Extremely sad news – Ken Woolfe has passed away, aged 95.
Ken, ACS Life Member, played an instrumental role in the formation of The Australian Cricket Society in June 1967 along with 22-year-old rising lawyer, Andrew Joseph.
Ken was a keen wicketkeeper, cricketer and cricket lover, and led the ACS 1972 World Tour.
Ken was running his Bookbinding Business (W Flattely & Son) in Carlton when Andrew rang through looking for someone to bind his set of ‘Cricket Quarterly’. Acting on instructions from Ken: “Anything to do with cricket, refer to me”, the receptionist said: “I’ll put you through to our Managing Director”. In their first telephone conversation they found they had a lot of cricket interests in common. Ken invited Andrew to his house a day or two later. Ken mentioned that he was a member of The Cricket Society in England to which Andrew said: “Wouldn’t that be a great thing to happen here, in Melbourne, for a band of cricket lovers to unite?” Ken agreed but indicated that he was too busy to actively help.
Andrew was corresponding with Rowland Bowen, the Publisher of ‘Cricket Quarterly’ who provided a list of the magazine’s Victorian subscribers, around 10 in number. Andrew then convened a meeting which included himself and Ken, George Murray, Rad Grace, David Jukes, John Edwards and Jack Seelenmeyer all of whom were to become bastions of the soon to be established Australian Cricket Society.
The initial meeting was arranged by Andrew through the then Melbourne Cricket Club Secretary, Ian Johnson – deep in the bowels of the old Olympic Stand on the northern side of the ground. “It was one of those typically wet and cold June nights, yet almost 60 turned up. We were onto something.”
Ken Woolfe will be sorely missed by the Society and its Members.