From tennis balls to glitter balls – Annabel Croft tells all on her UK tour

Aged just 15, Annabel Croft (pictured above) was the youngest Briton to play in the Wimbledon main draw for nearly 100 years.

She won the Wimbledon and Australian Open girls’ tournaments in 1984 and became the British No. 1 female tennis player.

After retiring from tennis at 21, she developed a successful TV career; replacing Anneka Rice as the Sky runner on the TV series Treasure Hunt; becoming a popular presenter and sports pundit for several major networks and also acing “Strictly Come Dancing” and she’s set to appear at The Apex, in Bury St Edmunds, later this year.

She’s appeared in pantomimes, sung in musicals, turned the spotlight on homelessness by living on the streets, and tried her hand at yacht racing.

“When opportunities arise, I’ve always been the sort of person to walk through the door and at the very least take a look at what’s involved,” she says.

“I never been afraid of putting myself in places where I could end up falling flat on my face – which believe me has happened on more than one occasion! But that shouldn’t ever discourage you. We should never be afraid to give things a try.”

Now she’s lifting the lid on it all in a new touring show ‘”nnabel Croft: From Tennis Balls to Glitter Balls”.

Annabel will share unforgettable moments from her career, including interviews with legends like Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic.

She’ll also transport audiences to the glitz and glamour of “Strictly Come Dancing”. And, long before all of that, the time that she sneaked into Wimbledon without a ticket because she was so desperate to watch her idol, Bjorn Borg.

“I am really excited to be going on this tour,” she says. “When I was 11 years old, a schoolteacher asked me to write an essay called ‘What I Would Like To Do’.

“I said I wanted to be able to play tennis, win Wimbledon, make journeys all around the world, and dance on stage.

“Well, I did indeed play tennis at Wimbledon and win the Open Girls’ tournament there. I did travel the world playing in many tournaments. And many years later I also got to dance on one of the biggest stages of all, taking part in the magical TV show ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.

“In between, there have been many highs and lows, laughs and tears, but every day has been part of life’s huge learning experience. Not everyone is lucky enough to see so many of their childhood dreams come true … so I hope that 11-year-old Annabel would look at me now and think that I’ve not done too badly!”

People questioned the wisdom of signing up for the pressure of “Strictly Come Dancing”, just a few months after the death of her husband Mel from cancer.

But it turned out to be the perfect tonic.

Annabel says: “Having briefly done ballet when I was very young, Strictly took me full circle to those early years, dreaming of doing Romeo and Juliet.

“I loved the processes of learning all the different dances. It felt as if my tight, stiff body was unravelling like a giant ball of string.

“The movement and fluidity of the music and routines was helping me to free up and release the tension. I hadn’t appreciated just how good things like dancing or yoga are for people who are dealing with grief.”

 She says she is also incredibly grateful for the friendships she has built, and the support she has received, from her commentary box colleagues.

“It’s a close and tight-knit community on the tennis media circuit, and I felt very, very supported by my colleagues. They were brilliant with me. I felt a lot of love and support at that time, and I am so thankful for it.”

She says has no regrets about turning her back on professional tennis at such a tender age.

She has never fallen out of love with the game – and indeed still plays most weeks – but could not come to terms with a routine which meant “living out of a suitcase, dealing with agents, managers, solicitors and sponsors, and giving up anything resembling a conventional social life.”

Never one to stand still for too long, Annabel says she would exhaust many of her friends because of her pent-up energy – and five decades on, she’s still constantly on the go.

But she’s not looking too far ahead right now for another challenge, other than trying to enjoy and appreciate life’s simpler pleasures like taking regular walks and connecting with nature.

“I’m focusing much more about being in the moment, and enjoying what I’m doing now,” she says. “It’s something that the top sports people are trained to do and is one of tennis legend Billie Jean King’s most famous lines: Be present.”

Annabel Croft is at The Apex on Thursday, November 6, at 7.30pm. Tickets available from The Apex box office on 01284 758000, or online at www.theapex.co.uk