Donald Mosey (4 October 1924 – 11 August 1999) was a

sports journalist Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism started in the early 1800s when it was targeted to the social elite and transitioned into an integral part of the n ...

and

radio producer A radio producer oversees the making of a radio show. The job title covers several different job descriptions: *Content producers or executive producers oversee and orchestrate a radio show or feature. The content producer might organize music choi ...

, best remembered for his lengthy tenure as a

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 st ...

commentator on BBC's

Test Match Special ''Test Match Special'' (also known as ''TMS'') is a British sports radio programme, originally, as its name implies, dealing exclusively with Test cricket matches, but currently covering any professional cricket. It broadcasts on BBC Radio 4 LW ...

(TMS), which he joined in 1974 and left in 1991.Cliff Morgan
'Obituary: Don Mosey'
''The Guardian'', 12 August 1999, retrieved 3 June 2022 He was nicknamed 'the Alderman' by fellow commentator

Brian Johnston Brian Alexander Johnston (24 June 1912 – 5 January 1994), nicknamed Johnners, was a British cricket commentator, author, and television presenter. He was most prominently associated with the BBC during a career which lasted from 1946 until h ...

, in recognition of his somewhat mayoral bearing in the box; Mosey entitled one autobiographical book ''The Alderman's Tale''. He was born in

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west o ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, in 1924, completed wartime service in the RAF and joined the '' Craven Herald'' as a journalist, going on to work for the ''

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet ...

'' and ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

''. He often covered the great Yorkshire cricket team of the period. He left the ''Mail'' in 1964, becoming a radio sports producer in Manchester, and developed a reputation for extreme professionalism and attention to detail. He first commentated for TMS in 1974, a role he had long coveted, and remained a fixture on the much-loved programme through the 70s and 80s, sharing the microphone with such broadcasting luminaries as

John Arlott Leslie Thomas John Arlott, OBE (25 February 1914 – 14 December 1991) was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's ''Test Match Special''. He was also a poet and wine connoisseur. With his poetic phraseology, he be ...

and

Christopher Martin-Jenkins Christopher Dennis Alexander Martin-Jenkins, MBE (20 January 1945 – 1 January 2013), also known as CMJ, was a British cricket journalist and a President of MCC. He was also the longest serving commentator for ''Test Match Special'' (TMS) on ...

. He covered four overseas England tours, most memorably the long tour of India and Sri Lanka during the winter of 1981–2, characterised by a somewhat worrying raucous cough that increased in volume as the tour progressed. His speciality lay in his unrehearsed, articulate and tactically astute close of play summaries during Test matches at home. He commentated principally on matches on grounds in the north of England, but was also at times used for matches at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...

and

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

. He retired from commentary and Test Match Special in 1991 after writing a book where he was critical of some of the other commentators. He acted as a

ghost writer A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often ...

on several cricketers' autobiographies, including

Ray Illingworth Raymond Illingworth CBE (8 June 1932 – 25 December 2021) was an English cricketer, cricket commentator and administrator. , he was one of only nine players to have taken 2,000 wickets and made 20,000 runs in first-class cricket.Arnold, Peter ...

's ''Yorkshire and Back'', as well as writing several volumes under his own name. His biography of

Geoff Boycott Sir Geoffrey Boycott (born 21 October 1940) is a former Test cricketer, who played cricket for Yorkshire and England. In a prolific and sometimes controversial playing career from 1962 to 1986, Boycott established himself as one of England's m ...

, in typically forthright Mosey style, pulled no punches in either praise or criticism. He co-authored ''

Fred Trueman Frederick Sewards Trueman, (6 February 1931 – 1 July 2006) was an English cricketer who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the England cricket team. He had professional status and later became an author and broadcaster. Acknowled ...

's Yorkshire'' with the ex-Yorkshire and England

fast bowler Fast bowling (also referred to as pace bowling) is one of two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket, the other being spin bowling. Practitioners of pace bowling are usually known as ''fast'' bowlers, ''quicks'', or ''pacemen''. ...

. He died in

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

, aged 74, on 11 August 1999 and is survived by his son

Ian Mosey Ian James Mosey (born 29 August 1951) is an English professional golfer. Early life Mosey was born in Keighley, West Riding of Yorkshire, and is the son of cricket writer Don Mosey. Professional career Mosey turned professional in 1972 and spe ...

, who is a professional golfer.

References

External links

BBC Sport profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mosey, Don 1924 births 1999 deaths English male journalists English radio personalities Cricket historians and writers English cricket commentators People from Keighley