in calling for the retirement of out-of-form national captain Michael Vaughan in 2008. Willis attracted detractors due to his somewhat melancholic style. The Independent commentated on the 1995 Texaco Trophy that Willis had "trenchant content, dismal delivery. As a player Willis had trouble getting to sleep. As a commentator he struggles to stay awake. His voice remains on one note – the drone of your neighbour's mower." CricInfo's launching of two polls on cricket commentary both returned negative views of Willis' "hyper-critical" commentary. Willis received only 15% of the vote, above only Dermot Reeve and Allott. In later years, after he was sidelined as a front-line commentator, Willis appeared on Sky's The Verdict with Charles Colville and was still working for Sky until a few months before his death. "On Sky Sports Cricket's The Verdict show, Bob would deliver assessments of players and teams every bit as brutal as his genuinely rapid bowling once was. In his later years, his role was that of the fire and brimstone preacher, dishing out ferocious tongue-lashings to cricketers, umpires and administrators alike." Personal life Willis married his first wife, Juliet Smail in 1980. They had a daughter born in 1984. He married his second wife, Lauren Clark, in 2014. Although born in Sunderland, Willis lived in Manchester as a youngster, and was a keen supporter of Manchester City F.C., having first attended a match at Maine Road in 1954, as well as seeing the 1955 FA Cup Final against Newcastle United. Willis died on 4 December 2019, aged 70, "after a long illness". He had been diagnosed with prostate cancer three years previously. The Bob Willis Fund raises awareness of prostate cancer and money for research into the detection and diagnosis of it; Bob Dylan is an honorary patron. See also List of international cricket five-wicket hauls by Bob Willis Notes References Websites Printed sources External links The Bob Willis Fund 1949 births 2019 deaths People educated at Royal Grammar School, Guildford England One Day International cricketers English cricketers of 1969 to 2000 England Test cricket captains Cricketers at the 1979 Cricket World Cup Cricketers at the 1983 Cricket World Cup Northerns cricketers Surrey cricketers Warwickshire cricketers Warwickshire cricket captains Wisden Cricketers of the Year English cricket commentators Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Stoke d'Abernon Cricketers from Sunderland Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers English footballers Cobham F.C. players Association