The BBC have confirmed their line-up for this month’s prestigious UK Snooker Championship. The Triple Crown event, that gets underway on November 23, will again be covered live by the Beeb with Ronnie O’Sullivan going in as the defending champion.
And there will be no shortage of snooker royalty in the studio at York Barbican, with five iconic former players set to offer their views.
Coverage will be presented by Hazel Irvine and Seema Jaswal, with analysis to be provided by Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry, John Parrott, John Virgo and Ken Doherty.
The quintet can certainly boast experience of what it takes to go all the way in the event, having won the title 13 times between them. Out of the five, only Parrott did not capture the title in his career, but still reached three finals.
In a released statement, director of BBC Sport Alex Kay-Jelski said: “We’re bringing audiences together with our unparalleled coverage across BBC TV, radio and online of the iconic UK Snooker Championship. Our line-up of legends are at the heart of the action in York, so fans old and new won’t miss any of the action this winter.”
Davis, a six-time world champion, added: “The UK Snooker Championship is always an event to look forward to. Showcasing the very best talent and emerging new stars, I look forward to setting up camp in York to analyse all the day’s play for our viewers.”
As well as BBC television, coverage will be available on a host of the network’s other platforms. BBC iPlayer, Radio 5 Live, Radio 5 Sports Extra, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app will all provide live footage, online updates, or commentary.
In 2023, it was ‘the Rocket’ who prevailed for the eighth time in his career, beating Ding Junhui in a thrilling final. It extended his record number of Triple Crown titles, although it is Judd Trump who will go in as the world No.1 this time around.
The 16 seeds for the event have already been confirmed, with O’Sullivan listed as No.1. Qualifying for the other 16 spots will take place from November 16-21 in Leicester.
But fans will have to go elsewhere is they want to watch players vying it out for qualification. Discovery+ will show the preliminary rounds, while the World Snooker Tour will stream the matches online.
The Tour’s Facebook and YouTube channels will show the coverage. The fourth and final round of qualifying, which will take place on November 20 and 21, has been billed as ‘Judgement Day’ by organisers.
