"Well, this is an interesting incident, Brian," said one radio com- mentator to another. "I don't think there have been any mysterious materi- alizations on the pitch since, oh since, well I don't think there have been any -- have there? -- that I recall?"
"Edgbaston, 1932?"
"Ah, now what happened then...?"
"Well, Peter, I think it was Canter facing Willcox coming up to bowl from the pavilion end when a spectator suddenly ran straight across the pitch."
There was a pause whilst the first commentator considered this.
"Ye..e...s..." he said, "yes, there's nothing actually very mysteri- ous about that, is there? He didn't actually materialize, did he? Just ran on."
"No, that's true, but he did claim to have seem something materialize on the pitch."
"Ah, did he?"
"Yes. An alligator, I think, of some description."
"Ah. And had anyone else noticed it?"
"Apparently not. And no one was able to get a very ditailed descrip- tion from him, so only the most perfunctory search was made."
"And what happened to the man?"
"Well, I think someone offered to take him off and give him some lunch, but he explained that he'd already had a rather good one, so the matter was dropped and Warwickshire when on to win by three wickets."
"So, not very like this current instance. For those of you who've just tuned in, you may be interested to know that, er... two men, two rather scruffily attired men, and indeed a sofa -- a Chesterfield I think?"
"Yes, a Chesterfield."
"Have just materialized here in the middle of Lord's Cricket Ground. But I don't think they meant any harm, they've been very good-natured about it, and..."
"Sorry, can I interrupt you a moment Peter and say that the sofa has just vanished."
"So it has. Well that's one mystery less. Still, it's definitely one for the record books I think, particularly occurring at this dramatic moment in play, England now needing only twenty-four runs to win the series. The men are leaving the pitch in the company of a police officer, and I think everyone's settling down now and play is about to resume."
(Reproduced without permission From "Life, the Universe, and Everything" by Douglas Adams)
