Derbyshire County Cricket Club pays tribute to journalist Michael Carey

On Monday, DerbyWorld reported on the tragic death of Michael Carey.

The 87-year-old died after he was rescued from the River Derwent at Darley Abbey Mills over the weekend.

Mr Carey was a former BBC Radio Derby presenter and he also worked as a national cricket correspondent.

He had strong connections with Derbyshire County Cricket Club.

Those associated with the club have been left deeply saddened by the news of his death.

Heritage officer David Griffin first encountered Mr Carey, who was known as Mike, in the 1970s.

He has provided this obituary.

As teenagers following Derbyshire in the 1970s, Mike Carey was a familiar figure to us all, a popular writer – often accompanied by his pet dog – with forthright views on the game.

He was born in 1936, the year in which Derbyshire won their sole county championship title and he began writing about cricket in the 1960s.

He reported on cricket in Australia, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa covering England’s international tours, writing for the Guardian, the Independent and the Daily Telegraph and also worked with the BBC’s Test Match Special commentary team.

The Derby press box was a formidable environment for any young and aspiring journalist in the 1970s and 1980s as Carey formed an experienced and hard-hitting triumvirate alongside those other local wordsmiths Neil Hallam and Gerald Mortimer.

His media skills were even utilised by Derbyshire who appointed him as the club’s press officer for a time in the 1970s.

For two decades the Mike Carey XI played an end of season cricket match against Duffield at Eyes Meadow - and a measure of Carey’s influence and popularity was evident from the steady stream of current and former players who appeared in the fixture including Eddie Barlow, Kim Barnett, Colin Cowdrey, Mike Denness, Barry Wood, David Steele, Mike Selvey and Rob Bailey. These games were hugely entertaining and while cricketing bonhomie was at the centre of events, the matches raised funds for many charities including Guide Dogs for the Blind and the RSPCA.

As a writer he was happy to speak out when necessary, even upsetting local umpires in the East Midlands during England’s tour of New Zealand in the late 1970s, writing: ”The standard of umpiring out here is even worse than in the Notts and Derbyshire Border League.”

Utilising and sharing his lifelong love of music, Carey presented Memorable Moments on Sunday afternoons on BBC Radio Derby for many years and published several books including The Ashes – Chappell’s Revenge, I’ll Sing You A Thousand Love Songs (The Denny Dennis Story) and, of course, Les Jackson – A Derbyshire Legend in 1997.

Everyone connected with Derbyshire County Cricket Club would like to extend their condolences to Mike’s family and friends.