Angela Mortimer
Encyclopedia
Florence Angela Margaret Mortimer Barrett (born 21 April 1932) is a former World No. 1 British female tennis player. She was born in Plymouth
, Devon
, England. She is married to the veteran BBC
commentator John Barrett
.
Mortimer won three Grand Slam
singles titles, at the 1955 French Championships, the 1958 Australian Championships
, and Wimbledon
in 1961, when she was 29 years old and partially deaf.
Mortimer teamed with Anne Shilcock
to win the women's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1955. That was Mortimer's only career Grand Slam women's doubles title. She teamed with Coghlan to reach the women's doubles final at the 1958 Australian Championships.
Mortimer and Peter Newman reached the mixed doubles final at the 1958 Australian Championships. That was her only career Grand Slam mixed doubles final.
According to Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail
, Mortimer was ranked in the world top ten from 1953 through 1956 and from 1958 through 1962, reaching a career high of World No. 1 in those rankings in 1961.
Mortimer was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame
in 1993.
A = did not participate in the tournament
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England. She is married to the veteran BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
commentator John Barrett
John Barrett (tennis)
John Barrett is an English former tennis player, commentator, and author.-Life and career:Barrett born in North London and educated at University College School in Hampstead. As a tennis competitor, he played in 21 consecutive Wimbledon Championships between 1950 and 1970, and at his best was...
.
Mortimer won three Grand Slam
Grand Slam (tennis)
The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...
singles titles, at the 1955 French Championships, the 1958 Australian Championships
Australian Open
The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court...
, and Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
in 1961, when she was 29 years old and partially deaf.
Mortimer teamed with Anne Shilcock
Anne Shilcock
Anne Shilcock was a British tennis player of the 1950s.She won Wimbledon in 1955 in women's doubles with Angela Mortimer, becoming the first all-British team to win since 1937.-Doubles titles:-Singles:...
to win the women's doubles title at Wimbledon in 1955. That was Mortimer's only career Grand Slam women's doubles title. She teamed with Coghlan to reach the women's doubles final at the 1958 Australian Championships.
Mortimer and Peter Newman reached the mixed doubles final at the 1958 Australian Championships. That was her only career Grand Slam mixed doubles final.
According to Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
, Mortimer was ranked in the world top ten from 1953 through 1956 and from 1958 through 1962, reaching a career high of World No. 1 in those rankings in 1961.
Mortimer was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame
International Tennis Hall of Fame
The International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The hall of fame and honors players and contributors to the sport of tennis and includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility, and a court tennis facility.-History:The hall of fame and...
in 1993.
Wins (3)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1955 | French Championships |  Dorothy Head KnodeDorothy Head Knode Dorothy Head Knode is a former tennis player from the United States who reached the women's singles final of the French Championships in 1955 and 1957... |
2–6, 7–5, 10–8 |
| 1958 | Australian Championships Australian Open The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court... |
 Lorraine CoghlanLorraine Coghlan Lorraine Coghlan Robinson is a female former tennis player from the state of Victoria in Australia. In 1956 she won the Australian Championships Girls Singles title. Coghlan teamed with Bob Howe to win the mixed doubles title at Wimbledon in 1958... |
6–3, 6–4 |
| 1961 | Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
Christine Truman Janes | 4–6, 6–4, 7–5 |
Runner-ups (2)
| Year | Championship | Opponent in Final | Score in Final |
| 1956 | French Championships | Althea Gibson Althea Gibson Althea Gibson was a World No. 1 American sportswoman who became the first African-American woman to be a competitor on the world tennis tour and the first to win a Grand Slam title in 1956. She is sometimes referred to as "the Jackie Robinson of tennis" for breaking the color barrier... |
6–0, 12–10 |
| 1958 | Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
Althea Gibson |
8–6, 6–2 |
Grand Slam singles tournament timeline
| Tournament | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | Career SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | W | A | A | A | A | 1 / 1 |
| France French Open (tennis) The French Open |Roland Garros]]) is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world and the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments – the other three are... |
A | A | 3R | A | W | F | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1 / 3 |
| Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors... |
2R | 3R | QF | QF | 2R | SF | 3R | F | QF | QF | W | 4R | 1 / 12 |
| United States U.S. Open (tennis) The US Open, formally the United States Open Tennis Championships, is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, which for men's singles was first contested in 1881... |
A | QF | 3R | A | 1R | A | A | A | 1R | A | SF | A | 0 / 5 |
| SR | 0 / 1 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 3 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 3 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 1 / 2 | 0 / 1 | 3 / 21 |
A = did not participate in the tournament
SR = the ratio of the number of Grand Slam singles tournaments won to the number of those tournaments played
See also
- Performance timelines for all female tennis players who reached at least one Grand Slam finalTennis performance timeline comparison (women)This article presents in a tabular form the career tennis Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships and Olympic singles results of every woman who has reached the singles final of at least one Grand Slam, World Hard Court Championships or Olympic tournament during her career...
- Angela Mortimer, My Waiting Game (Frederick Muller Ltd, London, 1962) [autobiography]
- Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Roll of Honour