My cricket knowledge is fairly basic and limited. I know none of the rules, I just know that it takes quite a while to play, but that I don’t mind heading out to cricket matches because I can lounge around with a drink in hand, in the sun. That being said, my only exposure to cricket live has been when Sam played in a charity game where a bunch of actors played a bunch of writers sponsored by Belvedere vodka on what used to be the Getty’s private ground. The weather was gorgeous and I was distracted by the fact that one of Sam’s teammates was Iain Glen aka Sir Jorah Mormont from Game of Thrones. I fangirled a little but then managed to reign it in for the rest of the day. That experience, to me, was cricket, so obviously it made a fan out of me.
But when an invitation landed in my inbox to explore Lord’s, I knew that I’d love to go, but also that if I didn’t invite Sam as my plus one, he’d kill me. Lord’s is owned by the Marylebone Cricket Club and is home to the Middlesex County Cricket Club, but most importantly, it’s the home of cricket. The present ground is about 200 years old, and is famous for its sloping pitch.
We got to see inside the English team’s dressing room which was super exciting, even for a non-sports fanatic like me. It definitely wasn’t the lap of luxury that you might expect in rooms for a football team! We also got to see inside the Long Room which was stunning, and where the Queen and Prince Phillip sit when they attend the cricket. We also got to see the original Ashes urn. Sam warned me that it would be small, but I didn’t expect it to be so tiny! (It was originally a perfume bottle so that should give you a fairly accurate scale of its size!) The last stop on out tour was going up into the media centre. The view from the media centre is incredible, especially from the broadcasting box for Test Match Special.
We finished up our evening by popping into Lord’s Tavern to try out some of their burgers that they are running for the National Burger Month promotion. First of all, we had their sausage roll as a starter. It had the honour of being both the largest and most delicious sausage roll I’ve ever eaten. It definitely raised the bar high for the rest of the meal. I had the “West Indies burger,” a delicious jerk chicken burger with a caramelised mango salsa, whilst Sam had the “Kiwi burger,” a lamb and rosemary burger topped with cucumber and a mint, feta and egg dressing. My burger was incredible but messy and my chips (fries) were cooked just the way I like them. I’d definitely return to Lord’s Tavern and hopefully stock up on sausage rolls.
Sam sitting in Stuart Broad’s seat in the England team’s dressing room.
The Nursery Ground, aka the practice bit.
A signed jacket from Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar.
So tiny!
Mark Ramprakash’s outfit from his time on “Strictly Come Dancing”.
Sausage roll deliciousness.
Kiwi burger.
West Indies burger.
Lord’s is located about a 5 minutes walk from St Johns Wood Station, and the Tavern is closest to the Grace Gate.
