I had an enquiry recently about whether the Harold Pinter archive held any items relating to cricket. Perhaps unsurprisingly to those of you who are familiar with Pinter’s personal interests, there is quite a lot of material.
Cricket is mentioned frequently in correspondence, particularly with Pinter’s lifelong friends. The letters from Samuel Beckett often make reference to the two playwright’s shared interest in the sport. In one, Beckett writes about his hope that they can go to Lords or the Oval together to see a game, and in another writes ‘tricky wicket here but not quite yet out’. There is also correspondence relating to the Gaieties Cricket Club, which was founded in 1937 for members of the theatrical profession and has strong connections with Pinter.
A run of correspondence between Harold Pinter and his friend Alan Wilkinson about a particular cricket catch resulted in the publication of The Catch: A Correspondence. A special edition of The Catch was recently presented to The British Library by the author, Alan Wilkinson. Part of the original correspondence that inspired the booklet is held within the Pinter archive
Cricket has also been an inspiration for some of Pinter’s other writings; included in the archive is a booklet about the cricketer Arthur Wellard and several handwritten and typewritten drafts of the poems ‘Cricket at Night’ and ‘Len Hutton’.
