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Even at like 20 I could drink all night you know and then all of a sudden I found cocaine then all of a sudden we'd be in one place cocaine would arrive I'd have to cocaine and we'd go to the next place as though we'd just gone out for the night we'd been out for like five or six hours and all of a sudden we could start again you know that was a terrible thing for me finding cocaine and then all of a sudden cocaine becomes more than a drink in and then you know it you're up for days on it you know just sitting there talking bollocks with my cocaine addiction I was always careful that I never took cocaine while I was playing because I think it was like four or five days to get out your system and we used to get urine tested so I never wanted to get caught for that and lucky enough touch wood I never I always made sure that I was like a week clean before I play because you're in people's front rooms like three or four times a year for like two weeks at a time people sort of think you know you and in them days there's only four channels you know so you know it become sort of you know you was famous you know girls would like talking to you wouldn't give you a second look you know you was getting roped off in nightclubs he wasn't paying for drinks it was crazy and I did get you know carried away with it and took full advantage lucky for me I went to see my doctor as soon as I felt it and he said I don't like that I sent me to a specialist and then I had the operation and I had it taken out and it was the type of cancer I had that if I wouldn't have got it checked out and it had gone anywhere else I wouldn't be here today boom we're on and today's guest we've got snooker legend Jimmy White how are you Jimmy I'm good James nice to see you absolutely listening to me absolute honor to be sitting across from you snooker legend everyone loves you the people's champion won over 20 events turn-ranking events been in the world championship final six times people adore you mate and obviously because of the crazy fucking life that you've led as well and you're very upfront about it yeah how are you brother I'm very well yeah I'm in a good place I'm really enjoying my snooker and life's very calm now to what it was first for everything Jimmy yeah you won a game yesterday I heard against a very good opponent very up and coming as well yeah Aaron Hill a good player from Cork in Ireland he fancied the job and Stephen Henry your fellow Scott was commentating yesterday and he said that you know these kids don't know who we are so they're sort of super confident but I played well yesterday so I'm quite proud of myself how does that make you feel still one in games like that well I still like as we probably talk about my lifestyle in a bit years ago I didn't really use the practice because I was so ill you know for the drink of drugs so you know I didn't when I was very young I used to practice but now because I'm semi-clean I can practice and put in the hours so I'm pretty sharp yeah what did you know 61 no 59 59 oh 300 extra two years I always go back to the start from my guest Jimmy yeah where'd you go up and how it all began well I my my my mum was used to clean a hotel on a Friday and my dad was a carpenter and my day with my dad was on a Friday afternoon he used to pick me up from school and I spent three or four hours with him and in them days he was down the pub you know it was a Friday the boys were getting paid and for about the first three months I was in the lorry you know I didn't come in the pub and then I come in the pub and there was a pool table there and I've been six months I'm playing pool I'm beating everyone at Paul and then I found a snooker club called Zans in Tooted and I went in there see these big tables fell in love with the game been in love with ever since for very young age was there any family members or anyone please snooker at pool no my a couple of my brothers played a little bit of snooker you know in a united service club where I used to go my dad's club but no I was in the snooker on my own and all of a sudden by the now time I'm like 14 we're earning lots of money gambling it's a wrong environment for a child you know I've got grandchildren you know they'd never see anything like it you know and we used to there was no internet in them days no mobile phone so we literally put a pin in the map when we were right Newcastle and me and Tony Mio and this called Dodgy Bob this black cab driver used to get in our in his black cab drive to Newcastle and stay there for three days in like bed and breakfasts and we'd we'd clean up because you know guys who were good players in Newcastle would come along go well these kids can't beat us and everyone would back them and we'd win you know sometimes you know we could come home with like a thousand pound we've won we've won like four or five thousand he had the majority share the taxi driver and we come home with that kind of money you know at 13 years of age that's like 46 grand 40 seven years ago he's a lot of money why was the cab driver taking more well because he had the wheels and he had the steak you know we didn't have any money because especially me Tony Mio was a bit careful with his money but I was always soon as I got my money I was you know I was gambling at even a young age he's ever threatened especially grand adult clubs and wanting money oh no a lot of times we had to we won all the money and we had to say we okay we just want to leave with our lives you know you keep all the money because you could tell you could feel the atmosphere in the snookle not only have they been beaten and they've took all their money they feel a bit humiliated you know even though we didn't hustle them because we just beat them but you know you could tell sometimes it was best to just give the money back so it wasn't like the forums where people maybe lose a couple of frames and then put the money down and say we'll play for money and then and then beating them no yeah no we didn't have to hustle them as I said we could just play them because we were so young people think that they they beat us anyway what we like at school Jimmy no good at all my maths was all right and counting money yeah you know I sort of you know I can read I read I can read if I wrote you a letter which I probably wouldn't do but if I wrote someone I'd make a few mistakes so academically I'm not great no was that one of the reasons why you never went to school as much well lucky enough for me my headmaster called Arthur Beatty realized that academically I wasn't very good and he I'd been in the local papers then but winning a few matches so he thought it was a good idea to let me if I went in in the morning I'd done a deal with him where I didn't go in in the afternoon so that worked well for both of us and you know lucky for me touch wood I went on to do well at snooker how did your mum and dad treat you my mum and dad you know my mum's you know mum like was obviously scared you know and I'd go and stand in a dodgy hotels excuse me you know going away for three or four days at 14 or 15 you know she'd be worried about us because it wasn't you'd have a phone in the house but it wasn't like getting in touch like now so she was a bit sort of but my dad sort of knew that I knew how to look after myself because snookers are like a very educational place in a way you know you you learn your principles and you learn not to take liberties with people you know and I was brought up all about manners in my my household as well so my dad knew I'd be all right you know were you drinking at 14 or anything back that time occasionally not not really sort of more when I was like sort of 16 I started drinking because did you win the world junior championships at 16 I won the English amateur championships at 16 and that's the youngest ever to do that youngest ever to do that yeah it got beat about 10 years ago by a kid called David Gray and so it lasted a long time and then I've done that in 79 and I could have gone to two world championships and I decided to wait to go to Australia to be world amateur champion lucky enough I won that but I missed two years at the crucible and looking back at it now Steve Davis in 1981 he'd been there in 79 and 80 lost to Alex Higgins and Dennis Taylor and then in 81 he beat me in the first round 10-8 I was 6-1 down and he went on then to win everything so maybe on Ironside if I didn't go to Australia I could have had two years as a professional you know learning the ropes but it wasn't to be and he obviously went on in the 80s to win a lot more than me yeah do you think that two years ago we then maybe held you back an extra inch absolutely about a big mistake looking back now the Hainsates always a wonderful thing you know that's why but yeah but you know it was if I were to sort of because you know to win the world amateur championships you've got no prize money or anything for it you just got the cup of winning you know so I have got up there somewhere there so you know I'm delighted that I won it but not you know looking back I would have had two more years experience as a professional you know yeah what about growing up in the streets of London was you surrounded by many people or did you try and keep yourself to yourself um in the snooker it was like a the snooker was like a family sort of run place it was it was run by a guy who owned it and they had like it was a crazy place there was a there was a guy called Ronnie Fryer and he used to come in very small thin guy but if anyone was sitting on the tables you know you'd get a slap or if you'd whistled you get you got barred for a week you know it was a very like strict environment but it was also it was a very bad place as well you know it was like a shop lifters paradise all the tables were no one went shopping in the shops at Christmas