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In this week's episode we meet the Head of Heritage and Collections at the MCC, Neil Robinson.

We begin by talking about how, where and when Neil began his affiliation with the game of cricket.  Specifically, it was the 1981 Ashes and Bob Willis' phenomenal last day performance in the Headingley Test.

Yorkshire was the nearest first class county to him in the North East so he became a fan of the club.  He has followed Durham's progression as a first class county.

Neil then tells us a little bit about his journey to the position that he currently holds.  From an initial period as a library student in 2004 he managed to get a permanent job in 2006.  He became the Head of Heritage and Collections in 2019.

The Museum is not as old as the Lords cricket ground.  In fact, it was officially opened in 1953 but the collections do go back much further.  Neil outlines the details of how the museum and collections have grown over the past 150 years.

Neil outlines what has happened to the museum in the time he has been there.  Principally, this has been the development of a proper cataloguing system so that museum staff and those researching aspects of the game can search and find material they can use to tell the story of the game of cricket through the work of this hugely influential institution.  He then gives us a brief 'virtual' guide to the museum itself.

Recent developments in cricket have led some to question the equality and diversity in the history of the game.  Neil describes the way in which the museum's approach to telling cricket history has thrown a light on some of the issues raised in the ICEC Report of 2023.

To finish the episode, Neil talks about some of the items in the collection that he regards as significant and important finishing with the story of the Ashes urn.

The museum website, where you can find details of how you can visit the museum and / or use it for research:

https://www.lords.org/lords/conferences-and-events/museum

For those who are interested in learning a little more about Neil and his work, you can read a transcribed interview with him here:

https://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/interview-neil-robinson-the-library-and-research-manager-at-lords-293870/

Back in 2020 during lock-down, Neil was a guest on the wonderful Oborne and Heller on Cricket Podcast.  To listen, go here:

https://chiswickcalendar.co.uk/episode-22-talking-with-mccs-head-of-heritage-and-collections-neil-robinson/