Highlights:
Cues n Views by David Smith, a collector of Cues, Books and other related memoabilia and a keen observer of Snooker and Pool, is dedicated to Snooker memorabilia collecting and celebrating the worlds of Snooker Billiards and Pool.
Navigate the site using the Menu to the left to go to the item of your choice, or use the menu above to find the desired section. Most pages have a row of links below the Banner, use these to check the headlines for the latest additions under each heading.
Use the search facility above to search the site for references to something specific.
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The Essential Cue Collection
More Cues: Slightly for fun and as a guide to new collectors, we have put together a list of the cues that might make up the ideal cue collection. As…
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Spaceman came calling
Two things right from the outset struck me; one Dominic really knows his exotic timbers and secondly, he is incredibly enthusiastic about old cues. After driving 240 miles to see…
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Picture and Signature cues
Should the cue that you play with begin to feel sticky when it is running through your bridge hand, take care how you attempt to remedy this.
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Joe Davis Cues
There are so many Variants of the Joe Davis cue that I could create a whole web site about them. Having said that I will try to give you a flavour…
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My Peradon Cues
More Peradon: You may be interested in knowing which cues I have in my collection that were actually made by Peradon Limited. Many people are confused by this matter and…
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Cues I Rarely Mention
In compiling this site, I have tried to appeal to the majority of people with an interest in Snooker and Billiards. This approach has proven successful, judging from the number…
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Travelling for a Purchase
I recently embarked on a trip to Mansfield to look for a Read’s Champion cue and came back with an early machine spliced Horace Lindrum Picture badged cue as well.
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The Flowing Scotsman
From a cue collecting point of view Walter Donaldson is something of a disappointment, you see there is, to my knowledge, only one type of cue that bears his name.
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Buying an old cue
If you are buying a cue to use as your own ‘playing cue’, the decision is quite a simple one, however if you are buying a cue in the hope…
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Cues n Views archive
The Cues n Views archive – Badges Those of you that have followed the development of the Cues n Views web site since the beginning have probably wondered, from time…
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Cigarette Cards In More Detail
Wills Turf Cigarettes Lambert and Butler Photo Park Drive Ogden Churchman Carreras Lambert and Butler Who’s Who Robert Sinclair R and J Hill Gallagher Ogden – Champions Top Flight Senior…
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Riley billiard tables truck by Corgi
Riley billiard tables truck made by Corgi.
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Ivory Billiard Balls
More Balls: Ivory billiard balls from Burroughes and Watts. David SmithCues n Views
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Sidney Smith Billiards Champion
This Sidney Smith Champion cue was made to commemorate Sidney Smith’s award of the United Kingdom Billiards Championships in 1947 and 1948. Smith won this tournament less times than he…
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Maurice Tate Brighton
The words “Maurice Tate, Brighton” may sound familiar to cricket lovers, and a cue carrying this inscription appeared at Lawrence’s, Bletchingley, on Tuesday, 30th November 2021.
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Balls
Snooker balls – a load of balls!
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Snooker Plus
Snooker Plus, the billiard table game promoted by Joe Davis, Includes Thurston museum presentation of Snooker Plus balls.
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Tom Reece – His Billiard balls and cue
More Programmes: Tom Reece – his Billiard balls and cue. Also name plate cues featuring his name. This video also features a review of a Pathe News film of Tom…
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Billiards Expounded and the Valet
J P Mannock told a good self deprecating story about this book which ran something like this: Mannock had many distinguished pupils and one day he called at the house…
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The Shadowless Billiards Shade
Another useless item I’ve just acquired from eBay is a little flyer giving warning of a patent infringement. It wasn’t surprising that I was the only bidder as it has…
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Table Brushes
Burroughes and Watts, Raper and Peradon table brushes.
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Billiard Match Tickets 1905
Old and worthless ephemera, can sometimes tell a story. Here are a couple of tickets to watch a billiard match in 1905, which the original buyer couldn’t bear to throw…
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Frank Lupton Cue Plates
Silver presentation cue plates are always interesting to find, and this pair had a special attraction for me, having originated from Hartlepool, which is quite close to where I currently…
Picture Gallery index – cues, books, balls and cards.
- My Favourite Cues – Photographer Viv Welch’s photos of some of the Cues n Views collection owned by David Smith
- David Smith’s Cue Collection – These illustrations show part of my cue collection. Photographs by Mark Warwick
- Cues – On this page are thumbnail images of cues featured on this site, click on a linked cue to see an enlargement or gallery and some information about the cue
- Balls – Billiard balls, Snooker balls – a load of balls!
- Books – On this page are thumbnail images of all the books featured on this site, click on a linked book to see an enlargement and some information about the book
- Cards – I have gathered together a few examples of the variety of cigarette cards that are commonly available, these cards are of course related to both Billiards and Snooker collecting. Not strictly a Gallery yet, but there’s plenty to see
Collected Writings – By Andy Hunter, Dominic Dale, Norman Clare, Mark Wildman, David Thomas Lyttleton and Harry Smith. There is also a Competitions section.
Advertorial Features – Features by David Smith reviiewing the cues produced by modern cue makers.
Cues n Views – Interactive – An interesting side of creating a Web Site such as Cues n Views is the number of people that get in touch and either ask questions or share information.
Buying an old cue – When buying an old cue to keep as a collectable item, even if you do not intend to sell it, requires you to buy with care so that you are not disappointed with your acquisitions. In this article I have recorded some guidelines that are intended to help you buy with confidence; (includes a tip on how to tell the difference between hand-spliced and machine-spliced cues).