they went in the snookers because it was all full of stolen goods and all that you know but there was there was good principles in a way in there you know because if you was like a burglar you know you was barred you know if they heard you robbed someone's house or something you know so it was um a dangerous place but also once you knew the ropes it was a safe environment did you feel at home and say that's like a hole I felt sort of protected because well so good as well that you know I was looked after and you know they you know any new players come in from around the area they knew that I would play them and you know win money for them when did you turn pro Germany when you were 18 I turned pro and I was 18 yeah when I come back from Australia and it was a 2 who was it you lost it was Alex Higgins you lost I lost to Higgins in 82 when he went on to win the world championship probably the most famous clearance ever was against me at a 69 break like the balls he potted were phenomenal and he was the first person to bring a baby on telly you know when he the first sportsman he'll do it now at golf but Higgins was the first one to do that and make no mistake anyone who knows anything about snooker Alex Higgins made the game you know he made it you know he was exciting and he was a shopmaker yeah because you were 59 up and he cleared that worth the 69 that's right you were only how old then 21 22 I was 20 I think yeah but you know another I know okay I'm 59 now still playing as good as ever I still think I can win otherwise I wouldn't be practicing but I think if I'd have won it then I would have probably killed myself because it was it was full on you know you know all of a sudden like I'm a kid from two in I'm I'm being I'm getting into night clubs you know I'm getting girls looking at me twice you know I mean wouldn't give you another look I didn't know what I didn't know what was going on and I sort of got carried away with it and I didn't win the world championship so you know there was always there was always like a part of the year come like sort of January February while I pulled it all in and got ready for the world championships where did you get that mentality like that was that because it's being surrounded guys like Alex Higgins as well did you kind of adapt to that nature the drinking the kind of yeah zero fox giving mentality yeah it was I come from the sort of reality of that snooker all days that if you had money you should be out partying you know the only reason you're not partying the only reason you didn't smoke because you had no money you know it was such a stupid mindset in them days but that was what it was and then you know you gambled and you know and being around Higgins he was my hero and a great thing with being after I lost that 82 semi-finals to him I went on the road a lot with him so I'm practicing with my hero in the afternoon and in the night we began and playing to five or six hundred people you know I was in my element you know I felt like I was world champion but you know if I had it again I would have definitely reigned it in a bit for sure yeah how was that did you ever have anyone to obviously you've got Alex Higgins one of the greatest of all time with who's potting but was there ever anyone to say look Jimmy you've got the world at your feet here that you've got so much potential to be the greatest of all timers and anybody ever take your side to give you that talk at such a young age yeah many many people you know family members and good people you know love me you know and I love them but I was I was fucking excuse my friend I was I was a bad bastard you know I literally during them world championships after that as well because we're in Sheffield for two weeks you know like I'd literally I'd go to my room and then I'd sort of I'd sneak out the hotel go down the fire escape then or something I'm in a nightclub drinking and there's people there over the other side who just thought they put me to bed you know I was you know I'm listen I'm not moaning I had a fucking great time but if you know if I'd have done it properly I'd have won plenty more who was it back then drinking and smoking at the table well you had Bill Werbenik and the big Bill Werbenik you wouldn't know him he was I tell you how weird it was in them days he was allowed to have a tax reduction for drink now can you imagine that a sportsman because he had a nervous position where his hand shook if he had so many drinks so much alcohol he stopped shaking so he was allowed to have a tax reduction so when you played Bill Werbenik he'd had eight ten pints before you got there to play him you know so it was strange times were you ever that pissed jamming before that game that you you couldn't go out? well a few exhibitions a few exhibitions I'd gone and not realised I'd been there you know like I've been on the road and then all of a sudden I thought well okay we're going to Glasgow tomorrow and they go well we went there yesterday and I'm like well I can't you know but you somehow you'd get through it like musicians you know you sort of you get took away in the music I'd get taken away in the snooker but I never played stoned I never played I was always careful with my cocaine addiction I was always careful that I never took cocaine while I was playing because I think it was like four or five days to get out your system and we used to get urine tested so I never wanted to get caught for that and lucky enough touch wood I never I always made sure that I was like a week clean before I played so were they doing drug tests back then all the time absolutely everywhere every I used to get tested I used to know the doctor's first names and everything because after you played a match you know you're drinking quite a bit of water during the match and all of a sudden someone tells you then you've got to go toilet you can be there an hour or so you know you can't go so no I I was regularly tested for drugs yeah your first event you won the due were you not did you not need a snooker yes and you got it and you won that event that was another was at 17 each or 16 each no 12 each 12 each 12 each with Cliff Orburn and yeah I needed a snooker see I think why the public like the way I play is because even to win that first tournament I still had to get a snooker I still had to win it the hard way because what I used to do I used to go for so many shots so it'd be like people who are watching or supporting you they're on like a roller coaster like a boxer swinging punches from everywhere if one connects he wins but he's going to get a lot of smacks in the in the middle of it so to win my first tournament I should have won a tournament earlier than that but it took me you know I had to get a snooker as you said and I beat Cliff Orburn to win the mercantile credit but what I'm saying is the people who supported me went on that roller coaster ride of me going for the crazy shots what was that like winning your first tournament it was brilliant it was because it was so difficult because Steve Davis had got so much like a machine you know he was um he was the ultimate professional you know he needs he had a he had a hotel room to sleep and he had another one with his space invaders you know where he spent hours on there and then hours practicing you know he was completely switched on he was like a machine and then you got me and Iggy and Stipe running around all over the place and people say to me now who's the greatest player in the world I say Ronny O'Sullivan because I think what Ronny O'Sullivan done he took a bit of Steve Davis's safety play a sort of a bit of my flair a bit of um Stephen Henry's self-belief and bottle and built this machine that's why he's such a you know such a great winner now like the likes of Steve Davis Stephen Henry yeah Ronny O'Sullivan's a legend and he's one great man he's for that mindset and yeah he's interviews and world is hero fox giving mentality that's why like people love yourself they love your Alex Higgins they love you Ronny O'Sullivan snooker never had use snooker wouldn't be as popular as it was snooker boomed in the 80s because you're Alex Higgins yourself come on to the scene that everybody loves the bad boy Jimmy yeah even though you're destroying your life for everybody else's kind of benefit but people love that character because we're all fucking struggling and end up and we just like to yeah and I think they went on that they've gone on that ride and then we've have gone for the shots and then we've Ronny O'Sullivan they got the full package so after your first tournament when when did you lose the world title was it 84 yeah that my first one was with um my first final was with Steve Davis in 84 and I didn't I absolutely didn't really care you know what I mean because I thought well I'll just win it next year because I starting to really believe and my first session with him I went um I went 12-4 down and really struggling with my tip and the late Jim Medicraft was a commentator at the time and I come off the table I said my tips really hard he said look I put a new one on for it so we put a tip on at one o'clock in the morning in the crucible and we're actually practicing on the match table can you imagine that this day and age it's like people going out in Wimbledon and sorting their game out you know it's like incredible how we got access to it anyway the next morning um I come out and I ended up I beat him I beat him 7-1 I went 13-11 down from 12-4 down and up losing 18-16 so you know that was a close one the first one and then after that you had Dennis Taylor's great win against him the next year and then it took me a few years to get to the final yeah how was that Jimmy when you look at guys like Steve Davis who look like the proper champion the proper their own model kind of figure the guy who's never out drunk the guys who's never in the