Graham Thorpe Day

The name Graham Thorpe probably means very little to most of you.  He was a professional cricketer, played 100 test matches for England, one of the few who managed to score a century on debut.  He was a very gifted left handed batsman.

Sadly he suffered from very severe depression.  Last year it was so severe he walked in front of a train and ended his life.

The current test match between England and India is being played at The Oval where he played county cricket for Surrey.  They chose to mark this by having "A Day For Thorpey".  Fans were invited to wear a headband to honour his memory.  He always wore a headband while batting. His wife and children designed a headband to mark the day and the proceeds from the sale of the headbands will go to the mental health charity Mind.

Depression - it can and does kill people.  It's not just a bad day and it doesn't get better by "Pulling yourself up by your bootstraps.”

He was a good man who was lost in darkness.