Never Say Die: Arthur 'Baby' Gore The Oldest Wimbledon Champion

My new book the first ever about a great character of lawn tennis before the Great War

   The national yearning for a Wimbledon champion from the British Isles became an annual obsession during the long periods when it seemed as though it would never happen again. And yet there was a time when such an occurrence was taken for granted. In the days when the Doherty brothers won all before them interest in lawn tennis was at its height. It is that era which I find fascinating.

   A. W. Gore played throughout that time, but his career stretched back much further and went on much longer. He did not become a player of the front rank until he was past thirty, but achieved perhaps his greatest feats after 40. Feats that no one has so far matched in 150 years of the game. 

   What attracted me to write about Gore was his character and fighting spirit. He was often counted out, but he refused to give in, and triumphed against the odds. I discuss those he played with and against and especially his great sporting rivalry with the gallant New Zealander Anthony Wilding. There is an appendix containing his results, and 32 rarely-seen photos. Above all I hope that I do justice to Gore and the wider struggle of the players of his time to establish tennis as one the greatest of sports in the public imagination. 

   The book is published by Pitch Publishing of Chichester on 10 June. See publisher's details here