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Broadcaster Mark Nicholas is to succeed Stephen Fry as the next president of the Marylebone Cricket Club.
Ex-Hampshire captain Nicholas, 65, will take over from actor Fry, who nominated him for the role, on 1 October.
Nicholas has presented cricket coverage for Sky Sports, Channel 4 and Channel 5 since retiring from the game in 1995.
“You only have to glance at the line of former presidents of MCC to understand exactly what this honour means and what a privilege it is,” Nicholas said.
“I first watched cricket at Lord’s from behind the boundary rope on the outfield. I’ll get a smarter seat for a while now but will always wish I was still out there playing.”
Based at Lord’s, which it owns, the MCC acts as custodian and arbiter of the laws and spirit of cricket.
Former batter Nicholas, who has been an MCC member since 1981 and also captained England A during his playing career, will serve a 12-month term as president.
He scored more than 25,000 runs – including an unbeaten century for MCC at Lord’s against Australia in 1985 – and took 173 wickets with his occasional medium-pace bowling.
Nicholas was named as Sports Presenter of the Year in 2001 and 2005 by the Royal Television Society, fronting Channel 4’s coverage of England’s memorable Ashes win in the latter of those years.
“Mark Nicholas is as deeply steeped in cricket as anyone I know,” said current president Fry.
“His passionate love of the game allied to his experience as a player, captain and expert analyst will make him a wonderful president of MCC.”
