At the beginning of 1900 Boyle started a controversy in the columns of The Times by arguing that January 1st had seen in a new century. Most correspondents didn’t agree, one arguing that if the civil servant in charge of ordering artillery for the South African War didn’t know the difference between 99 and a 100 that it was no surprise that the troops faced problems of quality and supply.Boyle wrote in "The Times" under the pseudonym 'An Old Blue', in which he received widespread attention for advocating cricket reform. Boyle died from heart failure following a short illness at his Granville Place residence in May 1901. Relations included his wife, Muriel Sarah Campbell, the daughter of John Campbell, 2nd Earl Cawdor, who he married in April 1876 and had no children with. His brother, Cavendish, was the colonial administrator who served as Colonial Governor of Newfoundland, Mauritius and British Guiana. Their grandfather was the naval officer and political Sir Courtenay Boyle. His cousin, Cecil Boyle, was a rugby union international and a first-class cricketer.