The World Snooker Championship final was briefly halted after a protester interrupted play to complain about the £180-a-year TV licence fee.
The outburst came in the third frame of the final at the Crucible, with Wu Yize preparing to take a shot when leading 67-31 against Shaun Murphy.
‘Who f***ing pays their TV licence anyway,’ a woman appeared to shout, prompting groans in the crowd.
Referee Rob Spencer, a former police officer, quickly ran over to prevent her from approaching the players.
‘Nobody pays their TV licence,’ the woman added, as security intervened to remove her.
The BBC did not show footage of the woman being led out of the Crucible, but commentator John Parrott apologised to viewers following the disruption.
A protester briefly halted the World Snooker Championship final by shouting about the TV licence
The woman climbed over barriers as she shouted ‘Who f***ing pays their TV licence anyway’
Referee Rob Spencer, a former police officer, ran over to prevent her from approaching the players
‘Sorry for that minor disturbance, it’s all sorted,’ Parrott said, after applause had died down after the protester had been removed.
Play quickly resumed after the brief interruption.
The incident is the second disturbance in as many days at the World Snooker Championships.
The closing stages of Wu’s semi-final with Mark Allen were also interrupted by a bizarre outburst from the crowd.
Wu was about to take a shot when a cry of ‘never forget the Epstein Files’ came from the crowd – a reference to the millions of documents detailing the activities of the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The fan, who has been pictured but not identified, proceeded to call out again before referee Marcel Eckardt ordered they be removed, with the interruption audible on the BBC coverage of the match.
‘Can you get this person out please, now please,’ Eckardt said.
The protester was swiftly led out of the venue by Crucible security staff
Play quickly resumed in the final with Wu Yize taking a three frame lead over Shaun Murphy
A spectator, pictured standing up, was thrown out for a bizarre shout about the Epstein Files during a semi-final at the venue on Saturday
Fans in the arena had told the spectator to shut up and there seemed to be a surprise reaction after it became clear what they had been shouting.
Three years ago, the World Championships in Sheffield were hit by protests from the group ‘Just Stop Oil’.
One protester had jumped onto a snooker table and covered it in orange powder, while another had attempted to damage another table in the venue.
The pair were sentenced to community orders following the incident.
