It’s that magical time at Wimbledon… The singles draws have narrowed down to a handful of players intent on adding their name in gilt letters to the champions’ honours board while on the outside courts the world’s best juniors embark on their bid to emulate the established stars of the game. 

And, at the other end of the career trajectory, retired players with an enduring love of the game return to add their idiosyncratic talents to the all-singing, all-dancing, consummately entertaining Invitation Doubles events. 

Mark that word ‘invitation’. There is no doubt that The Championships spreads its stardust on all who put on a memorable performance on the grass. And that includes Chris Quinn, immortalised in Wimbledon history as The Man in the Skirt. 

It's been five years since the captain of a tennis club in County Wicklow, Ireland was innocently sitting on No.3 Court when he heard Kim Clijsters ask her doubles partner Rennae Stubbs what kind of serve she should go for next. 

“Body serve!” shouted Chris from the spectator stands.

Clijsters, ever quick off the mark, said, “Who said that?” and the next thing Quinn knew he was on the court, being hoicked into a short tennis skirt. 

After inviting him on the court, Clijsters, the 2003 Wimbledon ladies’ double champion, realised he was in violation of the Club’s all-white clothing rules and grabbed a regulation white skirt from her bag for him to wear over his shorts. 

“I used to play American football, I’ve big legs! But I didn’t think about it,” said Quinn in his post-match comments. “I just pulled the skirt up and one of the other ladies got a white top for me.” 

Sportingly, Quinn tried his hand at the serve and managed to return the first one. Cue, the entire stadium in splits of laughter. The video went viral. It’s become one of Wimbledon’s Top Five funniest moments ever.

After the match he got his photo taken with Clijsters, and was taken aback to see people queuing up to get his autograph. “It was great. Life is short, and it’s not many people who can say they got the chance to play at Wimbledon,” he said afterwards. “My wife told me not to let it go to my head. She said, ‘You’ve still got to do the dishes!’”

The Stage Awaits was the theme building up anticipation of Sunday’s celebration of 100 years of Centre Court’s star-making history, but it’s an apt phrase for the start of all forms of the Invitation Doubles: men’s (title holders: Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra), women’s (holders: Cara Black and Martina Navratilova) and this year’s inaugural mixed event. 

These matches played in a round robin format, are synonymous with long mellow evenings of laughter and appreciative applause. With no pressure beyond wanting to live up to their partner, players rejoice in playing for pleasure and entertainment.

And the crowd gets to see again such specialists of the doubles game as the Woodies, as in the Australians Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, one of the most successful pairings in tennis history. 

Together, the left-handed Woodforde and the right-hand Woodbridge won 11 Grand Slam doubles titles: one Roland-Garros, two Australian Opens, two US Opens, and a record six Wimbledons. They also have a gold medal from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics in their collection, plus a silver medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

They star in the roll call of entertainers waiting in the wings this Wimbledon. 

In Group A, Mansour Bahrami, the veteran doubles conjuror supreme, pairs up with 1994 Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez. They will play a host of doubles specialists: Todd Woodbridge and Cara Black, Thomas Enqvist and Rennae Stubbs and Thomas Johansson and Mary Joe Fernandez. 

Group B is led by the charismatic pairing of Goran Ivanisevic and Mary Pierce and home favourites Greg Rusedski and Anne Keothavong. Iva Majoli has stepped in to replace Covid-stricken Martina Navratilova in a pairing with the other Woodie, while Marion Bartoli and former doubles world No.1 Nenad Zimonjic join forces to put their formidable skills and court presence on display. 

Watch out spectators. There's always the potential for some pantomime crowd participation.

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