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Frederick John Titmus (24 November 1932 – 23 March 2011), Retrieved 23 March 2011 was an English , whose first-class career, mostly for Middlesex with a short stint for Surrey, spanned five decades. He was the fourth man after W.G. Grace, Wilfred Rhodes and George Hirst to take 2,500 wickets and make 20,000 runs in first-class cricket.p184, Titmus Although he was best known for his off-spin (though at first he bowled medium pace as well), he was an accomplished lower-order batsman who deserved to be called an all-rounder, even opening the batting for England on six occasions. Outside cricket, Titmus was also a footballer; at one stage he was contracted to Watford as a professional, having earlier played for amateur club Leytonstone, and then for Chelsea as a junior.Colin Bateman (1993). 186983321X, Tony Williams Publications. 186983321X Cricketer of the Year 1963 – Fred Titmus, Wisden, Retrieved 25 April 2009
1950 was Titmus's first full season of county cricket, and he performed reasonably well, taking 55 wickets including 7–34 against Minor Counties in July. His appearances in 1951 and 1952 were restricted because of his National Service obligations, although he played for the Combined Services. In 1953 he returned to play for Middlesex full-time, and took 105 wickets, the first of 16 years in which he would reach three figures.
1955 was a good year for Titmus, as he did the double for the first time: he took what would remain his best season's haul of 191 wickets bowling average, taking five or more wickets in an innings on no less than 18 occasions. 158 of these wickets were for his county, beating by four the record set up in 1900 by Albert Trott. He also passed a thousand runs for the first time, scoring 1,235 including the first of his six centuries, making 104 against Hampshire albeit in a losing cause as Middlesex lost by an innings.
From 1956 to 1962 inclusive, Titmus achieved the double in every year except 1958, but a place in the Test team still eluded him. 1961 was his best year with the bat, as he scored 1,703 runs at a fine average of 37.02, including 14 half-centuries; he passed 50 more than a hundred times in the course of his first-class career.
For five years Titmus was consistently selected for England, and he produced some outstanding displays, not least in India in 1963–64, when in the course of a five-Test series (packed into just six weeks) he picked up 27 wickets to help relieve the monotony as every game finished in a draw. In 1964 he opened the batting against Australia with Geoff Boycott at Trent Bridge after John Edrich was injured. Meanwhile, he continued to be invaluable for Middlesex, achieving up to 100 wickets in most years and contributing when batting, as well as captaining the county side between 1965 and 1968. He toured Australia again for the 1965–66 Ashes series; making 258 runs (64.50), but taking only nine wickets (at 57.44), although in the Third Test at Sydney he took 4-40 as England spun their way to their biggest victory in Australia since 1912.
Titmus's batting gradually became less effective, and from 1969 onwards he passed 50 only six more times, though he did make an unbeaten 112 against Warwickshire as late as 1976. Until 1976 he took at least 57 first-class wickets in every year.
Having coached in South Africa on several occasions earlier in his career, in the 1975/76 season Titmus played for Orange Free State in that country's Currie Cup competition, and took 42 wickets at 16.30. His career was beginning to wind down, and 1976 was his final full year in England. After the end of that season he went to coach at Surrey, playing for that county against Kent in 1978, but it was an unhappy time. According to then Surrey player Lonsdale Skinner, Titmus allegedly racially abused him during a Second XI match. He re-appeared sporadically for Middlesex in 1979, 1980 and 1982. His last appearance came by accident: attending the Middlesex v Surrey match in 1982 as a spectator (aged 49), he was prevailed upon to play by Middlesex captain Mike Brearley, and the gamble paid off: Titmus took 3–43 on a pitch taking spin, and Middlesex won by 58 runs. He thus became one of the very few men to have played first-class cricket in five decades (1940s1980s) (W. G. Grace was another).
He created a Middlesex appearance record of 642, and took 2,361 wickets, another county record, in addition to racking up in excess of 20,000 runs.
He also served as an England test selector from 1994 to 1996.
He was the subject of the 1985 song Fuckin' 'Ell It's Fred Titmus on the album Back in the DHSS by the British band Half Man Half Biscuit.
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