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The great extent of Colin Cowdrey's achievements – both as a player and an administrator – are movingly portrayed in the video "Michael Colin Cowdrey – A Life" produced by Sharp Focus. The tribute was broadcast by Meridian TV on the first anniversary of Lord Cowdrey's untimely death in 2000. From amongst the many contributions of a distinguished cast, a subtle contrast emerges between the Cowdrey of his youth and playing years, and the Cowdrey of the period that followed.

The former is revealed as a supremely gifted sportsman, perhaps held back by a native inability to go for the jugular, a trait that also, in the view of close observers, made him too indecisive to be a great captain. "With his talent, if he'd been a bit more aggressive he'd have been an even greater player," says the former England fast bowler John Snow.

The latter, however, was the epitome of steely determination. "He all of a sudden became positive – it developed over a short period of time," says the former chairman of selectors Doug Insole. And he never lost the positive characteristics that permeated his life – an abiding interest in people and an insatiable love of cricket.

To elaborate on the cast, here are the Cowdrey family, two former Prime Ministers, a host of former international captains, playing colleagues and friends. Rarely does a tribute pass a lip without the mention of a kindly word or note, either of which would lift the spirits of those to whom they were addressed. John Major tells of evenings during the darker periods of his time in office, when he found Cowdrey ever willing to chill out over a glass of whisky, eager to contemplate the good things in life – cricket invariably being high on the list – as an antidote to some recent political scrape.

The rooting of Cowdrey's name in cricket is well known, from the initials given him by a father who loved the game to his precocious school performances, which enabled him to excel alongside pupils some years his senior. Less well known is the fact that he did not see his parents for seven years after being brought over to England from India to attend boarding school at the age of five. "He created a slight cocoon around himself as a result," says one school friend, "that probably lasted all his life." Another says: "He was so diffident, so reluctant, so shy, that one couldn't be annoyed with him for being precocious."

Some of the most exquisite strokeplay of Cowdrey's career is recorded here. His record stand of 411 with Peter May against the West Indies in 1957, Geoff Boycott having to run for Cowdrey when he pulled a hamstring in his 100th Test, and of course his brave England farewell in Australia in 1974/75, when he politely introduced himself to Jeff Thomson on the pitch, almost reducing the Australian fast bowler to laughter. There is family video, along with his own film diary of the 1959 tour of the West Indies, which reveals him engaged in dedicated press-ups on the ship's deck.

Above all there are the personal tributes, including one from the doyen of cricket writers, John Woodcock: "If he could do a good deed for the day for anyone, he would." Sadness that Colin Cowdrey's life did not span a longer period is leavened by gratitude that cricket was so enriched by his presence.

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