1969 Pot Black

The 1969 Pot Black event was the first edition of the professional invitational snooker tournament, which was broadcast in July, August and September 1969. This first recording of Pot Black took place at the BBC TV Studios in Gosta Green, Birmingham, a converted turn-of-the-century cinema. Later it was recorded at the new Pebble Mill Studios in Birmingham which replaced the Gosta Green Studios. The event featured eight professional players. All matches were one-frame shoot-outs.

Broadcasts were on BBC2, starting with an introductory programme at 8:50 pm on Wednesday 23 July 1969. The first match, between John Spencer and Jackie Rea, was broadcast on 30 July, followed by weekly broadcasts until the final on 10 September. The programmes were presented by Keith Macklin with Ted Lowe as the commentator.

Ray Reardon won the event, beating John Spencer 88–29 in the one-frame final, and received the BBC2 Pot Black Trophy.