front papers to then how much dedication did he have did you look at having said I need to work as hard as him or did you have that natural ability I had sorry to interrupt you I had that natural ability but sometimes you know that's not enough in any sport and I used to just think well I knew I was good enough I knew I had the bottle but sometimes if you don't practice if don't practice your natural ability you know now and again it catches up with you and then it gets all a bit dark but talk about Steve Davis now he's a DJ he's out of his nut every weekend he's having the time of his life now Steve Davis full circle you're calm down and he's and he's like giving it life did you ever think to yourself though again through those times that you could have when you could have won everything because you never gave the dedication that's why you always not always fail but fail at the the last hurdle yeah I think so I think of I think with my lifestyle as well like a couple of times once I completely I completely run out of steam playing Steven I was 14 eight up and I'm trying to force the issue and then before I knew where it was it was like 14 12 and then I'd gone then I'd completely like I had nothing at all the pockets were getting smaller the balls were getting bigger and another time with him I was 17 each and I sort of twitched on the black I sort of threw my cure at this black and easy black and I lost that one they would they might were my two biggest chances and I think sometimes with sport you the balls don't forgive you you know and you know and he was such you know the Henry was never beaten he was always switching his own bubble you know fire alarms could be going off in the building and he'd still you know you had that mindset of strength but yeah I regret I listen I say I regret I don't I don't really regret because I'm still playing if you ask me probably when I'm 80 when I'm finished no when when I'm like sort of probably another five years of time I probably will really be angry with myself but I'm still competing now and I'm playing as actually as good as ever but unfortunately for me the standard is he's risen and everyone is so good at so many parts of the game and you've got all these Chinese players coming through now we've had Ding but he didn't really he's not really made it yet but there's loads of others coming right we always give the Chinese players credit they always do amazing but they don't seem to last the pace they don't win many events no they're good at potting they're good at everything else but do you think that comes down to the the grip within I don't I don't know I think they have a strange mindset see I could be playing a Chinese lad in a match and he'd miss a certain shot and the next day here go and play that shot 50 times and he thinks he's mastered it but it's not he's in the heat of the battle it's the different mindset isn't it it's like a golfer you know he's gonna he's gonna get most easy chips onto the green but when it's all that pressure on it you know so I think their mindset's not quite right yet but I think the new lot are coming through I sort of a bit more like Mark Selby they've sort of got the whole package what was your preparation for the two weeks at the Crucible Jimmy compared to your Steve Davises your John Parrots and stuff like that not good not good I must confess not good I'd win my first match and you'd have like after your first round you'd have four or five days off so we'd always have a party that sort of you know it was silly really because you know you you had the whole year to party but I don't know it's like it's my sort of I don't know where I come from you just sort of felt and people in Sheffield are so friendly as well you know and I don't know we used to win the first match go on the pest and sort of like rest for a couple of days and then go and play your next match and hopefully then stay deep in the tournament so basically you know if any sort of nowadays as you know yourself like footballers and all that you know I used to see footballers out on a Thursday night paralytic you know you wouldn't like dream of something like that now you know I met the great George Best and I tell you this story is like fantastic is unbelievable I'm completely wired paralytic out of my nut and I mean it was called the Grecian Grill in London many people would know it it was sort of like a restaurant that you could drink all night in and George Best is there with his friend and I'm as I said out of my nut and I've seen him and I've gotten George and I've gone over to him and I drove him mad do you remember when he took the ball off of Gordon Banks and headed it and scored yeah well I have fucking drove him fucking mad to where his miners have gone look Jimmy you'd have to leave him alone I don't know this at time my mates tell me this the next day I'm like oh no he's my fucking hero what have I done that for you know I'm behold about two years later I see him in another place and he's paralytic and he's drove me mad about the black that I missed against Stephen Hendry completely like pestered me you know drove me mad but I'm forgiven him because of what I've done to him and then I've seen him about 10 years later and we talked about the first two times we met and had a good love that's two legends in the round right that's brilliant why again that's why people love you guys like Jimmy way George who bests even though he's working the rebels he's kind of zero fox together I think some of the ass George best as well like how does it feel like your life slipping is that slipping he says I've just been my two of my worlds 50 grand on the bed but I think George best I've only met him three times for moments but I know he you know he never hurt anybody else only himself you know I've never caused any grief to anyone do you know I mean they all listen I've broke people's hearts by not winning as much as I should but you know in general I've only done the damage to myself really how was it getting through into the lane late as well because it was kind of rockstar mentality the snooker players were becoming mega stars yeah were fully TV and the money that was involved as well I think it was a hundred grand for a 147 I think you won at one point yeah how was that being through into the lane late I've just Louis Faroo just done a program called gods of snooker and I've just reconnected with an old manager of mine Harvey Lisburg who owned Kennedy Street Enterprise he used to have rock stars and he took me on when I was 20 and he had my teeth down and my hair permed and every and we literally like you know I got carried away with it you know I mean because you do think you're famous which is an absolute load of bollocks as you know because you're more famous than me you know here you are big time you are and for sure what happened to me was that because you're in people's front rooms like three or four times a year for like two weeks at a time people sort of think you know you and in them days there's only four channels you know so you know it becomes sort of you know you was famous you know girls would like talking to wouldn't give you a second look you know you was getting roped off in nightclubs you wasn't paying for drinks it was crazy and I did get you know carried away with it and took full advantage so would I have jammed so would I bet you do not as much now but fuck me like I don't think out of my days if I was flying high in the 80s I don't think is it no I'm very lucky the cocaine was popping like you say four channels 15 20 million people watching yeah stuff at that time and you tend to see a lot of the celebrities in the 80s early 90s have ended up fucking overdosing or whatever because it's so extreme like the pressure of that life must have been so intense like fuck me especially with your persona especially being with Alex Higgins like the pressure that you must have had the alcohol and the drugs kind of blocked that out Jimmy well for me I was never really a massive you know coke was not my thing at all you know what I mean I was a big drinker I come from you know a drinking family and you know I was like I could really even at like 20 I could drink all night you know and then all of a sudden I found cocaine and all of a sudden we'd be in one place cocaine would arrive I'd have to cocaine and we'd go to the next place as though we'd just gone out for the night we'd been out for like five or six hours and then all of a sudden we could start again you know that was a terrible thing for me finding cocaine and then all of a sudden cocaine becomes more than a drinking and then you know it you're up for days on it you know just sitting there talking bollocks yeah that's the same when I was I never took coke unless I was drinking so yeah obviously getting out I only took it because it gave me an extra couple of days Jimmy I don't want to sober up no so it means I could just drink more yeah we're still trying to keep sane even though it was driving me fucking insane no it's crazy like when you because you're very open about being on crack as well wasn't was that 84 Jimmy I tell you what I don't I was on it for about three months yeah three months I had 30 grand in a bank right you know like one of them right hidden accounts I had and I started smoking it and now and again I put it in a joint you know on top of a bit of weed which would like completely just send you all over the place and that's a waste of time and then I started smoking it and then it becomes sort of a secret thing and then before you know where you are you're doing it sort of you know two or three times a week you know and you do like 1500 quid two grand you know and you're just and the most fabulous people in the world who ideally love still to this day you know see that like a little bit of a crack would drop on the floor and you see her put their foot