Albert Craig

Who was Albert Craig?

Albert Craig was commonly known as The Surrey Poet, although he never used the term himself, instead signing his pieces as "A.C. Cricket Rhymester". He would attend cricket and football matches to write verses and short essays describing the players and events, then had them printed on broadsheets and sold to the crowd. His poetry was not renowned for any literary merit but he was a popular and well-known figure, thanks to his good nature and his ready wit.

Craig was born in Meltham, Huddersfield, Yorkshire. When as a young man he found employment as a post office clerk in the Bradford area, he found that his topical verses went down well with his workmates. Encouraged by this, he obtained permission from Yorkshire to sell his verses at Park Avenue during a match against Gloucestershire. Going to the match, he wrote one piece on George Ulyett and another on Fred Grace. He sold a thousand copies in two hours, earning as much as in two months as a clerk. Before long he gave up the post office and moved to London to try to make his living from his verse.