Basil D'Oliveira was born on October 4, 1931 in Signal Hill, Cape Town, Cape Province, Union of South Africa. He was married to Naomi Brache. He died on November 19, 2011 in England, UK.
Cricketer in England from 1960, he played for the national team from 1966.
Awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1969 Queen's Birthday Honours List and the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2005 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to Sport.
He was appointed a CBE in 2005.
He was of West-Indian and Portuguese heritage. In South Africa, he was classified as colored during the apartheid regime.
He was a tailor's son from Capetown, South Africa and played on the cricket fields in the city.