on it and they're moving it away saying and with it and they're going oh well I don't know where there is and you know he's fucking lying do you know what I mean that's how bad that drug was and I called it suck in the devil's dick and I've done it for three months and luckily for me I've done the 30 grand and I think I went on holiday just after and I was lucky enough I sort of got myself together and I never do that again yeah do you have issues of kick the coke as well at that time especially coming off that note they've maybe gave you more focus into your ability of being one of the greatest of all time yeah I would have done yeah I would have you know the cocaine sort of at that time as well that was absolutely everywhere you know the people have this coke now it's just garbage you know what I mean it's just so you know it's even a waste of time but in then days it was coming from the street as well I knew where to get the good stuff and all that and I knew how to meet the drug dealers and you know I sort of knew my way around it but for me it was a bit like yourself it gave me that extra day or two days to carry on drinking I'd never take cocaine without drink yeah it's a fucked up drug as well yeah was you're seeing through the eighties and that as well Jimmy like what was the height of your your most damage um did you ever look yourself in the mirror and go fuck me I need to change did you think you were okay no I was fucked I was fucked a few times I was like you know it thinking about it now sort of gives me a bit of anxiety but um I sort of I hid it well as well from people you know there's a lot of people who had no idea I was on it well I thought they had no idea I was on it but um no there was a few dark times where like you need wake up after a couple of days and you didn't want you know you sort of wanted to just go back to bed or just hide because you you was going there was so much grief that you had to face that you'd caused so no there was a lot of dark times so the nineties five bottle championships not off like 91, 92, 93, 94 is that correct yeah I think I looked my last one was um when I was 14, 8 up I think with Henry I'm not sure but with John Parrot um I went seven nil down with him he played phenomenal first session but I wasn't I didn't think I was going to lose that was a little bit overconfident and then all sudden I'm seven nil down end up losing 18, 12 or something um and then I think I lost four to Stephen and you know Stephen he was just so at home at world championships you know he sort of he always fancied winning you know yeah so how was your mindset then because to get to five finals with the caliber of people the caliber of players back then do you mean yeah how were you did you stop drinking did you stop taking gear sometimes sometimes I'd stop for a few months and get ready for the world championships but I never stopped long enough you know I never I never give myself um a full chance of you know being prepared for everything but no excuses you know he beat he beat me fair and square twice I should have beaten him and uh probably with Davis in 84 but no I didn't give myself um enough time because a snooker player now a snooker player is on full alert all the time you it's like a golfer you're always the more you're winning the more you're practicing because the more you're trying to improve that sort of confidence feeling and in in them days it was just like I'll just practice five weeks before the world championships I'll be fine and most of the time I was but to have been like to win like Stephen won and Steve Davis and that you had to place five six hours a day six days a week all year round what were you practicing what do you mean every day are you practicing a few hours here and there are we taking days off yeah I'll take weeks off you know see when you look back at it sorry about that see when you look back at it with that period of starting off in the 80s 82 one in your first title then getting through five finals if you concentrate more and worked like Henry's Davis how many events the how many championships do you think you've won well um I can't really say because I'm not finished yet do you know what I mean but we'll have to do this one again when I finish because um I'd have won a lot more and I'd have and I've and the ones that I'd won I'd have enjoyed it because a lot of times you win you're you're winning on instinct you're not winning in control okay that's great but it's more of a a roller coaster you know so you win and lose that way sometimes it's nice to be in full control and if the other guy beats you you just shake his hand but when you're sort of playing on instinct sometimes it's a roller coaster and you just sort of completely go flat after win or lose because you know you just finish the race your fans going through the years have been so loyal to you that I think when you're losing that your fourth final fifth final they were upset broken hearted more than yourself why do you think that is well you know as I said they went on the roller coaster ride with me and you know I got to know if you're going to these venues every year and all that I wasn't one of these people who go out the stage door and hide and all that you know my dad was always amongst the crowd you know having drinks with him and all that so I'd meet them and got to know a few people and you know there was a couple of times when we had to console like people you know a big giant of men who would just start upset our loss but you know that sport how was it with the one with Stephen Hendry and you've got that chance to clear up you must have read how much does that play in your mind all the time when the shot comes up all the time yeah every time you know that's part of the game see this game is no go is you know if you don't give absolutely everything to every shot you can you can miss anything and if you don't it might you might not be that shot it might not be the shot after the shot but eventually because you haven't given it 100% it would catch up you either lose a positional shot or you'd miss a pot so you know the winners and the top players is because they go through the torment of the game good and bad you know they have to give it a hundred percent but for any snicker player up and coming like to be in six finals would still they would bite your arm off to just even be competing at six finals obviously never won but it's still a phenomenal career like even though you've never had that final cherry on the cake but you've probably more loved and more respected I even know Stephen Henry's a legend in his own right but people would kind of sway towards yourself and Stephen Henry even though the ability he had the robotic kingdom nothing seemed to faze him that I know you not really because I was quite I was very proud of him Stephen Henry because he went to Alex Higgins his funeral and not a lot of people went to his funeral why why did he go why did they not go I don't know because I don't know maybe I don't know that you'd have to ask them that you know but like a top you know sportsman like that in our small environment of snooker I thought everyone should have been there but that's another story but he went and the reason he went is because when he was up and coming me and Higgins used to practice with him you know and when he was like 13 and 14 I would give his I always give people the greatest of advice and do the opposite you know and we knew that he was going to be good Stephen and you know I told him to do the right things and if you want to win you've got to practice and then before I know where it was he was right on my coat tails yeah phenomenal player great player yeah in 95 you are diagnosed with eh well cancer how was that going through that experience basically after losing your last final and then and then hot happening Jimmy yeah I'm not sure what year that was um it's quite a long time ago I um I went I come home from somewhere and I felt this lump and we've done this campaign for testicle cancer a few times you know men especially young lads of 18 and 19 they might fill a lump and they think well you know as far as I call that a go in a few weeks or whatever you know what I mean and it doesn't it either gets harder and um so anyone who feels any sort of abnormality in lumps down down by testicles you've got to go and get it checked out lucky for me I went to see my doctor as soon as I felt it and he said I don't like that it sent me to a specialist and then I had the operation and I had it taken out and it was the type of cancer I had that if I wouldn't have got it checked out and it had gone anywhere else I wouldn't be here today so I was very very lucky so if anyone feels any abnormality down there you must get it checked out how much does that make you reevaluate your life Jimmy well it happens so quick do you know what I mean and it's like being my age and um you know I've lost lots of powers through different things in life and all that and it you know you know yourself you've lived your life you've got to enjoy you know every day if you can yeah were you still drinking after that just thinking does that make you want to kind of live a fresh life in case anything else happens or do you just call it the bucket button as well and just go through yeah you can go two ways with that you know I thought you know there was both a bit of both sides but I have seven grandchildren now you know and uh they're my whole life you know like um it's to see my kids with their kids you know just fulfills me and every every you know every part of my being it's just like I'm just so fucking lucky yeah that gives me the will to keep you've got five of your own kids Jimmy pardon five of your five of your own kids yeah I've got five kids is it two of your oldest daughters two oldest daughters as well no I've got four daughters four daughters