[2] When he retired from professional table tennis he took up a post with the Martin Pipe racing stables as an assistant to the racehorse trainer.
His father was listening to the radio at the time of his birth when he was asked by the matron of the maternity home what Christian name he was going to be called by.
At the age of 10 he joined Len Hoffman's Youth Club, close to Godwin Road School, which he attended.
It was on this occasion that he picked up a table tennis bat for the first time and realised that there was a lot of skill required to play it well.
It was the experience of having a very fast ball bowled to him by Barry Knight that led him to realise that his sporting future did not lie in cricket, because he felt that it was too dangerous.
Because he showed a lot of enthusiasm for the game and because of his rapid progress in learning how to play, Venner nominated him for 'Boy of the week' prize, a competition that was sponsored by the News of the World newspaper.
Winning this prize meant that he could return later in the summer season for a free week's holiday to receive more coaching.
Because the German team were delayed in reaching the venue the two top England players put on an exhibition match instead.
This match was watched by millions of viewers and did a great deal to lift the profile of English table tennis at the time.
He was a top-ranked player in the world rankings at a time when the men's game was dominated by the Japanese, Chinese, and top European countries, notably Sweden, Yugoslavia and Germany.
In a short time he became one of the best known sports personalities in England and demands for interviews, television appearances and exhibitions poured in.
At the age of 16 he became the first English table tennis player in the history of the game to have a personal manager (Peter Madge) to handle his business interests, and the publicity that surrounded his success is well documented.
He was a key player in helping the handler win the UK Trainers' title on fifteen occasions between 1988 and 2005, running Pipe's telephone tipster line and later producing a daily blog, 'Chester's Chat'.