I spent 28 years on the Underground, but gave it all up when snooker began to get big on television. John Street, John Williams, and myself, got more and more work as the circuit grew. In the end, my employers saw more of me on TV than they did at work. People told me it was daft to give up the Tube, and that I'd never earn a living from snooker. They said it would never last on TV,but they were wrong.