1894-95
By 1894-95, England and Australia had been competing on equal terms for 18 years, with the Ashes firmly established as a biennial fixture in the sporting calendar. But interest in the game had never been as high as this, certainly not for any sporting contest outside England. more

1958-59
It isn't often that England depart for Australia as firm favourites. It isn't often, either, that the favourites come such a spectacular cropper as they did in 1958-59. more

1970-71
If England's tour of Australia in 1970-71 lacked the controversy of the 1932-33 Bodyline tour, or the zany commercialism of today's Ashes experience, then it was nonetheless one of the most arduous trips of modern times. In fact, in many ways, it was the first trip of modern times. more

1986-87
The Ashes series of 1986-87 was hardly a classic, though as England's last Ashes victory for 16 years and counting, it has since acquired almost mythical status. But, for any England fans contemplating the improbable this winter, it is worth recalling just how awful Australia were. more

1990-91
Tours rarely come more calamitous than this. From first ball to last, England's 1990-91 Ashes campaign was an unmitigated disaster. Thrashed in the Tests and humiliated in the one-day series, England lurched from venue to venue seemingly in a trance, unable to comes to terms with the snarling competitiveness of an Australian side that, man for man, was not markedly superior to their own. A 3-0 drubbing set the tone for a success-starved decade, but it was the manner of England's defeats and the off-field shenanigans that accompanied them that really took the biscuit. more

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