His best bridge moments have been Rosenblum experience (playing and beating Zia’s team) and also winning his first national event , the Tollemache, in 1979 for Cambs & Hunts whilst at the university. Tim would dearly love to win one of the three major national competitions – the Gold Cup, Crockfords or Spring Four.’

Since this profile was printed, Tim achieved his targets: He won Crockfords and the Spring Foursomes and ... the Gold Cup three times for a good measure. He became a key member of Welsh National team and won many other Green Point events. Currently he is leading the Gold Point rankings by a large margin.

He loves bridge and is always keen to discuss it with anybody (especially over the pint of beer).

Elena was born in Rome, where in her teens she edited a student magazine published by the Vatican. She was bitten by the bridge bug after marrying Giorgio and moving to England, where she has enjoyed a varied career teaching Italian in British Universities, directing theatrical productions, translating "The Hobbit" and other English books into Italian, and bringing up two sons. In addition, she has edited several bridge books, and now devotes most of her time to editing English Bridge magazine, Teletext Bridge on Channel 4, TV, and the Batsford Bridge series published by Chrysalis.

As a journalist she has met most of the world's top players. Her fondest memories are playing the dummy for the great Giorgio Belladonna and interviewing Zia Mahmood - a charismatic player and, she says, the most accomplished flirt! Because she is so busy, she claims that her bridge suffers. In spite of that - on one of her now rare appearances on the national tournament scene - she has managed to win for the second time the Year End Ladies Trophy together with her old partner, and former RBC member, Ruth Edmondson.

Ray is the past President of Reading Bridge Club and the second longest serving member (30 years +). He learnt to play bridge in the RAF during the war and recently recorded the 60th anniversary of his first game.

On the bridge scene he claims to have always been ‘there or there abouts'. However, despite winning championships at county level he has never won a national event, although he has reached the final of the National Pairs and later rounds of the NICKO and Gold Cup

Ray met his future bridge partner (and wife), Maureen, at their university bridge club. Their common interests, walking and travelling, have survived any keen post mortem bridge discussions.

Nowadays, if you need to know about some obscure bridge movement or understand what happened 15 or 20 years ago at Reading Bridge Club, ask Ray...

Gunsel is Experienced bridge teacher - 30+ years of bridge teaching. Most of the current English under 20 team and the under 25 team have been taught by Gunsel.

He has taught and coached the U.K's top young players every year for the last 10 years at the "Junior Teach - In"

He was heavily involved in playing bridge (very successfully) all over Australia when he lived there between 1974 - 1976.

He loves the game and has a very unique style.