Climbing the tree to anonymity

I was reading an article today in the Times about Sue Barker, the gist of which I can't remember, but it got me thinking. What I was trying to think of specifically was the name of the current British women's number one tennis player. I failed spectacularly.

There obviously is a British number one female tennis player, most of us have no idea who she is, and yet she is famous in her home town, her local pub, and her local tennis club.

There probably is a number two and a number three as well, maybe the lady behind the counter at my local corner shop is up there in the rankings. Who knows?

Someone, somewhere, is getting a great sense of satisfaction by saying "I am the tenth best female tennis player in Britain." That's quite an achievement when you consider that it is out of a population of about 60 million, albeit half of them are ineligible.

Whoever and wherever our British number one is, she has no doubt worked hard to get there, but she must be the tiniest bit pissed off about being so anonymous.

It could be worse. According to recent research (ie I made it up) there are only three people in the UK who can name a Euro MP - and we voted for them.