yeah I've watched an interview with two of your daughters and um they've I said just with a traveling that how hectic was that Jimmy to be away from your family and kids all the time and yeah that was it was hard it was hard but at the same time we're doing something we loved and they're all going they're getting the best of private schools and you know having a nice life from where I come from even though I come from a loving household but you know what you don't have you don't miss and you know with my kids I tried to do the best I can by yeah after the cancer as well your mom and brother died in the same years I correct Jimmy yeah my brother died of lung cancer and then my mum sort of died four or five months later more or less of a broken heart so she was ill yeah that was a terrible time for us that picture is real good yeah that was that was bad yeah snooker sort of everything sort of took you know you you went to me like that happens to you in as a family as well very close to my sister and my other two brothers you're sort of um you become completely punchy you know you're doing things that you have to do but you're sort of like anyone in life when they lose people close to them like that yeah it's difficult when I used to lose people like I had behind the drink the drugs yeah because I couldn't handle the pain I was too soft I didn't want to speak to anybody the people used to ask are you fine I used to say yeah yeah I wasn't I just sitting around fucking drinking and snorting gear yeah but because I couldn't handle heartache no I just felt consistent in my life like there was constant pain and misery I didn't know how to handle it so I had behind all the external stuff how long have you been clean three years three years in September well done yeah thank you brother good well done and my life's amazing but I still battled you I mean there's still more problems now like yeah it's fucked up like yeah people say you must be doing you must be feeling great I feel the fucking same yeah I still feel as if there's a war zone going up here but I just I just don't act on it by doing bad stuff I just accept that there's a war zone up here and try and keep because I've got two kids and two girls pregnant at the same time and I was never really for the first few years I wasn't always there I used to buy them stuff and pass them on to my mum and my my my sister and pretend that I was a great dad yeah also now the last like three four years I mean try to work on myself I feel like a proper father good for you it took me a long fucking time it's the greatest feeling in the world and listen it's all about it's all about working on yourself all the time you know I mean like do you go meetings in it yeah GA meetings yeah go I went to the G G gambling was the one no I fucked everything on yeah no how long we go are you really was you gambling gambling I've been gambling since I was age of four five six as young as I can remember we used to go to a place called lards yeah are we up in Scotland like it's like seaside resort yeah my auntie used to play like fruit machines yeah yeah and then you had like things used to put 10 pence in I was like horses yeah computer yeah yeah yeah started from then and then there was a thing called chippy at school used to throw the coins up at the wall yeah yeah yeah my dad took me to a place called Shawfield at seven or eight which was a dog track yeah so I've been gambling and I made it and then for fucking 30 odd years Jimmy like wow I fucked everything lying steering chair I can pulse of gambling I can pulse of gamblers I can pulse of liar ah the words yeah see gambling in a way is worse than drugs or drinks you can hate that yeah but you can also you can also like you can't you can't get out of sometimes when you're gambling see the wicked thing you've got now in this world 10 years say 15 20 years ago you had all the kids that they're going away to college playing poker online so all of a sudden they leave college after two or three years and their mum and dad's have got a credit card bill you know 20 30 grandmother they like bingo in general where the wives are getting the husbands getting the kids to school the husband goes off to work and then they're sitting in front of the computer all day playing bingo and all of a sudden like a years down the line they owe 30 40 my gambling I used to I used to go to the to I was to play snooker in the afternoon get money go to the dogs at night if I won at the dogs I go to the casinos and if I had a miracle and won at the casinos I go to a private card game right well fucking chance did I have and then all of a sudden I was trying to play snooker in the middle of all that you know as well as the drinking and again and the drugs but the gambling is it's the my I've seen people I've seen people borrow a fiver who've got 995 pound of them so that they can have a thousand pound bet instead of a 995 pound how sick is that Jimmy I've done so many bad things in the past to get money to get for the addiction I could spend two or three grand on the bookies yeah and then my car would break down with fuel yeah oh wow that's sick you would probably say two grand on a dog back in the day when they never used to phone up and register and say look somebody's putting a big bet on you could put fucking all sorts on back in the day and I wouldn't keep 20 pound buy 100 pound buy for food before you know that's why I'm still good at these interviews as well because I've got a gift with people yeah because I'd fuck so much yeah of course if I was coming to tap your money Jimmy I would make you feel so good before I'd left yeah I was going to say look gonna give me a couple hundred quid yeah you knew you weren't getting that money back yeah but because I'd bottled you up so much you would end up going I'll kill you I can't yeah and giving me the fucking money wow so I've kind of got that mentality because you because your addiction you wanted the money yeah I know how it costs yeah yeah anybody yeah your bit your you borrow your mum's when yeah did you do you not gamble at all no that I'm gambling was the first thing it went that was me four years off gambling then the drugs and drinking drugs was after that everything was kind of I kind of a stop to cocaine yeah and then I end up on a weed yeah so replace one thing with another with a gambling was there yeah I think no I don't think the weed is the worst drug in the world not the skunk I think the dirt weed you know every now and again down earth because it changes your mood but it leads to everything moderation Jimmy if I have one joint yeah I'm 20 joints deep right okay because then it starts coming in and I'm lazy anyway yeah so why a fast mode weed I'm just fucking laser yeah people can still be active on weed but I just I can't only thing I bat with now is my eating yeah sugar yeah that's the only thing I've not mastered them okay an emotional eater right because we get so many comments and fucking oh you don't turn the notes to them bugs yeah no but you just constantly on the road yeah yeah of course yeah just everything's just outside noise so I'm trying to cut away everything that good kinder deflates me yeah but I'm fucking human as well I make mistakes absolutely of course but you know you're how old are you 37 yeah you've listened you've got your whole life you know and you must never have another bet ever even if you know yeah that you can't lose because sometimes you know you can't lose right things can't get beat right but in your case you should know it's like Ronnie Wood he's been sober now 12 13 years but he's exactly the same as when he was drinking and fucking about because he was always active he was all painting or doing music style you know but so it doesn't it sort of he stopped but he has he's exactly the same character it's amazing obviously there was a dark side with him you know that you don't see you know like the thing but you're the gambling you know you've done well to to get out of the gambling because without owing everything I did at the start but then because you're trying gamble you're we out at of course and you're just fucking digging a deep hole in the chase you're pawning there we're pawning kid stuff and I know everybody in the porn shop they knew my name and I used to get extra money off just to have a bit yeah just so you can't sleep then if you've got money you've got to be gambling yeah because it was that buzz they call it a chemical imbalance where the dopamine levels are through the roof so once they've not got that bet on my life feels terrible yeah I feel depressed I feel tired so you must have won occasionally oh yeah yeah but that just went straight back on what quicker yeah bigger bets yeah man yeah it doesn't mean fuck all listen in lockdown as well people have done so much money online gambling you know it's he's pretty scary yeah depressions went through the roof alcohol abuse drug abuse gambling everything's went through the roof because people were animals at the end of the day Jimmy we are warriors we're hunters we should get out into nature we don't we're just stuck that's why I feel sorry for the kids now with this generation yeah they're just fucking sitting on iPads Jimmy yeah no you're going to restaurant and there's like they don't everyone's on their fucking me as well because I'm 10 hours a day in my phone Jimmy yeah well yeah but that's your business though isn't it I use that as an excuse should I really be using sitting 10 hours a day in my phone I think when you're with your kids if I'm with my grandkids then I sort of give my dirty look you know put your phone down you know yeah you know I mean you're with me I don't see you enough what was your height you're gambling as well Jimmy was that my um because you've been poker player you've been yeah I won the poker million yeah I seen that I can I can play poker but I can't really play poker yeah I mean I am I had my biggest bet I had 20 grand on a horse um called vodka teeny in sand and racism never even got out the fucking stores it stayed in the stores um no I was a big mad mug mug punter gambler but it's it's it's a bit of ego as well gambling you know you feel a bit tricky you know you feel like sort of uh you know what you're doing especially if you're winning and all that you know what I mean which is but gambling's for people um if they do it for a bit of fun like you know if they have like a 20 quid accumulator on the football once a week I don't think that's bad but when they get like me and you when they're sick and they do anything to get money I was the same I'd be going to one bank manager uh talking to him about my overdraft and even going okay and I'd be sort of giving it to another bank manager to keep him sweet and then like and all that all the time I was gambling did everybody see this Jimmy when you were going through your drink your drugs you're gambling women eyes and all the bullshit of the day the people see it I would have too scared to tell you or did you hide it well I I hid it well but you know I wouldn't listen to anyone you know I mean I was once you're sort of an adult you I was doing my own damages up to me you know you seen your good friend Alex Higgins as well when you seen him slipping with the alcohol did you ever look at him do you mean say this is the way my life's going as well no I didn't but the problem with Higgins is he was a gambler he was he was a jockey before he was a snooker player so he was always horses all day long and but he never looked after himself at all you know he died of malnutrition in the end and me and his sister done what we can for him and uh you know he was the type of person that if he had a say we went out for a Chinese meal and he had plenty he'd be talking about it for a couple of days because he didn't eat he was one like he had like a pigeon so he didn't look after himself but the gambling the gambling really got old of him because he beat front cancer but because he had no money obviously the depression set in and he didn't look after himself who was that when he passed in 2010 evil you know evil I was his real mate at snooker you know he was my hero um you know he could be you know he could be obnoxious and um but there was a nice side to him as well which I see a very sweet side where he'd be the kindest person in the world but he could also you know he could cause a a fight in a lift you know he was fucking nuts god rest him that's where they're drinking stuff as well and everything when Ronny O'Sullivan came on the ranks what were you thinking then when you're still trying to win a world title and you seem and then we'll come on this nigga table well I played him in in them days you had to go to Blackpool and you had to qualify for about two months and then they picked I think eight players out of about 200 who'd won the most matches to become professional and he'd won 56 matches out of 57 obviously I'd heard about this kid through this you know people saying about him and anyway when I see him um he beat me 5-1 in the tournament but I should have actually looking back now that should have been my eye opening like right I've got to stop everything if I want to compete because now the new generation is coming through the John Higgins is the Mark Williams Ronny O'Sullivan and uh I said that day you know it was like a breath of fresh air that's just what snooker needed because you know he um Ronny O'Sullivan uh John Higgins yesterday first first match yesterday at a new season first shot he had a 147 oh yeah yeah it's like phenomenal you know they had a class of 92 and they're still going strong yeah why do you think that as your Higgins your Williams and I can still turn that on at a big tournament I think they're just great players and they had the likes of Steve Davis me Steven Hendry all these great players to you know to sort of pick bits from all of them and uh you know that's why they're so they're they're craft of their sport they're so good at every part of the game now yeah because they've got a shot and they've got a shot and they're looking they've got so many different shots in their locker yeah and they're safety play Higgins safety players are the best ever yeah it's brilliant but it's and I was talking to him yesterday and he'd lost uh he lost two and a half stone you know he's like phenomenal I think that goes a long way as well when you're thinking and feeling better get into a game any sport anything if you're fit um you know you've got clear foot there's one to talk about very weird and what a great player he was a policeman before he was a snooker player you know so you have to think on your feet you know so in situations you know and he was fairly fit as well you know you clear mind which are greatest game you've ever been involved in Jimmy my greatest game I ever been involved in which I won was I beat parrot in the UK championship it was like one each two each right up to 14 each and then I won 17 14 so that was my greatest victory today is there any players you've ever played with it never quite made it and you thought they were going to be a player yeah well there was this David Gray I spoke about him unfortunately for him he didn't carry on he won one ranking tournament he beat Mark Selby in the final um there was another kid called Steve James who had all the talent in the world and sort of didn't progress you know yeah so I don't know if you see him you know you see him and you think for fuck's sake you know why didn't you become dedicated but sometimes you know Tony Mio who was my partner he was very successful but he hated being away from home see some people are different aren't they yeah snickers changed over the last 10 20 years it's kind of evolved as well with sky sports kind of things and you've got tournaments whatever every week Jimmy yeah how many tournaments are you playing a year just now 28 a year now and when I was at my peak there was six so you know you'd have there's no time really to switch off but it's also it's great because you know for these new snooker players coming through there's loads of money to win there's loads of countries to travel and you know enjoy your life and pick up other cultures and all that so for a young snooker player now it's a great time very own son a great job yeah he's done amazing done amazing for darts and that yeah fucking madness see me you got what was your 147 in the world championship what when you won the hundred grand who was that against I was against Tony Drago you got a thousand pound a point so I won 147 thousand and I won 14 thousand for the highest break so I got 161 thousand plus I got to the final and I got 90 thousand for getting to the final and Stephen Henry beat me and he got all together he got 200 thousand and I got 260 thousand and like you I set fire to it how's you doing me I'm just glad that I wasn't by me I'll tell you what though didn't I tell you I'll tell you a good bit of therapy for you right you might find this a bit strange your GA people might think it's not it ain't a bad thing to go and sit in a batting shop now and again it's not bad you know I mean I know you get all the you know I could say no I couldn't be around cocaine when you think you know I mean all these people are drinking and they keep telling you the same fucking joke but with batting shops with gambling you never hear someone tell you when they won they never go well I bet it's all about uh fucking that you know what I mean yeah it's a the mindset is very strange it's crazy I stood addiction like it's the hidden addiction I call yeah it's just so many people have got so many problems we just I was just too proud to get help I don't want anybody I shouldn't be laughing really because there's a lot of people it's a very sad situation you know I set fire to but make no mistake I gambled at least three million quid so if I gambled three million quid you know I'd probably have to earn six or seven to get that do you know what I mean so that's a lump you know what I mean that's fucking retirement money you know what I mean so I should be more sick with that but because it was at the time it was going so quick you don't fucking think do you do you think you'd have been as popular though if you never done all that shit no probably not no probably not no I like to think my popularity was from a sort of my going from a shots as well you know and not really sort of screaming too much when I lost what was your worst day of being when you realized that you needed to change it needed help well I went bankrupt through gambling you know I sort of like my game was completely gone but deep down in my in my heart I knew that I could get my game back together that wasn't the problem the problem was that when you have to sort of okay take a grip and like take sort of stack of what's going on and I don't know when that was but it took me a couple of years but I've been I've had sort of a good time now for the last 15 years or so I've had like a good life you know I've enjoyed myself that's the thing with Jimmy when you start changing you kind of grow a conscience as well and that's the bad part about becoming clean and try to become as open and as honest you think about all the misery of course you think about all the regret that you could have achieved I played professional football when I was younger and I had everything at my feet yeah and I fucked it man it's just I was too scared to take the risk I never believed in myself either I never had the belief the self-belief that I have now yeah that I'm going out I know I'm going to achieve something massive so if you'd have had some good advice it could have all been different as well yeah but you're doing all right yeah I'm doing listening life's amazing now do you know what I mean my football career would have been over now so yeah now you're flying yeah I'm just fucking flying and I'm fucking 59 and I can't wait to practice that's cool but you're looking great man you're looking great I've seen you in films games in 80s and you look at you look at if you're at fucking death's door Jimmy yeah yeah yeah I know my eyes were like piss I was in the sky and that's what we make up on was it what was your best era what was your best year and snooker you had I think I've got I think I've got times coming now you know I'm in such a good place now mentally you see my problem is I'm playing as good as ever right it's not like boxing or football you can carry on as long as your eyes are okay and you've got the passion to practice but I can be playing in a match and I'll I'll be in the balls and everything's going perfect nothing did I water the plants and then my other side of my brain is going well what fucking difference does that make now where you are you know focus on what you're doing so I think I've got it I've got it to come you know I truly believe that I've got winning tournaments to come I second it feeling that after no it's huge but you've always been up when I you've always won 200 yeah but I mean not as not as like you know when you've been in six finals and all that it's a nearly man and all that that doesn't eat away at me because I just want to compete you know like that youngster I played yesterday I know he knows who I am because I've played him in exhibition in Ireland but he was strutting around yesterday didn't for a minute think he was going to get beat do you know what I mean and so that's nice to sort of win them type of matches how do you get any award championships now how many qualifiers would you need to play I have to play four to get there and that's against against all the top top 100 players yeah top 128 right down to 16 and you're at 100 just now no about 82 that's all right Jeremy yeah not bad not not bad what's the highest ranking player that's ever won a tournament oh um oh world championships I think there was someone who's outside the top 32ers one yeah so yeah so one event you need one one semi final it'd move your eight down again oh yeah absolutely no I've got good times ahead you'll have to come and interview me when we've won yeah that's listen you've already got a film to your name but imagine one in a world title that that would be unbelievable anything's possible listen anything is possible listen I I wouldn't sit here and say to you that I had any chance or to anyone else if I didn't think I didn't have a chance I'd go and play fucking bad golf in Spain you know so I do truly believe I can win when you started getting in what the tv side of things as well you went on celebrity jungle which you finished third how was that experience jimmy oh I went in there purely for the money was that after your bankrupt no yeah well I work bankrupt I've I might have been I don't know but I had no money that was a they come to me and said do you want to go in I said no for about three years and then I said to my manager at a time I said ring them up see if they're interested and luckily enough they was and I went in it and Katie Price was in it at the time and so Ant and Decker come in to the you know you sit on them like benches in the morning and Ant and Decker come in and all the celebrities in there they're all going oh I hope it's not me I hope it's not me I'm like it's not going to be us is it when she is in here do you know what I mean because they're all like she just finished with Peter Andre so they sort of had a love hate relationship with her anyway fair play to her she done 11 trials 11 times she got picked and she done 11 trials and she got maximum food every time she don't mean so she was the we just called her the ranger girl and it was good camaraderie in there because you got no phones and you there was a lot of sitting around and my job was Gino said to me just keep everyone away from the kitchen and I'll make his food with what we've got so I would go to everyone else look he's a fucking professional chef let him cook and so I kept everyone Joe Bogner was in there he got a bit he got a bit angry a few times in there but it was an experience yeah you should go in yeah a couple of years man I'm stories in the bar he's in my profile man yeah but would you go in there yeah do they know you for the money but I mean would you know you'd go in there did they know yeah they don't know now they know now but maybe two or three years I'm still growing the brand growing my name so like I've got a boxing event that's why I've got a black eye I've been sparring yeah I've got a boxing event in the second October in the AO arena 21,000 people when's that the second October I'll come in I'll get your ticket 21,000 people six different fights that because you're doing well you get these opportunities so their pain is a good few quid plus I'm I'm all about promoting my brand as well and promoting my name it's just the opportunities of meeting new other people I'm in there it's I've got a newfound respect for boxing every man thinks they can fight Jimmy yeah I know they seem you go under those walls I know he might not everyone can fry a few punches you get thrown a few back by someone knows what they're doing yeah yeah because I used to do a bit of pad work and I used to think fuck me I can punch yeah pads don't hit back Jimmy see when I'm sparring with a big guy Craig Beatty used to play with Celtic a guy um Chris Bungard he fights for Bellator yeah they just fucking pungle me Jimmy battered me and it keeps you fit yeah it keeps me fit keeps on my toes but every time again there's always an element of fear yeah it's the fear of getting embarrassed the fear of getting knocked out with so many but again the feeling that I've got after it Jimmy like no drink no drug no bet I could have would give me that feeling of succeeding and you and you live in it properly you're making real memories when you're drunk or stoned you're making memories but they're not real no definitely not like that but you're even thinking about one in Tatlstern is a beautiful thing oh man I just I've jumped out a bit yeah I mean where before I'd like fucking no not yet yeah Hayden your first brick was out in 98 as well Jimmy yeah is that behind behind the whiteboard then I done another one second when I got one more book that we're gonna do um we're gonna do when we finished playing you know just um just like the whole package sort of thing you know they want me to do it now but I'm too busy practicing how do you feel when you released your first book um a little bit embarrassed because my mum was still alive you know and you know there were things in that book that she obviously didn't know I used to get up to and all that you know so I pre-wound her but I still got I think I still got a clip even though I was like 30 odd you know but fuck me jam with the memories you must have gave your mum and dad I know I had some wonderful times I'm believe it but it must be so proud from the kid from where you grew up to then be one of the greatest knicker players of all I'm a kid from Tooting you know and I had the Rolling Stones play at my 50th birthday party you know and I'm standing like that thinking what the fuck's going on here how did the relationship between you and Ronnie come about well our kids went to the our kids went to the same school together in Wimbledon Leah and Lauren and I didn't think for a minute he know who the fuck I was why I don't know a bit like you but you don't think you got that oh fuck me man I grew up with you yeah but you got my dad for love too but thanks but you you don't think you're anything for some reason I don't know if it's where I come from or what I don't know you didn't have that you didn't have that belief you know and there was nerves and shyness and everything anyway she was about six my daughter she's 41 now so 35 years we've been pals and how kids were in the same play together and I heard that he'd been to the school now and again and we'd never part we've never seen each other and then we met and we both fucking about with the video recorders we couldn't work the video recorders so we just said sort of more or less we shook hands never anything we both sort of simultaneously said fancy a drink tomorrow and it was Christmas Eve I'll never forget it and we met in the pub at 11 o'clock in the morning the Rosencrown in Wimbledon which should be our local because he used to live in Wimbledon I lived in Wimbledon so we met at 11 o'clock I'm there at Bang on 11 and he comes in Bang on 11 in his Mercedes like he had a big 6.3 Mercedes a big long green thing he still got it in Ireland first ever central locking car I don't know why I said that but it's true and we drunk in we drunk in pub till about three o'clock and I think he's then pub shut at three o'clock and we sort of didn't and I took him I said well we got to South London he drove you know and we went I took him to order the housing states and pubs that I knew I took him around South London and we ended up ended up he got home about two o'clock in the morning and you know I got and he drove all fucking day I'll never forget it but he's the nicest sweetest coolest man you'd ever meet in your life you know you should do a podcast with him because he's fucking great yeah you look for your part in Jimmy but you look fucking good man well clean now you know how long um um the um being clean you have to tell the truth so I'd say in the last three years I've had six times I've had a drink you know and the last one was a couple of weeks ago I'd done an exhibition in um where was I was in Lincoln and the first exhibition I'd done for two years and the nerves got me and when they introduced me like I'm only in a snooker all I'm no I'm playing all right