A former Coronation Street actress has dramatically declared she’s ready to chain herself to the gates of Wimbledon to protest the All England Club’s plans for a £200m expansion.
The 99 year old Thelma Ruby, who acted alongside Dame Judi Dench and lived in Wimbledon Hill Road for three decades, is leading the opposition against the development of 30 new tennis courts, including a second major court.
At a community gathering in Southfields, Ruby, clearly distressed by the potential upheaval said: “Let them arrest me. I live in a flat overlooking this magnificent landscape, which was designed by Capability Brown. The club talk about planting new trees, but can you imagine how long it would take for newly planted trees to give the benefits that we now get from mature trees? “.
Concerning her discussion with a representative from the AELTC regarding the proposed changes, Ruby revealed: “I said: ‘What’s going to happen?’ He said: ‘Oh, all the trees will be cut down, and there will be eight tennis courts between you and the lake and it’ll take years to build.'”
She lamented the loss of her cherished view, stressing: “This beautiful view I get when I look out of my window is not only going to be a building site, but there are going to be polluting lorries passing my window every 10 minutes.”
“And we know, in this day and age, how important trees are. I look several times a day out of the window and enjoy my view. And it gives me strength to carry on.”
The deputy Mayor of London, Jules Pipe, is expected to deliver a verdict by the end of the week after the city’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan, recused himself from the decision due to his prior support for the project in 2021.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk