The Wimbledon Queue and tennis

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The Wimbledon Queue (and tennis)


The British love to queue and there's no better time to have a go yourself than during the first week of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships.

Having experienced the queue, you can enjoy a day's tennis on one of the show courts (Centre, No.1 and No.2) - weather permitting, naturally.

Wimbledon is one of the few big sporting events where you can still buy premium tickets on the day of the event. To secure a ticket, you'll need to arrive the evening before – the earlier the better, of course. Set up camp on the pavement and have a little party - or a big one. By the next day, the queue will have turned into one of the longest in the world - and you'll be near the front, thereby securing your Centre Court ticket.

Queueing overnight for a show court ticket is best done during the first week of the tournament as there are more available tickets at that time (eg. about 500 for Centre Court), and anyway, the atmosphere throughout the grounds is livelier then too.

There are no on-the-day tickets available for Centre Court during the last four days of the competition, and the other show courts will by then be hosting mainly doubles matches.

The Wimbledon queue is a fun experience in itself, though taken seriously by the organisers. This from the Wimbledon Tennis website: "We acknowledge the help and cooperation of the Metropolitan Police, the Wimbledon Park Golf Club and the London Boroughs of Merton and Wandsworth in providing a safe environment for those who wish to queue and/or camp overnight for Championships tickets." More information about the queue here. All on-the-day ticket sales take place at Gate 3.

If you're bringing everything for your night of camping (you really don't need the kitchen sink), there's a Left Luggage facility (outside the grounds) open from 6.30am so you can leave all your stuff there. Along some parts of the queue you can park your car right beside you. At around 6am the next day stewards will wake you and ask all campers to pack away their equipment, and those with cars to park in the car park.

Once you're in, take your seat. But beware - it's not just the sight of Sharapova and Nadal that can leave people feeling a tad on the hot side; believe it or not, the sun often shines during the Wimbledon fortnight. The show courts trap the heat so take along a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, and sun lotion. Oh, better pack an umbrella too. It often rains....

Your chance to join the greatest queue in the world will soon be here. Believe me, it's well worth the wait.

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