The Cues n Views archive
Cues n Views is about saving old cues for future generations to enjoy and a service that aims to inform those of you that are interested in old cues about their history, their design peculiarities and their current market value as a collector’s item or for insurance purposes.
The Essential Cue Collection – Slightly for fun and as a guide to new collectors, we have put together a list of the cues that might make up the ideal cue collection.
Cigarette Cards In More Detail – I have gathered together a few examples of the variety of cigarette cards that are commonly available, these cards are of course related to both Billiards and Snooker collecting.
Where are they now? – As both Snooker and Billiards are now recognised as young men’s games, I find myself wondering what happened to certain players who graced our television screens only a few short years ago.
Mike Russell; is he the last of a dying breed? – Mike Russell, along with a small group of devotees has kept the game of competitive Billiards going over the past few years. Along with holding down a day job, he has also managed to maintain his skills and travel the world in search of competition.
The Ladies Game – In searching out the roots of both Billiards and Snooker it would be remiss of me not to include a little something about the women’s or as it used to be known in gentler times, “The ladies game”.
Interview with Dominic Dale 2002 – For those of you not familiar with Dominic Dale he is currently ranked well inside the top thirty-two Snooker players in the world. His biggest success on the pro-circuit to date was winning the 1997 Grand Prix, defeating John Higgins in the final.
Robin Cues – I recently obtained a Robin Cook cue via a friend of mine from Peterborough, it is a single piece cue and looks quite like an old style Burwat Champion cue from the firm Burroughes and Watts.
Top Spot Club – To give you some idea of the type of Snooker Club that I am referring to its details are as follows, this club has 16 full sized Snooker/Billiard Tables and 6 7ft U.K. Pool Tables along with a three quarter sized Snooker/Billiard Table as well.
Coutts Cues – David Coutts is a skilled woodsmith who takes great pride in creating cues of great quality and perhaps more importantly, he creates cues that are taylor-made to the individual customers requirements.
Master Cue – If you are seeking a new cue, and want something a little different from the cues that we often see in the snooker clubs on a day to day basis, perhaps you might like to make contact with the company Master Cue in Thailand.
The Norman Clare Retrospective – Cues n Views is proud to present the Norman Clare Retrospective section, a tribute to the noted Billiards & Snooker Historian. Thurston, current copyright holder, has kindly granted permission to Cues n Views to present the articles written by Norman Clare and originally published in Cue World in the early nineteen eighties.
Mr Mark Wildman – We are pleased to welcome a new contributor to Cues n Views, former World Billiards Champion, top sixteen Snooker player, ITV and Eurosport commentator. He made the first century break at Snooker ever seen on television.
Harry Smith – This is the start of a series of articles looking at some of the less common areas of Billiard book collecting. Harry Smith is an avid collector of many of the books that you will see referred to in these articles, so look forward to sharing his experiences.
Competitions News n Views Index Page – Articles by David Smith on current and past competitions. An impressive Billiards tounament is the latest to be covered and the 2002 Benson & Hedges Masters is the latest Snooker competition to be covered.
Andy Hunter & David Smith – Collecting Old Cues – Andy Hunter is “The Cue Collector” of “The Amateur Billiard Player” magazine and co-writer with David Smith for Cues n Views. Collected together here are Andy Hunter & David Smith`s articles for Cues n Views on collecting old cues.
Dominic Dale – Articles by Domonc Dale about collecting and by David Smith about Domonic Dale, icluding an exclusive interview. We now have an item about a Sale from the collection of Dominic Dale, a gallery of collectables that will interest the more serious collector.
David Thomas Lyttleton Index Page – This is a series of articles looking at some of the less common areas of Billiard and Snooker collecting. Articles cover such subjects as table irons and brushes, cue tippers and cutters, rests, balls, trophies and medals.
Perhaps I should be more explicit; I collect old Billiards and Snooker cues as well as other items that take my fancy.
I have most of the cues that I want so am offering a kind of matching service to you as readers of this site.
I don’t want to make a profit but would take great pleasure in helping you to find what you want.
I also collect books and here again, have mostly what I want, in point of fact I believe that I have the books that I can realistically afford, however I have a network of friends who have items that they consider surplus due to duplication that they might consider passing on should the right circumstances present themselves.
If you are awaiting a reply to an enquiry for information on collecting old cues, please be patient as the number of enquiries has dramatically increased since our launch.
If you have items for sale or are looking for something please let me know I’ll do what I can to help you out.
All that I would ask is the cost of postage.
Billiards & Snooker Exchange Pages
Snooker Quiz One – Just for fun! David Smith’s first Snooker Quiz for Cues n Views. Test your knowledge, updated, now interactive.
Snooker Quiz Two – Just for fun! David Smith’s second Snooker Quiz for Cues n Views. Test your knowledge.
Poetry – On Spring Bank Holiday Monday 2001 David and John Smith called at Borders book shop in Leeds where they decided to stop for a cup of tea and a snack, it just so happened that it was “Open Mike” poetry reding night. David decided to have a go at poetry himself.
Full Notes – A fun sketch by David Smith; Full Notes Interviews the Stars and truly puts their careers and performances in context for the pleasure of the surfing public.
Cues n Views
update of the week
Steve Davis’ cue
Did you know that the cue that Steve Davis won all of his World Championships with originally started life as a Burroughes and Watts “Ye Olde Ash” cue. It is hardly recognisable now due to the amount of work that Steve has had done to it.
