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The suicide that didn't quite happen
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James Shaw was a left-arm bowler who played for Nottinghamshire in the 1870s.
He was a heavy drinker and once, after taking a heavy battering from Gloucestershire's batsmen, he went berserk.
He drank a lot and then got involved in a heated argument with some of his team-mates over a game of cards.
He smashed some glasses and then went out, shouting that he was going to 'do for meself'.
The Clifton Suspension Bridge was nearby and it was the favourite suicide point for many.
His team-mates feared the worst.
Early next morning, one of the opposition players found his body under a tree.
He was asleep.
He did bat well that day and helped his team save the follow-on....
Acknowledgement: Silence of the Hearts by David Frith