After Dinner Speakers: James Wattana, Billy Pierce, Vivienne Westwood

ONCE as high as No.3 in the world, James Wattana has struggled in recent times to match his early promise. Wattana first came to England at the age of 15 to progress his snooker career. His English base then was Bradford, a far cry from his native Thailand. He now speaks English fluently, but still hates the cold, wet climate and commutes between the UK and Bangkok as often as possible, often only arriving in the UK hours before a major event. Wattana's first major tournament triumph was in the 1992 World Matchplay, when he defeated Steve Davis 9-4 in the final. Upon returning home he was acclaimed as a national hero. His matches were watched by millions of people, and Nigel Bond once suggested that travelling into Thailand with James was like travelling with The Beatles! In recognition of his status he has been crowned Thailand's Sportsman of the Year three times. He was also made a Commander 3rd Class of the Most Nobel Order of the Crown of Thailand, a very rare honour. The only previous Thai sportsman to achieve this accolade was the legendary boxer Khaosai Galaxy. Wattana's emergence ensured a fanatical following for the Thailand Open event, and Wattana achieved virtually god-like status upon winning the event in 1994 and 1995. Since then however, his form has deserted him, the low point coming in the 1998 Asian Games, when as favourite, he lost a tearful first round match and apologised to his nation for letting them down. Thailand's tears turned to cheers in April 1999 when he was drawn against the latest Eastern sensation, Hong Kong's Marco Fu in the world championship at The Crucible. In a private Asian battle Wattana won a titanic struggle 10-8. A precise and fluent breakbuilder, Wattana has compiled many maximums in practice. He has clocked up three in professional competition. His first came in the 1991 Mita World Masters - sadly the cameras were at the other end of the multi-table arena and missed most of the break. He made another in the 1992 British Open on the same day that he learned of a gun attack on his father, which proved to be fatal, and a third in the 1997 Catch International Super Challenge, China. This was the first 147 made in a major event outside the UK. After a poor 1999/2000 he was granted leave to enter a religious retreat for the summer. The government of Thailand offered its best wishes for a return to form. Although 2000/01 was not a great success, Wattana captained the Thai team for their first attempt at the Nations Cup. He also reached the last 32 of the world championship, and narrowly salvaged his top 32 position, with last season being almost an exact copy.