Willie Thorne

William Joseph Thorne (4 March 1954 – 17 June 2020) was an English professional snooker player who turned professional in 1975 and competed until 2001. He won one ranking title, the 1985 Classic, and reached the final of the 1985 UK Championship, losing 16–14 to Steve Davis after leading 13–8. He peaked at world No. 7 in the rankings during the mid-1980s.

Thorne was noted for his break-building ability and was among the first players to compile 100 century breaks in competitive play. He achieved a maximum break at the 1987 UK Championship and earned the nickname "Mr Maximum". Throughout his career he also battled a serious gambling addiction, which he discussed publicly in interviews and in his autobiographies.

After retiring from professional play, Thorne became a snooker commentator, working primarily for the BBC from the 1980s until he was dropped from their broadcast team after the 2017–18 season. He also commentated for Sky, ITV, and BBC Wales.

In June 2015, Thorne was diagnosed with prostate cancer, and in March 2020 he announced he had been diagnosed with leukaemia. He died on 17 June 2020 in Torrevieja, Spain, aged 66, after being placed in an induced coma following respiratory failure.

Career Thorne was born on 4 March 1954, at the family home in Anstey, a village located near Leicester, to Bill Thorne, a Desford Colliery miner, and his wife Nancy. He left school at age 15 and became an estimator for a glass factory while practising snooker in Loughborough and then Leicester's snooker halls. The same year, he reached the 1985 UK Championship final against the then dominant Steve Davis and seemed to have built himself an unassailable 13–8 lead, but a miss on a straightforward off its during the first of the final session allowed Davis to take the frame and eventually win the title. Thorne won the 1986 Hong Kong Masters by 8–3 over Dennis Taylor in the final with century breaks of 102 and 106, and then defeated Davis 10–9 to claim the 1986 Matchroom Professional Championship.

He peaked at No. 7 in the world rankings in the mid-1980s, while also battling a serious gambling problem. Thorne began gambling when he frequented a billiard hall in central Leicester from the age of 16. In one incident, Thorne bet £38,000 on a match involving John Parrott, betting that Parrott would lose as he had lost his personal cue and had to use one supplied by the venue. Much to Thorne's dismay, not least because he was actually commentating on the match, Parrott recovered from a slow start to win, only worsening Thorne's debts. In an interview with The Guardian newspaper in 2004, Thorne admitted to placing bets of up to £20,000 on horses. He first began commentating for the BBC during the 1980s, and he continued to work on the BBC's networked snooker coverage until he was dropped from the corporation's broadcast team after the 2017–18 season.

Alongside other Matchroom professionals, Thorne featured in the popular song "Snooker Loopy", written and performed by Chas & Dave. In the verse which begins "but old Willie Thorne, his hair's all gorn", Thorne's cameo line was "Perhaps I ought to chalk it", in reference to his gleaming head distracting his opponents. Thorne also appeared in the "Romford Rap" video with the rest of the "Matchroom Mob". He was only the third player to achieve this feat and achieved a maximum break at the 1987 UK Championship. Thorne claimed to have made almost 200 maximum breaks, and was known as "Mr Maximum". Thorne won the World Seniors Masters in 2000, beating Cliff Thorburn in the final.

After retiring from the game in 2001,

Personal life Thorne was married to former Miss Great Britain winner Jill Saxby and lived in Broughton Astley. He was previously married to Fiona Walker, with whom he had twin sons and a daughter. In 2004, Thorne and writer Derek Marsden co-authored his first autobiography, Double or Quits. His second autobiography, Taking a Punt on My Life, was published in 2011. In 1985, Lineker was best man at Thorne's wedding.

Illness and death In June 2015, Thorne was diagnosed with prostate cancer after a psychiatrist ordered routine blood tests. After diagnosis, Thorne began treatment.

Thorne tweeted on 18 March 2020 that he had been diagnosed with leukaemia. On 16 June 2020, he was placed in an induced coma after suffering respiratory failure in hospital in Spain. The following day, his carer reported that Thorne had gone into septic shock, was not responding to treatment, and died after his life support was withdrawn, aged 66.

Performance and rankings timeline

Performance Table LegendLQ lost in the qualifying draw#R lost in the early rounds of the tournament(WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin)QF lost in the quarter-finalsSF lost in the semi-finalsF lost in the finalW won the tournamentDNQ did not qualify for the tournamentA did not participate in the tournamentWD withdrew from the tournament NH / Not Held means an event was not held.NR / Non-Ranking Event means an event is/was no longer a ranking event.R / Ranking Event means an event is/was a ranking event.

Career finals Ranking finals: 3 (1 title)

Legend UK Championship (0–1) Other (1–1) OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipOpponent in the finalScore Ref.Winner 1. 1985 The Classic 13–8 Runner-up 2. 1986 British Open 7–12 Runner-up 3. 1986 Irish Masters 5–9 Runner-up 4. 1986 Pontins Professional (2) 6–9 Winner 3. 1986 Matchroom Professional Championship 10–9 Runner-up 6. 1987 Irish Masters (2) 1–9 Winner 5. 1989 New Zealand Masters 7–4 Runner-up 9. 1994 Australian Open 5–9 Runner-up 1. 1984 Warners Open 3–4

Team finals: 2 OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipTeam/partnerOpponent(s) in the finalScore Ref.Runner-up 1. 1984 World Doubles Championship 2–10 Runner-up 2. 1995 Lowen Sport European Pro-Am 6–10

Seniors finals: 1 (1 title) OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipOpponent in the finalScoreRef.Winner 1. 2000 World Seniors Masters 1–0 Winner 1. 1970 British Under-16 Championship 3–2 Winner 2. 1973 British Under-19 Championship 3–0 Runner-up 2. 1975 English Amateur Championship 6–11

+British Junior English Billiards ChampionshipOutcomeNo.YearChampionshipOpponent in the finalScoreWinner 1. 1970 Under-16 Championship 310–263 Winner 2. 1971 Under-19 Championship 728–321 Winner 3. 1972 Under-19 Championship 497–240 Winner 4. 1974 Under-19 Championship 598–566