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Mark Wildman

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For the English bass, see Mark Wildman (singer).

Mark Wildman
Born(1936-01-25)25 January 1936
Died18 November 2024(2024-11-18) (aged 88)
Sport country England
Professional1979–1991
Highest ranking21(1984/1985)
Best ranking finishSemi-final (x1)

Markham Wildman (25 January 1936 – 18 November 2024) was an English professional snooker and English billiards player and cue sports commentator. He won the World Professional Billiards Championship in 1984, and was runner up in 1980 and 1982. He made the first televised snooker century break in 1960.

Biography

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Wildman was born on 25 January 1936.[1] Coached by John Barrie,[2] he was the British under-16 champion of English billiards in 1951, and the British under-19 winner in 1952 and 1953.[3] He was also the 1952 British Boys Champion in snooker, and British Junior snooker champion in 1954.[4] In 1968, he won the English Amateur Billiards Championship by defeating Clive Everton 2,652–2,540 in the final.[5]: 224  Following his national service in the Royal Air Force, Wildman worked in finance, and was later an area manager for United Dominions Trust.[6] In 1960, he compiled the first televised snooker century break.[7][2][3]

In 1978 he was runner-up to Michael Ferreira in a World Open Billiards Championship held in Christchurch. In the semi-final, Wildman had eliminated Barrie, who described his former student as "a spasmodic, opportunist sort of player, very unpredictaable but always dangerous."[8] Wildman applied to become a professional player in 1979, and was initially rejected by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA),[9] before being accepted later that year.[10] In his first match as a professional, he lost 7–9 to Frank Jonik in the qualifying competition for the 1980 World Snooker Championship.[1]

He reached the final of the 1980 World Professional Billiards Championship by defeating Bernard Bennett, Rex Williams and Ray Edmonds, and was runner-up to Fred Davis with a scoreline of 2,064–3,037.[11][12] In the 1982 World Billiards Championship, he was runner-up to Williams.[6]

Reaching the last 16 of the 1982 Professional Players snooker tournament meant that he qualified for the 1983 Masters.[13] Although his first four shots in his first-round match were all foul, he led Steve Davis 2-1 before losing 2-5.[14]

The 1984 UK Open Billiards Championship was his first major title win as a professional, secured when he defeated Davis 1,500–1,032 in the final.[6][15] During the semi-final, against Williams, he recorded a break of 495, his highest.[6] He won the World Billiards Championship title in 1984, narrowly defeating Charlton 1,045–1,012 in the five-hour final.[5]: 214 [16]

He defeated three top-16 players, John Virgo, Silvino Francisco and Charlton, to reach the semi-finals of the 1984 Lada Classic, where he was eliminated 3–5 by Tony Meo,[6][17] and lost to Terry Griffiths, 8–10, in the first round of the 1983 World Snooker Championship.[1] He retired from professional snooker in 1991, but continued to play professional billiards for several years.[6] The highest ranking position he attained was 21st, in the 1984–85 snooker world rankings.[1]

Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Wildman was a snooker commentator for ITV until snooker was dropped by the channel in 1993.[18][19][20] During the 1990s and 2000s, he also commented for Screensport, Sky Sports and Eurosport.[2]

He was a WPBSA director from 1984 to 1991,[21] and for another term ending in 1997.[6] From September 1999 to 4 December 2001 he served as WPBSA Chairman, then had a further term on the board from 17 December 2001 until September 2002.[22][23][24]

He coached future world champion Shaun Murphy after they met in the early 1990s, and slso coached billiards players including Roxton Chapman, Matthew Sutton and Phil Welham.[2] After his active involvement in professional cue sports ended, Wildman moved to Spain, where he became a local champion of carom billiards.[2] He was taken ill on 24 December 2020,[2] and moved into residential care, where he reained until his death on on 18 November 2024, at the age of 88.[3][2]

Career finals (English billiards)

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These World Professional Billiards Championships were held on a knockout basis, organised by the WPBSA.[5]: 214 

Outcome No. Date Opponent in the final Score
Runner-up 1 November 1980  Fred Davis (ENG) 2,064–3,037
Runner-up 2 1982  Rex Williams (ENG) 1,785–3,000
Winner 1 1984  Eddie Charlton (AUS) 1,045–1,012

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Hayton, Eric; Dee, John (2004). The CueSport Book of Professional Snooker: The Complete Record & History. Lowestoft: Rose Villa Publications. pp. 1013–1014. ISBN 978-0954854904.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Everton, Clive; Stead, Stead (December 2024). "Mark Wildman remembered". Snooker Scene. pp. 6–7.
  3. ^ a b c "Mark Wildman passes away age 88". World Snooker Tour. 20 November 2024.
  4. ^ Everton, Clive (1979). The History of Billiards and Snooker. London: Cassell. pp. 182–185. ISBN 0304303739.
  5. ^ a b c Everton, Clive (2012). A History of Billiards. englishbilliards.org. ISBN 978-0-9564054-5-6.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Everton, Clive (September 2021). "Mark Wildman: an appreciation". Snooker Scene. pp. 14–15.
  7. ^ Bate, Stan (12 November 1960). "Midlanders can match the best". Sports Argus. p. 3.
  8. ^ "A great billiards festival: how it all finished". Snooker Scene. February 1979. pp. 14–15.
  9. ^ Everton, Clive (1 May 1979). "All but two must qualify". The Guardian. p. 26.
  10. ^ Everton, Clive (29 October 1979). "Triple crown for Wales". The Guardian. p. 24.
  11. ^ Everton, Clive (7 November 1980). "Davis retains title". The Guardian. p. 20.
  12. ^ "Davis win continues billiards revival". Snooker Scene. December 1980. pp. 12–15.
  13. ^ Everton, Clive (13 October 1982). "Higgins toils in natural break". The Guardian. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Davis win continues billiards revival". Snooker Scene. December 1980. pp. 12–15.
  15. ^ "UK Championship History". World Billiards. Archived from the original on 5 January 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  16. ^ "Champion Mark". Liverpool Echo. 26 March 1984. p. 38 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Classic". Snooker Scene. Archived from the original on 24 January 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  18. ^ "Mark Wildman". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  19. ^ Everton, Clive (2012). "16". Black farce and cue ball wizards. Edinburgh: Mainstream. ISBN 9781780575681.
  20. ^ "TV Guide". Liverpool Echo. 1 March 1993. p. 197.
  21. ^ "Gang of six plan WPBSA takeover". Snooker Scene. August 1992. pp. 4–6.
  22. ^ Dee, John (5 December 2001). "Perry's smooth progress". The Daily Telegraph. London. p. 43.
  23. ^ "Sports round-up". The Daily Telegraph. London. 18 December 2001. p. 40.
  24. ^ Whebell, Charles (26 September 2002). "King bends the knee to Hendry". The Daily Telegraph. London. p. 52.
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