4am start, the scramble to be in the lucky 500, £4 coffees, the offer of a 7am tipple...and of course the rain: What it is REALLY like waiting in the revamped Wimbledon queue

4am start, the scramble to be in the lucky 500, £4 coffees, the offer of a 7am tipple...

and of course the rain: What it is REALLY like waiting in the revamped Wimbledon queue By John James Published: 06:11 EDT, 3 July 2024 | Updated: 06:22 EDT, 3 July 2024 e-mail View comments Ah Wimbledon! Strawberries and Cream! Pimms! Posh people in hats! Pre-mixed tinnies and vodka and Iron-Bru! Merry old England! Every day during the championships, thousands of ticketless tennis fans squat overnight in a park in the hope of gaining access to the hallowed grounds and today, I was going to join them. The Wimbledon queue, or simply 'the Q', is known the world over and is arguably the finest example of the legendary British pastime we regularly have. The rules, like any queue are simple.

You arrive whenever you like, are given a queue card and take your place in the line where you can wait for as long as 12 hours. The time-honoured tradition regularly sees hardcore fans camp out overnight in a bid to capture prized centre court tickets, either in a full tent or simply a blanket. Other, less bothered spectators, often arrive in the early hours of the morning armed with only a camp chair and litres of alcohol , safe in the knowledge that they will get nowhere near Carlos Alcaraz but will be too spannered to care.

This is what happened during our ride on the Wimbledon Q. Strawberries and cream and booze before 7am - it must be Wimbledon! The Wimbledon queue, or simply 'the Q', is known and res.