Sir Trevor McDonald loved reporting on the Wimbledon Championships for ITN, even though it came with its own unique set of challenges.
It would have been impossible for me to predict at the time, but being asked to report on the Wimbledon tennis fortnight in 1977, only a short time after joining ITN, turned out to be one of the most delightful adventures of my journalistic career.
Quite frankly, I had no desire to be a sports reporter for ITN – or for anyone else. This was deeply personal: I had no wish to be stereotyped, especially since my main interest was international politics. A second reason was that while I have always been passionate about sport, I felt my passion might get in the way of the journalistic commitment required. Namely, that it would simply be too much fun!
Work is not supposed to be like that.
But the fact remained: ITN needed a sports reporter. At the time, ITV was desperately trying to compete with the BBC’s sports coverage, and they felt ITN’s sports news just didn’t cut it.
I was summoned to the editor’s office. I said, rather selfishly, that while I didn’t object to covering Wimbledon, I didn’t want to be pigeonholed as a sports reporter. I lost the argument but agreed, as a compromise, to do the job for two years.
No one explained to me at the time what covering Wimbledon for ITN meant.
The tournament had been, for years, a jewel in the crown of the BBC. That meant we were quite literally outsiders. While we were allowed to watch the matches and file reports, anything more – such as interviews with players – had to be conducted beyond the gates.
The routine was almost painful. At the end of a match, the winning player was led away to talk to the national and international press, then to do some BBC interviews, followed by Canadian TV.
By now I could read the signs of exhaustion, if not exasperation, in their faces when asked if they would mind speaking to ITN. I would rush in to explain that it would only take a short while, although I then had to drop the bombshell: we would have to leave the grounds and do the interview adjacent to a car park 100 yards away.
Many were unsurprisingly reluctant, but fortunately I have the fondest memories of those who weren’t.
The great Billie Jean King always agreed to be escorted beyond the gates. And I’ll never forget my attempts to interview Martina Navratilova. She agreed, reluctantly, and just as we were making good progress with the walk, she noticed on a huge notice board by the Members’ Entrance that she was billed to play a doubles match later that afternoon.
She began to make her apologies – at which point, I am ashamed to say, I grabbed her by the arm and began protesting that the interview could not be cancelled at this stage. I found myself literally restraining her.
If that were to be repeated in these days of heightened security, I would probably be taken away by the police.
I have always meant to apologise to Miss Navratilova if I ever got the chance.
Such problems aside, being at the Wimbledon Championships as a reporter, and as a fan, is just about the most glorious way to spend a fortnight. Today I am a member of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club and am entitled to play on the indoor courts or on the grass. I still play tennis, though not as regularly as I once did.
We also enjoy the comfort of the tea rooms, talking to colleagues about our memories of greats such as Arthur Ashe and Björn Borg, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and the Williams sisters.
There is a special thrill about walking through the gates as a member. It certainly beats continually walking out of them as an interviewer!
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