Don Oslear was born in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, England, in 1929 and joined the first-class panel in 1975 at the age of 46 without any first-class playing experience. He stood in five Test matches between 1980 and 1984 and eight One Day Internationals, including a semi-final of the 1983 World Cup. He umpired 360 first-class matches between 1975 and 1993.