VETERAN referee Len Ganley, who took charge of four World Championship finals, has died at the age of 68.

A larger-than-life and hugely popular character in the snooker world throughout the 1980s and 90s, Ganley was born in Lurgan, Northern Ireland, and later moved to Burton-on-Trent, where he originally holidayed with his sister in 1971, and decided to make it his permanent home.

He became a full-time referee after having jobs as a chimney sweep, a milkman and a bus driver. As a young man, he was a distinguished player, winning various local titles in Britain and Ireland, while claiming a top break of 136.

Ganley became a household name during the snooker boom of the 1980s, when he took charge some of the classic encounters of the era. He refereed four World Championship finals between 1983 and 1993, including 1990 when Stephen Hendry became the youngest ever world champion. He also took charge of the famous 1983 UK Championship final which saw Alex Higgins recover from a disastrous first session to beat Steve Davis in the deciding frame.

Another highlight of Ganley’s refereeing career came during the first round of the 1997 World Championship, when he officiated Ronnie O’Sullivan’s fastest-record maximum break against Mick Price, completed in five minutes and 20 seconds, with an average shot of one every 8.8 seconds.

Ganley first became involved in amateur refereeing after playing Ray Reardon. Speaking to BBC Sport in 2001, Ganley said: “I got to play Ray Reardon one night. Ray was on a 105 break after potting the black and had perfect position on the yellow.

“The audience erupted so I put my finger over my lips to hush them and it went deadly quiet.

“All of a sudden, Ray said with a grin on his face: ‘If this had been the World Championship, they’d still have been clapping 15 minutes later’ – and this wee voice at the back says: ‘Yes, but have you seen the size of the b*****d referee?!’

“At that time I was about 26 stone. Ray turned round and looked at me and laughed. I started laughing, the audience laughed and in the interval Ray asked if I’d thought about taking up refereeing.”

However, Ganley’s big break in profesional refereeing came through Mike Watterson, a successful amateur player who went on to become a sports entrepreneur, taking the World Championship to the Crucible, as well as creating other major tournaments including the UK Championship and British Open. Speaking to SupremeSnooker.com, he said: “ I first met Len in January 1981,when he refereed an English Amateur Championship match between me and Bill Clarke from Derby at Buxton. I was so impressed with his performance that I asked him to officiate in March at the Assembly Rooms, Derby for the Yamaha Organs Trophy which was being televised for the first time by the full ITV network.

“Len was so nervous that he couldn`t put his cufflinks in, and I had to do it for him. We became good friends, and he did many things for me. He always called me ‘Boss’ even up to last year at the Crucible.”

Watterson fondly remembers Ganley’s warm sense of humour, which helped make him a much-loved figure with players and fans. He said: “The funniest thing that happened between us was when we were playing golf at the Creek Club in Dubai. Len knocked the last of his balls into the man-made lake on a par three hole. He went into the lake to retrieve it as it didn`t appear to be very deep. As he was walking in I shouted ‘be careful, Len, it gets much deeper’. Len shouted back, in his usual style ‘I know, I know’.

“He`d gone in on the cobblestones about two meters when it dropped down very suddenly, and promptly disappeared leaving just his hat floating on the water. He was down there for maybe two minutes, and we were panicking thinking that he was drowning. Len suddenly appeared and climbed out, clutching the bottom of his shirt in which he had collected 15 balls out from the lake. We all laughed like hell, as he had shown great initiative!”

Ganley was hugely respected by the professional players for his knowledge of the game, along with his firm but fair approach to dealing with disturbances from the crowd. On one occasion, when Cliff Wilson was playing Ray Reardon at the UK Championship, there were two drunks at the back of the stand, and Ganley went to ask them to behave. However, he forgot that his microphone was on, and millions of TV viewers heard him ask for the best of order, but also warned them, “If you don’t stop it – pick a window ‘cos you’re going through it!” For months afterwards, everyone on the circuit called him ‘Pick a Window Ganley’.

Such was Ganley’s popularity with snooker fans that he starred in a Carling Black Label TV advert in the 1980s, despite being a teetotaller himself. He was seen crushing a cue ball with his hand while refereeing a match between John Spencer and Terry Griffiths. During the 1980s, he was also the subject of a song by the band Half Man, Half Biscuit, called ‘The Len Ganley Stance’.

Following his retirement in 1999, he suffered health problems, including diabetes, and had a heart attack in 2002. However, he remained involved in snooker, and started up a coaching course in Northern Ireland, which helped develop 10-14 year old boys and girls in snooker, billiards, carom, 8-ball and 9-ball pool.

During his retirement, he remained a popular visitor to major snooker tournaments, where his son, Mike, worked as the tournament director. Every year at the Crucible, he collected money to provide motorised wheelchairs for disabled children, raising hundreds of thousands of pounds over the years, and was awarded an MBE for his efforts.

He was known for his direct fund raising methods: Anyone he saw backstage, of whatever status or stature, would be obliged to hand over a ten pound note. He also held numerous golf days, supported by snooker players including Dennis Taylor and Willie Thorne, along with other stars such as former Coronation Street actor Johnny Briggs.

Ganley died on 28 August 2011, aged 68. His family asked people to donate to the Paul Hunter Foundation, rather than to send flowers.

We at SupremeSnooker.com send our sincere condolences to Mike Ganley and the rest of the family.