Miles Jupp: Fibber in the Heat (A Cricket Tale) Review

Miles Jupp: Fibber in the Heat (A Cricket Tale)

It is often said of Edinburgh that it is essentially an English colony, cleverly disguised beneath the panoply of tartan regalia, saltires and fake ginger hair. Unlike most territories within the cultural influence of London, however, the city's Scots have remained defiant in one very important respect: sport. 

Miles Jupp, then, does a brave thing by dedicating a whole show to the thoroughly English pastime of cricket. He recounts his adventures in India pursuing the crumpled linen of the cricketing elite in a bid to become a sports journalist. Desperately attempting to become part of the gang, he recounts a witty tale of his pursuit of his cricketing heroes. It’s a warm and entertaining show; Mr Jupp is mild mannered and wouldn’t look out of place drinking Pimms, reading a Telegraph and lazily watching a game of cricket. 

Beneath the chinos and shirt, however, Jupp is something of a cricket fanatic, able to effortlessly recount batting scores. He compares English cricketing victories to VE day as the crowds began singing Jerusalem and waving miniature Union Jacks -  presumably before nipping home in their clapped out Rovers to listen to ‘The Archers’.

Yes, this will make many of you retch, and many more look on bemused and confused at the cricketing references. (How, for example, can a game of cricket drag on for 3 days and result in a draw?) Nonetheless, a well-written and entertaining hour of cricket comedy.