David Lloyd is called “Bumble” because teammates thought he looked like one of the puppet characters called the Bumblies from a 1950s/60s British children’s TV show created by comedian Michael Bentine, who had long noses and a similar facial profile.

Origin of the nickname

  • Early in his Lancashire career, Lloyd walked into the dressing room and a teammate joked that he resembled one of “the Bumbly men” from Bentine’s puppet show.
  • The characters, known as the Bumblies , were comic puppets with distinctive long noses, and players felt Lloyd’s side-on profile matched them.
  • The name “Bumble” stuck immediately around the county circuit and then across the wider cricketing world.

How it stuck in popular culture

  • As Lloyd moved from player to coach, umpire and then TV commentator, broadcasters and fans continued to use “Bumble” rather than David, reinforcing the nickname.
  • The nickname became so established that his social media handle and branding in later years also used “Bumble,” cementing it as part of his public persona.

TL;DR: David Lloyd is called “Bumble” because teammates thought he looked like the Bumblies puppets from Michael Bentine’s kids’ TV show, especially their long-nosed side profile, and the joke nickname never went away.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.