[2] He was born in London,[1] the son of Alexander Brown, a professional billiards player.

[3] The official rules of both snooker and billiards state that "A cue shall be not less than 3 ft (914 mm) in length and shall show no change from the traditional tapered shape and form, with a tip, used to strike the cue-ball, secured to the thinner end.

"[4] This rule was introduced following an incident on 14 November 1938 when Brown was playing Tom Newman at Thurston's Hall in the 1938/1939 Daily Mail Gold Cup.

To the surprise of spectators, Brown produced a small fountain pen-sized cue from his vest pocket, chalked it, and played the stroke.

[5][6] The referee, Charles Chambers, then inspected the implement, a strip of ebony about five inches long, with one end having a cue tip.