David Sheppard: Batting for the Poor

Sheppard first came to prominence as a cricketer in the 1950s. An opening batsman, he was selected for England while still at Cambridge, and later captained his country. In the 1960s Sheppard was a leading figure in the campaign to sever sporting links with South Africa, a crucial factor in the ending of apartheid.

Converted in his first year at Cambridge, Sheppard was ordained into the Church of England in 1955. His curacy in Islington gave him a passion to serve the church in the inner cit...