Willie Thorne: Star of snooker as Britain fell in love with the green baize

Enjoying an easy rapport with fellow players, fans and media, his career mirrored the rise of the sport itself

At the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield, 1988 (Getty)

With his shiny bald head and immaculately manicured moustache, Willie Thorne, who has died aged 66, was one of snooker’s most recognisable and popular competitors as the green baize took hold of the public’s consciousness throughout the Seventies and Eighties.

Enjoying an easy rapport with fellow players, fans and media, his career mirrored the rise of the sport itself. It was thanks to the arrival of colour television and its one frame competition, Pot Black, that the sport emerged from a minority following in often sleazy provincial clubs to culminate in the 1985 World Championship Final when, in the early hours, 19 million viewers were gripped as Dennis Taylor dramatically potted the last black to claim the title from Steve Davis. And yet, while Thorne himself earned in excess of £1m, in common with many, a predilection for gambling saw him lose not only his home but also his career.

Born in the Leicestershire village of Anstey, the middle son of a former coal miner, William Joseph Thorne was educated at the Thomas Rawlins School in Quorn. Leaving school aged 15, he initially became an estimator in the building industry. Having enjoyed football, he first discovered both billiards and snooker when his father became the steward at Anstey Conservative Club. Soon beating all comers, having triumphed in the junior national billiards championship six years in a row, in 1970 he became national under-16 champion in both disciplines. The family later operated a snooker centre in Leicester. There, Thorne would take on the Leicester City footballer, Gary Lineker, who became a lifelong friend. Future world champion Mark Selby was another fellow graduate.

After winning the national under-19 title, Thorne turned professional, becoming the youngest player on the circuit. He made an immediate impact by reaching the semi-final of the 1975 Canadian Open. Unlike the more flamboyant players on the tour, Thorne based his game very firmly on old-school percentage play. His seemingly effortless ability to knock up 147 breaks soon saw him being dubbed “Mr Maximum”. In 1982, when on his way to the World Championship quarter finals, before losing to the eventual winner, Alex “Hurricane” Higgins, his break of 143 was then the second best ever. Three years later, Thorne went on to win his only world ranking title, beating Cliff Thorburn to proudly lift the Mercantile Credit Classic.

What was shaping up to be Thorne’s finest hour came during the 1985 UK Championship taking place over two weeks at Preston’s Guild Hall. In brushing aside Paddy Browne, John Virgo, Cliff Thorburn, and Terry Griffiths, Thorne made seven century breaks. Against Browne, his break of 140 was the highest score in the tournament. Facing the world number one, Steve Davis, in the two-day final, Thorne was again on scintillating form as he racked up a 13-8 lead going into the very final session. When on the verge of extending his lead to within two frames of victory, he quite inexplicably missed the simplest of blues off the spot. As a shaken Thorne began to unravel, Davis seized his reprieve to take the eight frames he needed to claim a famous, if rather unexpected victory, 16-14.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, Thorne’s form never really recovered. While still ranked number seven in the world, the following year he again reached the quarter finals of the World Championship in Sheffield, but would also lose three further finals: the British Open, again to Davis; the Irish Masters to Jimmy White; and the Pontins Professional Tournament to Terry Griffiths. His psychological fragility, which many had long feared, meant that he never quite fulfilled the rich promise of his early years.

As one of The Matchroom Mob, however, Thorne found himself in the charts and on Top of the Pops, courtesy of Chas & Dave’s novelty hit “Snooker Loopy”. With its famous line, “But old Willie Thorne, his hair’s all gorn,” the player himself would respond, “Perhaps I ought to chalk it.”

Following his defeat in the semi-finals of the 1987 UK Championship, Thorne moved more and more into the commentary box. Thanks to his vast knowledge of the game and its characters, few have bettered him, with his blend of dry wit and intelligent punditry. In 2000, the World Seniors Masters saw him briefly back in the sporting spotlight as once again he beat Canadian Cliff Thorburn to claim the title.

Thorne launched his own underwear range in 2002, by then a familiar figure on such television shows as Give Us a Break and A Question of Sport. In 2007, he came twelfth when partnering Erin Boag on the hit BBC show Strictly Come Dancing. His effortless charm also proved a popular draw on the celebrity speaking circuit.

However, the publication of an autobiography, Taking A Punt On My Life in 2011, laid bare the many strains tearing his life apart. Having served as a bookie’s runner during his teenage years, a lifetime of gambling would eventually see him drowning in a tsunami of debt.

In a not untypical move in 1996, after receiving inside information that John Parrott had lost his cue, Thorne placed a £38,000 bet on Ken Doherty to win. He was commentating on the match. Much to Thorne’s horror, John Parrott won. More recently, with his financial problems spiralling even further out of control, he made a number of attempts on his life. Forced to pawn his wife’s jewellery following threats from loan sharks, in 2016 he was declared bankrupt. The following year he was dropped from the BBC’s top snooker events. Latterly living in Spain, he had been battling poor health. His first marriage was to Fiona Walker, with whom he had three children, twin sons and a daughter. In 1995, he married Jill Saxby. He is also survived by two stepchildren.

Willie Thorne, snooker player and commentator, born 4 March 1954, died 17 June 2020