see that's another thing as well when your your game's gone and you've got to go and play 10 young players and they introduced me anyway the nerves got to me and I had a drink that night and I was so depressed for about two days that hopefully now that would be another sort of for the time before that was Christmas day yeah it gives you a free I stopped before I stopped for two years before yeah and then I started again yeah and I lost track for about a year yeah back on the drink the drugs and then I realized how good my life yeah I realized how good my life was but the two years I was off I was achieving things there yeah yeah and I fucked it again yeah I think you have to fall off down again yeah just to remind yourself that that's not what I want to be no exactly and because of the it was all about me being nervous then all of a sudden I'd had three four drinks then all of a sudden I'm gonna now have 30 drinks because you get to you get the taste you know I mean for shocking so I've got a few community friends as well and some of them drink before they go on but some of them don't because they don't want to have to get used to it to get the confidence to perform yeah what you must have rubbed shoulders with some celebrities back in the 80s and 90s what's your way with this party Jimmy well no the biggest celebrity I've ever known and the biggest sort of person in such a big he's Ronnie Wood because he's my mate and he's such a big statue of a person and you know he's just you'd have to meet him to explain how fucking great he really is but my biggest at my um my biggest celebrity sort of time I should say is I went to Ireland and I played Alex Higgins and I was in the Gresham hotel and this geezer was the promoter he said there's a suite there you can stay there as long as you like he said I'll send you up 12 bottles of champagne every day all right and we thought well that's weird so me and Higgins got a suite he goes off to Ireland to Northern Ireland I stay in Dublin and I had Finn Lizzie and UB40 they were in a studio around the corner and they were in my suite every night drinking these 12 bottles of champagne and that went on for 16 days I stayed there for and all the boys at UB40 they've been on this class man had a fuck who's the main singer again Allie Campbell and they split up now yeah it was Allie and the man was a dreadlocks yeah I had both the one because they're distancing themselves from the other band but yeah two great guys man oh no listen huge yeah fucking mega mega and it's a shame now because I think Duncan their other brother has took Allie's place and now he's not doing it and they're sort of they're there's two years before yeah they've all failed it's all getting me it's sad when that happens it's been fucked by managers over years you know it's wedges between them and all that did you have good management or bad management Jimmy well I had I had Barry Herman manage me twice but he used to say you're fucking just fucking nuts why don't you go to fucking bed but I'm powers of him you know he's done amazing I watched his career grow as I just got in touch with Harvey Lisbon which is really nice to talk to him I've been I actually spoke to him last night because he's 81 and he's still a a contra promoter in America and it's just great to talk to him you know he used to say to me you know Jimmy this is you know this is madness what you're doing and I'd be like that don't worry it's fine it's fine you know so but listen no regrets he's in a very humble guy Jimmy like even when you like people speak about you and that you it's like you're getting baddest as well it's he's a bit you know because like you know that I've been very lucky I've been given a good hand you know and you know I could have played it better but I'm still I'm still buzzing you know I'm still enjoying how do other players treat you from younger generation what do you mean and they're touring that they still get mass respect for you as everybody got on okay yeah no I've grown up with all these you know John Eagans is Ronnie O'Sullivan's and Mark Williams you know there's all there's a lot of respect for them you know and if you're still and now and again if you stick it up up you know on the snooker table they give you more respect yeah how's the best talent you've ever come up against what best player O'Sullivan is the best I've ever seen yeah he's a fucking legend he's incredible he can create situations from nowhere you know and he has a few demons you know he's he's he's been sober for a long time he does his running and you know keeps him keeps him keeps him sane I think you're running you know because when your perfectionist like he is he's fucking greater football he's great at golf he's he's frightening he puts his hand he's just a natural ball striker yeah he's a funny bastard he slaughters the other players as well no I don't agree with that when he turns around and calls them numpties and all that shouldn't be doing that because you know they're they're fucking trying to fight him yeah he just what is that mentality then like see it be the greatest you know I've watched like Michael Jordan yeah Tiger Woods and Ronnie O'Sullivan's like they've kind of all psychotic but in a good way as well but then it's also driving them insane by trying to master their craft consistently well Michael Jordan you know he went from being a basketball player trying to play baseball you know and got really good at that you know O'Sullivan like he's now like a top runner he can run he can run 10 miles in 50 minutes or something you know like that's like great speed but when he says these comments I don't think you know because he'd help anyone out you know I mean he's like one of the biggest hearts you've ever met in your life but sometimes when you when players are that good or that good at their sport they don't realise that you know some of these players would give anything just to have like 10 percent of their talent you know yeah it might probably get misread how was it when in their seniors world title yeah it was great yeah I wanted I've won it three times this year this year I lost in the final five three but it's great you know trying to get competitions going and up we went like people I played in China like 30 years ago played in the seniors they're still there you know and they come along so the seniors tour is getting good but I'm still concentrating on the main tour why is already a lot of the top 10 players pretend 20 years ago still in the top 10 of snooker why they're so hard to to beat the likes of Higgins while we own Sullivan yeah um Selby yeah also came on this scene a few years back but they're still there they can still want even the boy Robertson from Australia absolutely the kind I got away for three four years but then they come back strong yeah I think what that is is that they're that good and they they're schooling of coming through of like being an amateur at that time playing each other Steven McGuire all these top players playing each other so many times and then they're all time professional at the same time and I just think they just were better than anyone else for 10 years and now they're so comfortable in their life and in their game that they play well most times they play yeah what's there Jimmy wait what's the plans for the future brother my plans are is when I say goodbye to you I am going to pack my suitcase and go back up to Leicester to try and win the British open that's class man how do you feel looking back in your career Jimmy I haven't you got to ask me that when I finished because you know I haven't I'm far from done I love that man I'm far from done man I'm far from done for anybody watching Jimmy that's um you've had a few addictions so we'll touch on one at a time for anybody that's maybe battling with gambling addiction what advice would you have for the problem you've got with gambling addiction is that it you're lying to yourself right you feel that this buzz of having a bet is all bollocks right because you can have 500 pound bet that's causing you grief or you can have a five a pound it's not causing you agree just don't have a bet just stop betting and see how much money you save within one year what about for anybody that's maybe battling with cocaine addiction cocaine addiction is difficult you've got to go to NA you've got to go to meetings you've got to be with fellow Alex who have stopped you know you've got to sit down and talk about it how it's fucked your life up and make no mistake it fucked me up big time and I battle it all the time you just got to go to meetings again life's biggest regret Jimmy life's biggest regret um life's biggest regret well this the world can be so sad at times you know I haven't I'm still like doing the best I can yeah what's your most proudest moment um my kids being born watching my kids with their kids yeah what a career Jimmy that honestly it's an absolute on it based on across from you're a snooker legend you're a legend outside a snooker as well the things you've achieved because for being on celebrity jungle finishing third like everybody knows you everybody's proud of you everybody that I've met that knows you speak very highly thank you it's great that you're still 59 and you're still thinking about one in tournaments and that goes to show no matter what age you are the belief in the confidence anything's possible I hope you're sitting here then for the next five years my world title who says anything can be done absolutely and um for bringing me to the snooker club and let me interview you there thoroughly enjoyed that and massive respect to Jimmy listen any time nice to meet you God bless you brother and I'll come and watch you in your box yeah definitely thank you check out more of my podcasts on the right and be sure to like share and comment your thoughts on this week's podcast thank you