The scoreboards at Wimbledon have undergone a change. They are no longer listing the names of the players with “Miss” or “Mrs.” (or even Ms.). In the past, female players have been listed with “Mrs.” or “Miss” before their names on the scoreboards, but men have never had a title before their names. A spokesman for the prestigious tennis tournament said, “We decided to bring it in line with the men”, according to a recent article in the Daily Mail.

In addition to dropping the titles, players no longer have to bow to the royal box when entering and leaving Centre Court. This change was brought about by the Duke of Kent, who is the patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club. When asked about this change, the Duke stated that “it no longer fitted in with the modern game”.

Not all royal protocol has been abandoned though. Female players are still expected to curtsy to the Queen and the Prince of Wales, if they are present at Wimbledon. The Queen has not attended the tournament since 1977, and the Prince of Wales last attended in 1970; however, there is a lot of speculation (and hoping) that the Queen will attend if Andy Murray advances to the finals.

For more information about Wimbledon, please visit this website.

To read about, and to discuss the Duke of Kent, please visit this thread.

sgl British Royals Bowing & Curtseying, Duke of Kent, Elizabeth II, Protocol, Wimbledon

From the TRF avatar collection

With the 2009 Wimbledon Championship starting on Monday, all eyes are firmly focussed on Andy Murray but Royal watchers will be surveying the scene for the odd Prince and Princess (and let’s face it there’s quite a few odd ones about these days). Years ago, there was no question of a Royal-less Wimbledon as the long-time President of Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club did her duty by attending and handing out the prizes. Of course, the lady in question is the late Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent. In elegant creations by Sir Hardy Amies (amongst others) Princess Marina became as much a symbol of Wimbledon as the players themselves, and pretty soon Her Royal Highness was taken to the hearts of the crowds as Wimbledon’s most dedicated Royal supporter.

How strange then that such an English sport should have a Greek-born Princess as its patron, but then from the moment she arrived in the UK, Princess Marina was adopted as one of our own. In 1934, the year of her marriage to Prince George (son of George V and Queen Mary), record numbers of baby girls were named ‘Marina’ as a tribute to the beautiful new Princess. As a Princess by birth, Marina was used to good living and due deference. She famously branded the Queen Mother and Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, “Common little Scotch girls” and told a biographer that only she could boast “not one drop of common blood,” and she was right. Her mother was Grand Duchess Helen Vladimirovna of Russia and her bloodline connected to every Royal House in Europe. Yet despite this, Marina very nearly ended up in the poor house. Read more…

BeatrixFan British Royals, Greek Royals, Historical Royals Princess Marina, Wimbledon