Just Stop Oil protesters have disrupted play twice on the same court at Wimbledon, throwing jigsaw pieces and orange-coloured confetti during matches.
Activists ran on during a match between Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov and Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro before scattering a 1,000-piece Wimbledon-branded puzzle and environmentally friendly orange confetti glitter on to the grass.
A protester then sat down on the court before the two were escorted off by Wimbledon security guards and arrested by officers from the Metropolitan police. Dimitrov and Shimabukuro appeared glum as they left the court in the second set of their first-round match.
Spectators could be heard booing and shouting “losers” and “are you happy with yourselves” as the protesters, who were sporting white Just Stop Oil T-shirts, were led away in handcuffs.
The pair – Deborah Wilde, a retired teacher from London, and Simon Milner-Edwards, a retired musician from Manchester – appeared calm as officers escorted them out of SW19.
As he was led away, Milner-Edwards said he felt “absolutely fine” about being arrested, saying: “I would run in front of a car to save my grandchildren.”
The 66-year-old, who has been arrested previously, said: “Our politicians are the criminals, they’re destroying everything. In 10 years’ time Wimbledon will not resemble anything like this.
“New fossil fuels are a stain on this country and I’m not going to allow my grandchildren to have to pick up the pieces. My concern is my grandchildren and their generation. Their future will be destroyed by new fossil fuels.”
A second protest erupted on Court 18 about two hours later. Play was interrupted briefly during Katie Boulter’s first-round match against the Australian Daria Saville.
A protester was dragged off court after another jigsaw puzzle and confetti were thrown on to the grass. At least five police officers could then be seen rushing to the man, with one asking him: “Have you glued your hands?”
The protester was named as William John Ward, a retired civil engineer from Epsom.
The 66-year-old said: “I don’t like making a racket, but I don’t want my grandchildren, nieces and nephews to suffer. Right now, millions of people are being forced outside of the conditions necessary to support human life.
“I can’t let this happen. Our government is courting disaster. I’ve had five meetings with my MP, Chris Grayling, and he simply doesn’t get it. He doesn’t seem to understand the warnings from the United Nations, from the International Energy Agency and from the government’s own climate change committee.
“I have no choice but to get the message out in whatever way I can. I’m retired and want to enjoy my retirement, but I feel I have no choice but to take action. I’ve tried everything else.”
Paramedics were seen talking to Ward after he was dragged off court.
Boulter, the British women’s No 1, was later cheered as she helped the clean-up effort.
The protesters managed to evade Wimbledon’s newly beefed-up security. Undercover specialist police officers have been positioned in key spots this year as organisers attempt to thwart environmental protesters. Staff have also been checking every bag and carrying out body searches, which has caused delays.
Chalk dust and other powders have been banned for the first time in an attempt to stop Just Stop Oil protesters. Cable ties, glue, chains and padlocks are also among 19 items on the prohibited list.
As Wilde, 68, was led away, she confirmed that the pair had joined the queue this morning. It is believed that the pair joined the line at 6am but it is unclear if they brought the centenary edition of the puzzle with them.
Wilde said in a statement: “I’m just an ordinary grandmother in resistance to this government’s policy of serving us new oil and gas licences. In normal circumstances this sort of disruption would be entirely unacceptable, but these aren’t normal circumstances. We’ve just had the hottest June on record, breaking the previous record by nearly a whole degree! We don’t need Hawk-Eye to see that our government issuing over 100 new fossil fuel licences is a very bad line-call.”
But some fans were angry about the action. Callum Mackenzie, 28, said: “I saw this woman run on and she got stopped before she could do anything. Then the bloke came and threw some tinsel around and sat down on the floor.”
His friend Louis Harvey, 30, said: “I just saw the bloke throw some sprinkles and just sit on the floor in a yoga pose. It’s disgraceful. We’ve paid a lot of money to get in here. One the weather’s not great, and for them to play to stop because of that is just disruptive.
“It’s just the way they go about it. It makes the queues longer. I understand why they’re doing it but disruption like this is just outrageous.”
Almudena Boza, 23, who is a physio to the junior female No 2 Lucciana Perez Alarcon, said: “I think they are very selfish. They have ruined everyone’s day.”
A Met police spokesperson said: “Two people have been arrested for aggravated trespass and criminal damage after orange confetti was thrown on to the playing surface of Court 18 at Wimbledon. The man and woman were immediately detained by the Wimbledon security team and Met officers. They have been taken into custody.”
Wimbledon tweeted: “Following an incident on Court 18, two individuals have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass and criminal damage and these individuals have now been removed from the Grounds. Play on the court was temporarily paused and, following a suspension in play due to a rain delay, play is about to resume.”
JSO also targeted the luxury department store Harrods on the same day. Earlier on Wednesday, activists were pictured holding placards on an escalator in the west London shop before being kicked out of the building.
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