Catalogue for the auction of
Cricket, Wisden Cricketers’ Almanacks,
Football & Sporting Memorabilia

John Berry ‘Jack’ Hobbs. Surrey & England 1905-1934. Two volumes of green albums, each with title ‘J.B. Hobbs’ to front cover and in slipcase. Volume one comprises over fifty original mono press photographs and postcards, the majority real photographs, mainly covering his playing career, some signed by Hobbs. Subjects include a youthful Hobbs in batting pose by E. Hawkins & Co. of Brighton, walking out to bat for Surrey with Tom Hayward, and for England with Herbert Sutcliffe 1924, with Wilfred Rhodes in Dublin 1913, practising in the nets, making a movie at The Oval 1925. Hobbs in match action scoring 146 for Surrey v New Zealand 1927, batting in partnership with Andrew Sandham for Surrey, hitting the run to take him past W.G. Grace’s first-class career aggregate of 54,896 runs in 1930, scoring 221 for Surrey v West Indies at The Oval 1933 etc. Also batting poses, studio portraits, signing autographs, an advertising postcard for Waterman’s pens signed by Hobbs, charity matches, presenting bats for ‘The Star’ competition winners, Christmas cards from Hobbs etc. The second volume comprises over sixty original press and other photographs, mainly covering Hobbs’ later and personal life including studio portraits, with his wife Ada, at home with his family, playing in a charity match with his son Leonard in 1929, shooting, on a golfing holiday with Herbert Strudwick in 1934, the wedding of his son Leonard, playing at Merton C.C. with his three sons, being introduced to King George VI at the Surrey v Old England match for the Centenary of The Oval 1946, attending functions and dinners with Herbert Sutcliffe, Percy Fender, Len Hutton, Douglas Jardine, Frank Woolley, Patsy Hendren, Don Bradman, C.B. Fry, Learie Constantine etc., serving customers in his Fleet Street sports shop, attending his knighthood ceremony in 1953, the Hobbs Gates at The Oval. Includes two images signed by Hobbs, one a candid photograph of Hobbs in front of a castle, the other a postcard of Hobbs and Sutcliffe wearing suits, signed in ink by both. Also includes six postcards handwritten by Hobbs to his son Jack Jnr while on the 1913/14 tour to South Africa, a signed letter to the collector, Charles Pratt Green, dated 1913, a signed typed letter from Don Bradman dated 1987 with ‘a few words on the life of Sir Jack Hobbs’, certified (official) copies of Hobbs’ birth and marriage certificates, business share certificate etc. Sold with a very large format black binder with gilt title to front ‘J.B. Hobbs. News Cuttings’ and annotation in white ink to inside front cover, ‘The majority of cuttings in this file were collected by Mr. Jack Hobbs Junior [Hobbs’ son]’. Contains a large selection of press cuttings of articles, some written by Hobbs for ‘The Star’ newspaper including ‘I Learned to bat with a stump’, ‘How to field at Cover Point’, and others written about Hobbs, reporting on the opening of the Hobbs Gate at The Oval, Hobbs’ retirement from first-class cricket in 1935, his 70th birthday in 1952, his knighthood awarded in 1953, 80th birthday in 1962, and his obituary following his death in 1963. A comprehensive and excellent collection relating to the extraordinary career of the batting legend. Very good condition.