By Elliott West
Introduction
Alan Chamberlain is a much-loved personality in the world of snooker, a referee who presided over many of the classic matches in the 1980s and 1990s, Alan was one of the most experienced referees on the main tour, spending 25 years there. Considered by many in the sport, to be a pair of safe hands, Chamberlain cast a wave of calm in the auditorium but was never afraid to make an unpopular decision and wouldn’t abide insolence.
Career
Born in 1943, Alan Chamberlain first appeared on the main tour as a referee for a qualifying match involving Steve Duggan and Bob Harris at the 1983 Lada Classic. This was followed by his cameo appearance on camera for a match between Mark Wildman and Cliff Thorburn at the Grand Prix. The Englishman then went from strength to strength, going on to referee some very memorable moments in snooker history.
Alan was there for the 1997 World Championship final between Ken Doherty and Stephen Hendry, a final which the Irishman won 18-12 and the famous re-spotted black at the 1998 Masters final where Mark Williams claimed victory in front of a capacity crowd at the Wembley Conference Centre, winning the match 10-9. Arguably his most famous match however came at the 1997 Liverpool Victoria Charity Challenge at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham when Ronnie O’Sullivan came back from 8-2 down to level the match 8-8 only for Stephen Hendry to win it with a 147 break.
Alan also shares the esteemed record with Peter Williamson for the highest number of maximum breaks officiated in professional competition. Both referees oversaw seven 147 breaks with Chamberlain’s first coming from Tony Meo in the Matchroom league in 1998 during the seventh frame against Stephen Hendry. The most recent, being Ronnie O’Sullivan’s effort to defeat Mark Selby 9-8 during their 2007 UK Championship semi-final.
Alan also holds the unique record of being the only referee to oversee a break over 147. This happened at the 2004 UK Championship qualifiers when Jamie Burnett achieved a 148 break. In this match against Leo Fernandez, the Scot got the opportunity in the 14th frame. Snookered After a foul, Burnett nominated the brown as his extra red, potted the brown again as his colour and added all the reds with 12 blacks, two pinks and one blue before clearing the colours, potting the black with a long extension.
Chamberlain shocked the snooker community in 2010, announcing his resignation as a main tour referee following the World Championship qualifiers. No official reason was ever given for this but reading between the lines, it seems likely that poor pay and long hours played a factor in this decision. Alan did however continue to be a presence at the Championship League and in 2010 he was elected to the WPBSA board of directors, a role which he carried on until 2016, deciding to step down on medical grounds after spending 28 years in the sport. Then 73, the referee received a glowing parting reference from Jason Ferguson, the WPBSA chairman, saying of Alan :
“I can safely say that as he steps away from the sport, he does so having been part of an administration which has overseen the largest expansion of the sport in snooker’s history.”
Jason Ferguson
