Keith Miller

Keith Miller, who died early in 2005, was perhaps the greatest all-rounder Australian cricket has ever seen, and one of its most loved and legendary figures in both the UK and Australia. Like his English counterpart Denis Compton, and a more modern legend like Ian Botham, Miller played like he lived his life: to the full. Roland Perry has had full access to Miller's papers and to his family members to produce the definitive biography. Miller was a dashing batsman who could take a bowling attack apart. In his prime, he was also a fearsome fast bowler. He also had a prodigious appetite for gambling, alcohol and gambling - Princess Margaret appears to have been one of his many liaisons. In the epic Test battles between England Australia, he always played an instrumental part. But he was a legend for another reason: during the war he flew Mosquitos for the RAF, and ever after endured severe "survivor's guilt" that so many of his comrades had perished in service.
While his dealings with women could be cavalier, even ruthless at times, to the end of his life he would travel long distances to visit the grave of a fallen colleague in an obscure country churchyard to consecrate their memory. With interest in England-Australia cricket at its highest for years, this biography of Miller will be hugely topical.