The County House Cricketer is a coffee table book detailing the relationship between cricket and the country houses of England, the profits of which are being used to fund research into Parkinson's disease via Parkinson's UK and the Cure Parkinson's Trust. It's written, researched and photographed by writer and cricketer Pete Langman, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2008, aged 40.

In 2012 Pete was forced by injury to bat left-handed. He decided to turn his season into a fundraising opportunity, amassing almost £3,000 for Parkinson's UK, writing an acclaimed column for All Out Cricket in the process. It was playing for the All Out Cricket team at Sheffield Park that he noticed he was about to walk out to bat where the famous Victorian cricketer W G Grace had played the Australians. He wondered how many more stories there were like this, and did a little research.

A chance meeting in February and "The Country House Cricketer" was born. The idea was to visit and play at grounds attached to country houses, and produce a coffee table book full of photographs of cricket and houses, accompanied by text exploring the relationship between house and game.

Five months later and Pete is nine houses in, having played at Clumber Park, Chiswick Park, Sheffield Park, Stansted Park, Penshurst Park, Goodwood, Blenheim Palace, Knole and Parham Park; all houses whose association with cricket can in some cases be traced back to the seventeenth century. Photos and match reports and can be found on the website  www.countryhousecricketer.co.uk

Once produced, all profits from the sale of the book will go directly to charities Parkinson's UK and the Cure Parkinson's Trust, providing both vital funds for research and helping to raise awareness of the condition while giving buyers more than simply a feeling of goodwill, but a stylish, beautifully printed book too.

"The support I have already received from a whole host of wonderful people and businesses has been amazing" says Pete.  'It has allowed me to play these games and do the necessary research to produce the book. The whole thing has been an amazing experience so far and I am thrilled to see this vision turn into reality so quickly."

"We're producing the book ourselves to maximise the profits per copy which will go to our nominated charities Parkinson's UK and the Cure Parkinson's Trust. Now we're starting to think about setting it, and to this end we're raising money to get it printed and onto the shelves as soon as possible"

To raise further funds for this project, The Country House Cricketer, in collaboration with the Brighton & Hove Food and Drink Festival and supported by drakes hotel, is hosting a Gala Sussex Evening at the very fitting Sussex County Cricket Club on September 14th. Including a Champagne Reception, 4 course Dinner (using the best seasonal Sussex produce), Live Entertainment, Guest Speaker and Charity Auction, tickets are available for £60 pp or book a table of 10 and pay for 9! Tickets can be purchased directly from www.brightonfoodfestival.com, through the Sussex Cricket Club by phoning Helen on 01273 827106 or by emailing Pete directly countryhousecricketer@gmail.com

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For further information please contact:
Carla ter Maat
Tel: 01273 696934
Email: carla.termaat@drakesofbrighton.com