Leslie Allison
Godfree
Male
England
1885-04-27
Brighton, Sussex, England
1971-11-17
Richmond, London, England
From The Times, 24 November 1971
Obituary – Mr Leslie Godfree – Former tennis champion
Brigadier Sir John Smyth writes:
With the death of Leslie Godfree, M.C., who died on November 17 at the age of 86, a very well-known and much respected figure in the lawn tennis world has passed on. He appears on the Wimbledon Championships roll as men’s doubles champion with Randolph Lycett in 1923, and mixed doubles champion with his wife “Biddy” [née Kathleen McKane], in 1926. He also played doubles for Britain in the Davis Cup on many occasions in the early 1920s, partnered by Randolph Lycett, Max Woosnam and Charles Kingsley.
In Wimbledon tennis circles Leslie Godfree will always be remembered for playing the opening match on the Centre Court of the new Wimbledon in 1922. His opponent was Britain’s leading singles player, Lieutenant-Colonel Algernon Kingscote. Godfree won the toss and served; Kingscote returned the ball into the net, where Godfree picked it up and put it in his pocket. He kept it all his life.
The Godfrees are the only married couple who have ever won the mixed doubles together at Wimbledon. And what a very popular pair they were. Biddy Godfree was of course twice Wimbledon singles champion, in 1924 and 1926, when she was Britain’s leading woman player. Biddy Godfree still plays regularly at the All England Club.
But it was on the administrative side of the game that Leslie Godfree made his greatest contribution. He had been for many years, and was at the time of his death, a member of the All England Club and Wimbledon Championship Committee. He was president of the Umpires’ Association and of the Veterans’ Lawn Tennis Club. But perhaps he will be remembered and missed most by the members of the International Lawn Tennis Clubs all over the world. He was both vice-president and chairman of the British International Club and a member of nearly all the others.
Leslie Godree certainly died in harness as he was active until the last few months of his life. As a man he was much admired and as a friend he can never be replaced.
1903 - 1930
4
60
28
1924 - Hythe (Amateur)
1923 - Nottingham (Open)
1922 - Nottingham (Open)
1922 - Mid-Sussex Championships (Amateur)
Round 1
Vladimir Landau 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
8-6
4-6
3-6
6-4
6-2
Round 1
Arthur S. Fowler 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-1
6-3
6-2
Round 1
Fritz Kuhlmann Sr 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
w.o.
Round 1
Ronaldo Boyd 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-3
6-2
6-2
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
G.A. Anderson
6-3
6-2
Quarterfinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Major Josiah George Ritchie
6-1
3-6
6-3
Semifinals
Ted Avory 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-1
6-3
Round 1
Horace Keats Lester 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
6-4
5-7
6-3
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
A.G. Hargreaves
6-4
6-2
Quarterfinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
L.S. Hean
6-1
6-3
Semifinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
D.F. Stephenson
6-2
6-1
Final
Roy Douglas Poland 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
w.o.
Round 1
Jean Borotra 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-3
6-4
6-4
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Roger Danet
4-6
6-3
6-1
5-7
6-3
Round 3
Henri Cochet 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
6-2
6-0
Final
Patrick Spence 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-3
7-5
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Quarterfinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Francis Riou Leighton-Crawford
7-5
2-6
7-5
Semifinals
Major Josiah George Ritchie 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
3-6
6-3
6-2
Round 1
Nigel G. Sharpe 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
2-6
6-4
6-1
6-2
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
H.F. Brewer
6-1
9-7
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
B. Gosling
6-1
6-1
Quarterfinals
Dean Mathey 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-2
6-4
Round 1
Watson McLean (Watty) Washburn 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
6-0
7-5
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Arthur Frank Toogood
6-0
5-7
6-1
6-3
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Samuel Ernest (Ernest) Charlton
6-3
6-3
6-3
Round 3
Christiaan (Kick) van Lennep 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
7-5
6-2
6-2
Final
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Cecil John Tindell-Green
6-1
8-6
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Nicolae Mishu
1-
6-4
0-6
6-2
9-7
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Roy Douglas Poland
6-4
9-7
6-3
Round 3
Capt. Arthur Berger 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
7-5
6-1
Final
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
George S. Fletcher
6-3
6-4
Round 1
Algernon Kingscote 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-1
6-3
6-0
Final
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Ormond Cyril Wrigley
6-2
6-2
Final
Brian Norton 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
6-2
Final
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Lancelot Evelyn Gaunt
7-5
2-6
6-0
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Hugh Cyril Eltringham
6-3
6-2
6-3
Round 2
Percival Davson 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-0
9-7
6-1
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
William Henry Zimmern
6-0
6-1
6-2
Round 3
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
J.R. Scott
6-0
6-0
ret.
Quarterfinals
Alfred Beamish 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-3
6-3
6-2
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
P.E. Harrison
6-1
6-0
6-2
Round 2
Jack Hillyard 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-4
5-7
4-6
6-2
6-3
Quarterfinals
Oswald Charles Johnson 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
10-8
9-7
Quarterfinals
Alain Gerbault 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
1-6
8-6
6-3
Round 2
Hamilton Price 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-1
6-4
6-2
Quarterfinals
Herbert Roper Barrett 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
7-5
6-4
Quarterfinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
E.A. Coad Pryor
6-3
6-3
Semifinals
Jack Hillyard 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-1
7-9
6-1
Quarterfinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
S.J. Edwards
6-3
6-1
Semifinals
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
Gerald (Gerry) Millard
6-4
6-2
Final
Gordon Lowe 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-0
6-0
6-2
Round 1
Claude Whitehouse 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-2
11-9
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
J. Landry
6-1
6-1
Round 3
Charles Tuckey 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-2
6-3
Round 1
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
bye
Round 2
Leslie Allison Godfree 1 *
G.A. Read
6-2
6-2
Round 3
Alfred Egerton Maynard Taylor 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-2
6-1
Round 1
Francis Henry (Frank) Pearce 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
6-3
6-2
Round 1
Arthur Wallis Myers 1 *
Leslie Allison Godfree
7-5
6-1