By Elliott West
Introduction
The Snooker World Championship trophy is steeped in history. Unmistakable in the sport, it was first bought by the legendary Joe Davis in 1926 for £19. Its humble beginnings first began in Birmingham where it was first held aloft by Joe Davis in 1927 in Birmingham for the first snooker championship, when Joe defeated Tom Dennis 20-11, winning six pounds and ten shillings for his efforts. A tournament that was the brainchild of Joe Davis and Bill Camkin, a local, well-known billiard hall owner in the Birmingham area. Their principal aim was to promote the status of snooker in a time when billiards was the main draw and pull in more income from this sport’s sapling.
A Slow Burner
Joe Davis was driven by a desire to increase participation in a sport that lacked any competitive structure and this first outing in 1927 was very low key with Bill Camkin acting as the referee for the final. It would be a battle that would continue for many years with promoters refusing to back it, believing it was not worth staging. A tournament and sport that sadly failed to capture the imagination of the general public and was interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War.
However, this iconic trophy couldn’t stay silent forever. After being won on numerous occasions by the Davis brothers and later John Pulman, the trophy found its voice in the 1970s as snooker gained popularity and television started to broadcast the tournament. The icing on the cake came in 1977 when Mike Watterson brought the World Championship to the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield and players not only held the trophy aloft after winning the gruelling seventeen days but kissed the silver lady on the top of the trophy in thanks. This was notably remembered when Dennis Taylor won the title in 1985.
The trophy was even stolen and held to ransom in 1982. Alex Higgins had won his second world championship title that year, ten years after winning his first in 1972. His first victory being against John Spencer and now Ray Reardon. Someone decided to take the trophy after he won it and Alex was called and told to bring the ransom to a caravan site. The episode was filmed by cameramen and showed Alex bundling into the caravan for a heated conversation before he eventually emerged with the trophy intact in its box. The days when you were actually given the trophy to keep for a year and not a replica for your mantlepiece.
The Legacy
The World Championship trophy still remains an iconic symbol of excellence in sport and is revered by players and fans. The tournament attracts viewers that don’t normally watch snooker and devoted season ticket holders who literally store up their holiday from work so they watch every single match as part of the Crucible audience.
The silver lady still glimmers under the theatre’s twinkling lights and is steeped in history, a trophy that would be able to tell a wealth of snooker tales if it could talk and always has pride of place on its plinth or for photo opportunities on the television table. This is an award that has brought smiles and tears, taking the victor to the very extremes of their capabilities to attain. A prized possession and one that has been and will be entrenched in snooker history for many years to come.
