REDKNAPP GETS TO SAMPLE THE MERCURE

The Mercure hotel bar is a popular drinking haunt with the snooker crowd, despite some challenging bar prices. Just a stone’s throw away from the Crucible it is one of the meeting place of choice for a late-night drink, a more upmarket option than the equally frequented Graduate pub around the corner, and in recent years the venue for the after-final party.

The A-list actually stay there, the riff-raff pretend they are before toddling off at 2am back to the Travelodge or the Ibis.

But with the accommodation being some of the finest in the surrounding region, there were other non-snooker guests in the second week of the World Championship who probably would have thought little of forking out £5 for a pint.

Reading, chasing a play-off place in the Championship, stayed there ahead of their penultimate regular-season game at nearby Doncaster while big-spending QPR, already with a play-off spot secured, and boss Harry Redknapp took up temporary residence on semi-final Friday ahead of their last match of the campaign at Barnsley.

STRICKEN GERMAN FAN CHRISTINE GETS BOOST

GERMAN snooker fan Christine Pagel saw her pilgrimage to the Crucible to watch the World Championship for a fortnight interrupted in very unfortunate circumstances after being diagnosed with kidney stones and admitted to the high dependency unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield.

Her condition required an emergency operation – but Christine had a welcome boost when former Crucible finalist Nigel Bond, based in Chesterfield, and MC Rob Walker dropped in for a visit on the Friday of the second week.

Bond said: "Christine has obviously been through a tough time and I hope she now makes a full recovery. She is clearly a huge snooker fan as she's come over from Germany to see virtually the whole tournament. Luckily the staff at the Royal Hallamshire are looking after her so well and she even has a TV in her room so she can still watch the snooker! The least we could do was to drop in and say hello."

World Snooker has also pledged to give Christine free tickets for a day at next year's World Championship in Sheffield.

Photograph courtesy of World Snooker

DAVIS GETS DOWN AND DIRTY

Snooker legend and BBC pundit Steve Davis took advantage of the 17-day stay in Sheffield to enjoy a night out at a different theatre and take in a show. The Dirty Dancing stage production was visiting the Lyceum, just next-door to the Crucible on Tudor Square, and the six-time world champion was in for a slight shock on arrival in the foyer.

The Nugget was mobbed by women of a certain age out for a night of nostalgia all wanting photos and autographs. It is doubtful whether the appearance of the late Patrick Swayze himself in the audience could have made them go more weak at the knees than seeing the six-time world champion before they sat down to enjoy the famous story of Baby and Johnny for two and a half hours to the musical backdrop of The Time of My Life.

ROBERTSON TAKES COMMENTATORS TO TASK

There was plenty going through Neil Robertson’s mind as he wrapped up victory over Judd Trump on an incredible evening at the Crucible on Wednesday. Still euphoric after becoming the first man to make 100 century breaks in a season at a crucial stage of the match to level at 11-11 and then completing a 13-11 victory, the Australian still had other concerns.

On his way out of the arena he headed straight for the commentary box to good-naturedly remonstrate with those inside about jokes making the audience laugh earlier in the quarter-final. Willie Thorne pleaded not guilty, pointing the finger of blame at Terry Griffiths.

World No1 Robertson, a mad-keen Chelsea fan, also wanted to know the crucial score from Stamford Bridge where the Blues had been playing Atletico Madrid in the second leg of a Champions League semi-final. But on the front there was some rare bad news of a 3-1 defeat and exit from the competition.

With the win and the milestone safely tucked away though, as Meat Loaf might have said: Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad.

PARMAR STILL ON THE SCENE

Mukesh Parmar, the former manager of Mark Selby, was seen around the Dafabet World Championship this week and put in an appearance at the World Snooker party on the Wednesday night at Genting Casino – an evening for all connected with and working at the event, taking advantage of the morning off on the Thursday.

While Parmar’s relationship with Selby on the table was characterised by some considerable success, including wins at the UK Championship and the Masters before a split early in 2013, there were clearly tensions and problems behind the scenes with the three-time Masters champion deciding he would rather handle his own affairs, helped by wife Vikki.

At one time there was speculation Parmar could link up with Neil Robertson as a manager having done some work with him, though that did not come to pass with the world No1 now under a full management deal with Django Fung in the same stable as Judd Trump.

But Parmar, who still runs a snooker club in Leicestershire, indicated that he might dip his toe back in the water of player management if the “right opportunity” came along.

SELT BROUGHT BACK DOWN TO EARTH

Matt Selt is a pretty big noise among the snooker golfing fraternity, with a handicap of just six from his days as a regular at The Mere club in Cheshire. Snooker’s world No56 regularly crosses swords with seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry on the fairways and the pair also make a mean partnership in the commentators’ challenges.

But Selt was brought back down to earth with a jolt on Tuesday in Sheffield. First he played World Snooker press chief Ivan Hirschowitz and lost three times – a front-nine Stableford, a back-nine matchplay, and a last-hole double or quits.

Then in the evening Selt was hanging out with Hendry and Steve Davis in the Mercure bar – just the 13 world titles between them – and was approached by a couple of fans who asked him to move away and take a picture of them with the baize legends.