Behind the scenes at Wimbledon, a small green concrete hut near Centre Court quietly oversees the manual scoreboards that have been a staple of the tournament for nearly a century. Though modest in appearance, this location is crucial to maintaining the traditional presentation of player names, match results, and the order of play across 12 large boards situated throughout the grounds.

The scoreboards, which have existed in various forms since 1923, retain a design closely resembling that of the 1980s. Their distinctive yellow slats, set against Wimbledon’s signature green and purple hues, display the names and results, inserted like pieces in a game of Tetris. Each day, a dedicated team of workers updates these boards manually, with young assistants climbing ladders to change slats as matches progress, drawing the attention of spectators who watch the process unfold.

At the center of this operation is Andrew Billingham, known simply as Bill, who has been involved with the scoreboards since 1990. Now 53, he began his career at Wimbledon climbing the ladders and crafting the names that appear on the boards. Bill recalls how in the early years, the process of creating the lettering was laborious and prone to error. Names were cut letter by letter from vinyl using a small blade machine that took up to ten minutes per name. Today, a digital printer speeds this process significantly, producing identical yellow slats in seconds, yet preserving the traditional look that has become a symbol of the tournament’s heritage.

Bill describes the original cutting device as “probably in a museum now,” detailing its intricate movements as it carefully shaped each letter. The manual method made shorter names, often those of players with fewer letters, particularly appealing to the painters crafting the signs.

Each morning, the current team removes the previous day’s order of play and match results, replacing them with new information—a task that typically requires about 90 minutes. Slats bearing the names of eliminated players are carefully bagged and stored for future use. Once the championships conclude, the boards remain untouched, continuing to display the final results for members and visitors to admire until the next tournament.

This enduring manual system, maintained by Bill and his team, serves as a tangible link to Wimbledon’s long-standing traditions, embodying the history and prestige that the championships are known for.