Dennis Taylor

Dennis Taylor was born on January 19, 1949, in Coalisland, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He began his professional snooker career in 1972, making his World Snooker Championship debut in 1973. Early in his career, Taylor reached the semi-finals of the World Championship in 1975 and 1977. In 1979, he advanced to the World Snooker Championship final, where he finished as runner-up to Terry Griffiths. This achievement led to his highest world ranking of second for the 1979–1980 season. He secured his first ranking event title at the 1984 Grand Prix, defeating Cliff Thorburn in the final.

Taylor’s most notable career achievement came at the 1985 World Snooker Championship. Seeded 11th, he progressed to the final to face the defending champion and world number one, Steve Davis. Despite trailing 0–7 in the early stages of the match, Taylor staged a comeback and ultimately won the championship 18–17 on the final black ball. This highly anticipated match garnered a record 18.5 million viewers in the United Kingdom, becoming the most-watched broadcast after midnight and a record for BBC2 at the time. Following this victory, Taylor received the key to Coalisland and was honored with a parade attended by 10,000 people.

In his later career, Taylor continued to achieve success, winning the invitational 1987 Masters, where he defeated Alex Higgins 9–8. He also achieved his career-highest break of 141 at the 1987 Carling Challenge. Taylor retired from the professional tour in 2000 and transitioned into a role as a snooker commentator and analyst for the BBC. He notably participated in the third series of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ in 2005, finishing in eighth place. He concluded his competitive playing career on the World Seniors Tour in 2021 at the age of 72.