Fred Perry
First Career Grand Slam winner; only British player to achieve this.
Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
Frederick Towersey Perry, born on 18 May 1909 in Stockport, was a British sportsman who reached world No. 1 in both tennis and table tennis. He made history as the first player to win a Career Grand Slam in tennis, securing all four major singles titles by age 26 at the 1935 French Championships—a feat no other British player has matched. Perry dominated Wimbledon from 1934 to 1936, winning three straight men's singles titles, and held the world amateur No. 1 ranking throughout that period. He remains the last British man to win Wimbledon until Andy Murray in 2013, and the last to claim a men's singles Grand Slam before Murray's 2012 US Open victory.
Perry's first sporting passion was table tennis, and he became world champion in 1929. He took up tennis at 14 and began his professional tennis career at 21, when in 1930 the LTA selected him for a four-man tour of the United States. In 1933, he helped Great Britain win the Davis Cup for the first time since 1912, followed by victories over the US in 1934 and 1935, and a fourth consecutive title against Australia in 1936. Frustrated by the class-conscious Lawn Tennis Club, the working-class Perry turned professional after the 1936 season and moved to the US, becoming a naturalised citizen in 1939. During World War II, he was drafted into the US Army Air Force in 1942. After retiring, he founded the Fred Perry clothing label in London in 1952 and worked as a BBC Radio tennis summariser from 1959 to 1994.
Despite his achievements, Perry received little official recognition from tennis authorities for years, as the International Lawn Tennis Federation ignored amateur champions who later turned professional between 1927 and 1967. In 1984, a statue of him was unveiled at Wimbledon, and that same year he was the only tennis player named in a survey of 2,000 Britons as one of the "Best of the Best" British sportsmen of the 20th century.
Perry was born in Stockport to Samuel Perry, a cotton spinner. He lived in Bolton and Wallasey during his first decade, attending Liscard Primary School and briefly Wallasey Grammar School. At age 11, he moved to Brentham Garden Suburb in Ealing after his father became national secretary of the Co-operative Party; his father later became MP for Kettering in 1929. Perry learned tennis on public courts near his family's estate and was educated at Ealing Grammar School for Boys.
His t
- born
- 18 May 1909
- died
- 2 February 1995
- field
- Tennis and table tennis
- nationality
- British (naturalised U.S. citizen in 1939)
- known_for
- First player to win a Career Grand Slam; only British player to achieve this; three consecutive Wimbledon titles; World Table Tennis Champion in 1929
Lore & Background
Perry was born in Stockport, where his father was a cotton spinner. He lived in Bolton, Lancashire, and Wallasey, Cheshire, before moving to Ealing, west London at age eleven. He attended Liscard Primary School, briefly Wallasey Grammar School, and Ealing Grammar School for Boys. His first love was table tennis, and he became World Champion in 1929. He began playing tennis at age 14 and started his tennis career at 21, when in 1930 an LTA committee chose him to join a four-man team to tour the United States.
Perry helped lead Great Britain to four consecutive Davis Cup victories from 1933 to 1936. Due to his disillusionment with the class-conscious nature of the Lawn Tennis Club of Great Britain, the working-class Perry turned professional at the end of the 1936 season and moved to the United States, where he became a naturalised U.S. citizen in 1939. In 1942, he was drafted into the US Army Air Force during the Second World War. After retirement, he founded the clothing label Fred Perry in London in 1952. He also worked as a tennis summariser and reporter for BBC Radio from 1959 to 1994.
Reader's Guide
Fred Perry's significance lies in his unprecedented contribution to British tennis, being the first player to win a Career Grand Slam and the only British player to do so. He won 10 Majors, including eight Grand Slam tournaments and two Pro Slams singles titles, as well as six Major doubles titles. His three consecutive Wimbledon titles from 1934 to 1936 made him world amateur No. 1. Despite his achievements, Perry was not accorded full recognition by tennis authorities until later in life, because between 1927 and 1967 the International Lawn Tennis Federation ignored amateur champions who later turned professional. In 1984, a statue of Perry was unveiled at Wimbledon, and in the same year he became the only tennis player listed in a survey of 2,000 Britons to find the 'Best of the Best' British sportsmen of the 20th century. His legacy also includes the Fred Perry clothing label, founded in London in 1952, and his broadcasting career with BBC Radio from 1959 to 1994.
Did You Know?
- Perry was the first player to win a Career Grand Slam, completing all four singles titles at the 1935 French Championships.
- He remains the only British player to achieve a Career Grand Slam.
- Perry was World Table Tennis Champion in 1929 before focusing on tennis.
- A statue of Perry was unveiled at Wimbledon in 1984.
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