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Former English Test cricketer Tony Greig talks to BBC Sussex sports reporter Simon Levenson about the future of cricket, the ICC, & being compared to Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff

The cover of the book describes you as England’s most controversial captain, I suspect Douglas Jardine might have something to say about that, is that an accurate reflection?

Back in 1932 Jardine was top of the pops, I find it difficult to comprehend that I am up there with him. He is very much my hero; what he did stands out head and shoulders above any other England captain. So to be compared in any way to him is good enough for me.

If we can go back to the beginning and your childhood in Queenstown, you didn’t have the stereotypical privileged white South African’s upbringing?

No. Basically my dad, a Scot, was the editor of a daily newspaper, the sister paper to the Daily Despatch – Donald Woods the very famous South African was the editor and he wrote Cry Freedom. I was brought up in a very left-wing environment – people who know my neck of the woods know that the progressive party was born just outside Queenstown. I was brought up in a slightly more enlightened environment. Having said that, I still look back at those early days in South Africa, and playing on those wonderful sports fields at Queens College, and I still wonder how I could have been so oblivious to what was going on around me. But then again, as a youngster, that was what happened.
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Doing a tribute to Michael Jackson can be a very dangerous thing. To live up to the King of Pop, or to even attempt to dance and sing like the King of Pop is no easy task. However Amir Sharma had the attitude and the swagger of MJ, which really means you’re already half way there. His voice was faultless; he hit every note and every key and his impression, vocally, of Michael Jackson was absolutely spot on. I was extremely impressed.

Amir also moved like Michael Jackson, something that isn’t easy to pull off. His moonwalking, and in fact all his dance moves, were entirely flawless. The dancers and backing singers too were also great, however at times I felt they could have been a little slicker and a little more polished to match Amir Sharma’s moves. But still, it was all very enjoyable to watch and for a brief minute, to imagine on the anniversary of his death, that Michael Jackson was still with us, doing what he did best; giving us his all on stage.

Pavilion Theatre, Worthing, 25 June
Rating:
Laura Hayward

Vladimir Jurowski conducts this joyful pageant of bourgeois art and virtue, moved to the romantic era of Pride & Prejudice and Wagner’s birth (1813). With Gerald Finley on his very best form as Hans Sachs, it was always going to be a musical treat. Johannes Martin Kränzle as the tragic-comical Beckmesser, Marco Jentzsch (Walther) and Topi Lehtipuu (David) made the drama credible and affecting.

The streaming to the cinema went well, once the sound was adjusted. The predominantly senior audience greatly appreciate Jon Barrenechea’s ever helpful crew at the DoY’s, who always go the extra mile. Don’t miss future productions.

from Glyndebourne streamed to the Duke of York’s Cinema, 26 June
Rating:
Andrew Connal

After 25 years at the top of his art Ball still has what it takes. His voice is versatile, bang on the note every time and seemingly effortless. He can soar with almost operatic skill and then belt it out like the best of them. It never wavers, pitch perfect when quiet as a whisper or when reaching the corners of the auditorium other voices simply could not reach.

His set in two halves started with his musical heroes, covering their songs but not always their hits. He chooses well, each number just right for his voice and in doing so he elevates it above simply a cover or a tribute show. In the second half he delivers what many of the audience have come to hear, the show tunes he has made famous or, in the case of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, ones he is about to. Lloyd Webber classics, Les Miserables, they are all there, and to finish a bit of Elvis before ‘Love Changes Everything’. The audience go crazy and rightly so. This is one charming man, easy on the ear and utterly likeable, as good in concert as he is in theatre, what’s not to like.

The Brighton Centre, 26 June
Rating:
Andrew Kay