History (ASSH) was formed in July 1983. The aim of the Society is to encourage discussion on the history of sport in Australia through research, publishing and events such as conferences and workshops. Background Th ...

(ASSH), and is the founding editor of ''ASSH (SA) Proceedings'' (2016/7-).

Recognition

Whimpress won the History Council of South Australia's Life-Long History Achievement Award in 2017 and is recognised as the leading sports historian in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. His 1999 work ''Passport to Nowhere'' was short-listed for the Jack Pollard Trophy in 2000.

Selected works

*''The South Australian Football Story'' (South Australian National Football League, 1983) * ''Adelaide Oval Test Cricket 1884-1984'', with Nigel Hart (Wakefield Press, 1984) * ''Test Eleven'', with Nigel Hart (1994); as ''Great Ashes Battles'' (2005); as ''The Greatest Ashes Battles'' (2009) * ''Passport to Nowhere: Aborigines in Australian cricket, 1850–1939'' (1999) * ''Chuckers: A History of Throwing in Australian Cricket'' (2002, Elvis Press 2004) * ''A History of Australian Cricket/The Penguin History of Australian Cricket'' (with Chris Harte, Carlton/Penguin 2003, ; 2008) * '' J.N. Crawford: His Record Innings by Innings'' (with Nigel Hart, Nottingham:

Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (ACS) was founded in England in 1973 for the purpose of researching and collating information about the history and statistics of cricket. Originally called the Association of Cricket Statis ...

. ) * ''Adelaide Then and Now'' (with photographer Adam Lee, Axiom 2008, 2011) * ''The Official MCC Ashes Treasures'' (Carlton 2009, 2010, 2013; ABC 2009); as ''The Official Ashes Treasures'' (Allen & Unwin 2013); as ''The Official MCC Story of the Ashes/The Official Story of the Ashes (''Carlton/Hardie Grant 2015, ); Carlton/Hardie Grant 2017) * ''Classic Adelaide and its Environs'' (with photographer Adam Lee, Axiom 2010) * ''On Our Selection: An alternative history of Australian Cricket'' (2011) * ''Cricket and Politics'' (2013) * ''Sports Writing: A Personal Journey'' (2013) * ''Adelaide Oval Tennis: 1878–2012'' (2014) * ''Baggy Green: A selection 1998–2010'' (ed., 2016) * ''Adelaide Oval: A photo-document 2009'' (2017) * ''Joe Darling: Cricketer, Farmer, Politician and Family Man'' (with Graeme Ryan, Ryan Publishing, 2018) * ''The Towns: 100 Years of Glory 1919–2018'' (Edwardstown Football Club 2019) * ''George Giffen: A Biography'' (Walla Walla Press, 2020) * ''Adelaide University Cricket Club: A History'' (with Robert O'Shannassy, 2022) * ''Adelaide Oval 1865-1939: A history'' (2022)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whimpress, Bernard 1948 births Living people Cricket historians and writers Australian historians Cricket statisticians Australian Book Review people