Brian Close was one of the greatest characters of post-war cricket. His fearless courage, standing up to fast bowling and fielding close to the bat, was legendary. He was equally fearless in never wavering in his own certainties. Often defying convention, he mixed glory and disaster in a long and never dull career. Despite outstanding success as captain of both Yorkshire and England, he was sacked controversially from both roles.

In One Hell of a Life, Stephen Chalke draws on conversations he has had over the past 25 years, both with Brian Close himself and with team-mates, opponents and family, many of them, like Close, no longer living. The result is a fascinating portrait of an unusual man, one who might have reached greater heights if he had adopted more of a safety-first approach to life – but then he would not have been Brian Close: daring, defiant and at times plain daft. An inspirational leader, he refused to accept defeat or kneel before authority, living his life as he drove his cars: fast and reckless, with many a prang along the way.

The story of Brian Close is a tale like no other in cricket, rich with humour but also at times hauntingly sad. Close’s loss of the England captaincy, the book’s pivotal event, is set in the context of the social attitudes of the time, with cricket still run by an amateur class distrustful of a single-minded Yorkshireman who played always to win.