WE BRITS love Wimbledon.
And we also love to queue.
The Wimbledon queue is an iconic part of the summer
Thousands of fans camp in Wimbledon Park to get the best tickets
The entrance gates to Wimbledon Park are notoriously noisy
So put the two together and you have one of the great traditions of summer as thousands of tennis fans descend on Wimbledon Park and wait to get access into the All England Club, many of them camping overnight for Centre Court tickets.
But for the local residents – though most embrace the extra visitors and are largely positive overall – there are two major issues they have to put up with every year: the noise and the litter.
Retired Jeanette Rice lives right by the entrance to the park and admitted the sound regularly wakes her and her postman husband up through the night – especially the creaky gates.
She told SunSport: “The noise can be really annoying at night time.
“It’s alright during the day but at night… we tend to go away for one of the weeks to avoid it.
“Also, we have to WD40 the gates because the creak is terrible. The corner shop has already done it for us this year.
“Food is not allowed to be delivered – they knocked on my door and I said if they do it again, I’ll take it.
“The dropping people off in the night, the cars at 2am, 4am. They are excited because they’re going to Wimbledon but they forget this is a residential street.
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST ONLINE CASINOS FOR 2023
“About 20 years ago, before there was security, people would pop out to try and find wood to make campfires.
“Other than that, there is a buzz.”
Neighbour John Hines also appreciates the extra hubbub is inevitable and part and parcel of living in the area.
But what frustrates him most is the mess left behind by those walking past his house to join the queue.
The tennis fan, 62, added: “There obviously is going to be noise, it depends on your perspective – it doesn’t bother me. People with kids, that’s slightly different.
“There is a constant stream of people, it’s not particularly detrimental and clearly having the tournament here is a boost.
“It brings its challenges and there are some gripes. One of the worst things is the footfall brings a sea of rubbish because they just drop their c**p. Aside from that, it’s a nice thing to have.”
Eamon McCluskey, 60, owns the corner shop a stone’s throw from Wimbledon Park’s creaky gates, with the family having the business in the community for 48 years.
Like the others, he referenced the noise – but insisted Wimbledon had promised it would be “perfect” this year.
It is, unsurprisingly, the busiest fortnight of the year for the store as they open up early at 6am each morning to cater for the incoming crowds flocking to join the queue.
McCluskey, who has put plants out the front ahead of the tournament, said: “I like it. Stock doubles, we sell lots of Pimms and cans, put sandwiches out.
“The Covid years stopped the queue so it was quiet.
“Because they are camping in the park, over the years we’ve got to know the regulars who come back.
“We lose some of our regular customers as they go on holiday but then journalists and some lower-ranked players will rent houses out here.”
Eamon McCluskey’s family have run the corner shop for 48 years
The store is just a few yards from the entrance to the queue
The queue does bring some drawbacks for the local residents
