[4] It was not until his late teens that it was pointed out that he would turn into an international wicket-keeper, as he was a budding fast bowler that was building up a good reputation at junior level.
With England commonly struggling in these years, to give the side more balance Alec Stewart often got the gloves ahead of Russell due to his superior batting and increasingly reliable keeping.
The Wisden review of the tour observed: "It was an ironic reflection on the gulf between the teams that Jack Russell, the one Englishman other than Gooch who could have been certain of selection for a Combined XI, was unable to hold his place as England's wicket-keeper because of the length and helplessness of the tail".
[10] Russell remained a popular figure, and his exclusion from the England side for the tour of India and Sri Lanka in 1992, along with that of David Gower and (initially) Ian Salisbury, sparked public outrage.
[12] Russell's ability to stay at the wicket was again demonstrated on 4 December 1995 against South Africa in Johannesburg where he shared a stand of 119 with Michael Atherton to help England save the match.
[15] The following summer Russell made his second and last Test century, against India at Lord's, helping again to secure a draw for England, and winning the man of the match award.
[19] Former England wicketkeeper Godfrey Evans commented that Russell "was discarded not because of anything he'd done but because Alec [Stewart] was a better bat and they were trying to cover for the lack of a proper all-rounder.
"[15] Russell turned himself into part of the hub of Gloucestershire's one-day success,[20] and together with captain Mark Alleyne won a couple of ODI caps.
[24] None of his Gloucestershire team-mates were ever invited to his home, and he claimed if they ever asked he would be more than willing if they agreed to be blindfolded; the builders who constructed the extension to it were subjected to the same treatment.
[24] His fitness regime included running every day, and while driving between games Russell would be clad in a sleeping bag with the bottom cut out, so as not to get a chill in his back and legs.
Some of his more notable oddities included a diet to supplement his extreme fitness regime, which consisted largely of tea, biscuits, and baked beans.
In the final Test of the 1989 Ashes series (against Australia) at the Oval, Derek Pringle counted that he used the same bag for all five days, which roughly equates to 100 cups.
[22] On one occasion in the West Indies, Russell placed it in an oven to dry; a few minutes later the hat was overbaked and caught fire, and was only just rescued from total incineration – the top collapsed like puff pastry on removal.
During a rainy early-season county cricket game at Worcestershire, while sitting waiting for the rain to stop, he walked into town and bought a sketch-pad and some pencils.
[26] Russell now has his own gallery in Chipping Sodbury, and exhibits in London, displaying a portfolio of sights and scenes of his home area in Gloucestershire, architecture, classic military battlefields, and wildlife.
[26] He has been greatly influenced by other artists including Rembrandt, Turner, Constable, Whistler, John Singer Sargent, Trevor Chamberlain ROI, and David Shepherd OBE.