Maria Bueno at Wimbledon
9 July 2014
A Nostalgic return
Wimbledon may well be over, yet another fantastic success, but it only took Maria a couple of days before she was back at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, paying a nostalgic visit to the arena on which she made her name.
She was invited back by the Chairman, Philip Brook, to play on Centre Court with members of the Championship Committee.
“I can’t tell you what a thrill it was for me to be able to play on Centre, fifty years after I won here,” said Maria.
“It is such a fantastic court, although the conditions were a bit tricky as it was very windy. I asked them to close the roof but nobody paid any attention…
“It’s extraordinary to go back a couple of days after the Championships and see how quickly they break things down and it turns back into a members’ club again.
“There were lots of members there, eager to play on the grass, but only the Committee and, of course me, got to play on Centre! A real honour!”
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- Back on Centre stage
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- Maria Bueno enjoys a forehand
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- And volleys
(l to r) Tim Phillips, Gill Brook, Maria Bueno, Philip Brook, Ian Hewitt and Lord King
Maria hit with both the Chairman and his wife, Gill, before mixing in with former Chairman, Tim Phillips, The Lord King of Lothbury and Ian Hewitt, members of The Championships Committee.
Hitting out on Centre Court
“The scoreboards had already gone and they were building the scaffolding for the public viewing platform for those visiting the Museum but otherwise the court was just how the players left it on Sunday. Lovely!”
A visit to the Silver Tennis Collection
Earlier in the day Maria paid a visit to Robert and Irene Fuller, proprietors of The Silver Tennis Collection, to look at their latest pieces.
Silver Tennis Collection’s latest design in scarves
“They have such lovely things,” she said. “I like to keep up with their latest creations.
“They gave me a lovely charcoal grey and ivory scarf, which is new to their range.”
The Love Tennis pure silk satin scarf is an exclusive design by Irene and features graffiti style print of the Silver Tennis tennis ball seam logo in the words Love Tennis, in a pattern echoing the markings of a tennis court.
The Wimbledon Trophy
Maria Bueno shows off a newly-restored replica of the Wimbledon trophy
Bob and Irene have recently restored a replica of the Challenge Trophy that will become a centrepiece for their forthcoming exhibitions in the USA and asked Maria to pose with it.
“I got quite nostalgic holding that trophy!” she admitted with a smile.
In fact the Ladies’ Singles Trophy is a silver salver, sometimes referred to as the Rosewater Dish or Venus Rosewater Dish, which was first presented to the Champion when the challenge round was introduced in 1886.
A Rosewater dish is a ceremonial platter used after eating to catch rosewater poured from warm or cold ewers over the hands to wash them, a daily ceremony in England.
The salver, which is made of sterling silver, partly gilded, measures 18.75 inches in diameter and has a mythological decorative theme.
The centre (or boss) shows a figure of Temperance, seated on a chest with a lamp in her right hand and a jug in her left, with various attributes such as a sickle, fork and caduceus around her.
And with the real Venus Rosewater Bowl
The four reserves on the boss of the dish each contain a classical god, together with elements, while the reserves around the rim show Minerva presiding over the seven liberal arts: astrology, geometry, arithmetic, music, rhetoric, dialectic and grammar, each with relevant attribute.
The rim of the salver has an ovolo moulding.
The Champions receive a three-quarter size replica of the Cup bearing the names of all past Champions (height 14 inches) and, of course, Maria has three of these.
Later in the day she took a really good look at the real thing in the trophy room at the AELTC, on which her name is engraved three times.
“It really is a very beautiful trophy,” she said wistfully. “I wish I could get my hands on it again!”
A night out
Maria finished her busy day with a further treat from her favourite club – a visit to the Savoy Theatre to see ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’, the latest popular musical in the West End.
“It was great fun!” she said. “A good night out.”