Legends of the Cue

By Allison Fisher, Mark Wilson & Mike Gonzalez

"Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with notable players, promoters, administrators and other people of influence in and around cue sports. We also pl

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· Sports

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How many episodes does Legends of the Cue have?

The podcast currently has 141 episodes available.

Best of Legends of the Cue

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: Hydred Goldberg - Part 2 (Reinvention, Poolrooms and Finding Her Game)
After a life-changing automobile accident at 18, Hydred Goldberg faced a fundamental question: what would the rest of her life look like? In Part 2 of her Legends of the Cue story, the future two-time WPA Parasport Heyball World Champion describes the decisions that gave her independence—and ultimately led her to the pool table. Learning to drive became a major turning point. Soon afterward, Hydred moved by herself to San Diego, enrolled in college and eventually earned a degree in psychology while studying fine arts. Determined to discover what remained possible, she experimented with adaptive swimming, skiing, racing and even considered paragliding. But another activity eventually captured her imagination far more completely. Pool. Hydred takes us inside Palace Billiards in Vallejo, where the bright public room gave way to a more serious back room filled with action players, tight tables, smoke and an atmosphere that fascinated the self-described “good girl.” Later, College Billiards and On Cue Billiards became important parts of her San Diego pool education. With virtually no blueprint for playing from a wheelchair, Hydred taught herself through experimentation. She discusses adapting her stroke, chair position, bridge use and equipment, including the elusive extra-long telescoping bridge wheelchair players still seek today. The conversation also reaches Hydred’s other great creative life: special-effects makeup, including work around San Diego Comic-Con and doing makeup for stars of the WPBA—including Allison Fisher herself. Hydred also explores her Filipino identity, her admiration for Efren Reyes, and why a future trip to the Philippines carries such personal meaning. It is the story of an artist, a pool player and a woman gradually discovering where all those identities intersect. Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text. Support the show Follow our show and/or leave a review/rating on: Our website: https://www.legendsofthecue.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/legends-of-the-cue/id1820520463 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Za0IMh2SeNaWEGUHaVcy1 Music by Lyrium. About "Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with Hall of Fame members, world champions, and influential figures from across the world of cue sports—including pocket billiards, snooker, and carom disciplines such as three-cushion billiards. We highlight the people, places, and moments that have shaped the game—celebrating iconic players, memorable events, historic venues, and the brands that helped define generations of play. With a focus on the positive spirit of the sport, our goal is to create a rich, engaging, and timeless archive of stories that fans can enjoy now and for years to come. Co-hosted by WPA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher and Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, Legends of the Cue brings these stories to life—told in the voices of the game’s greatest figures. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cu...
September 22, 202638min
Number 2: Hydred Goldberg - Part 1 (The Accident That Changed Everything)
Two-time WPA Heyball Parasport World Champion Hydred Goldberg joins Legends of the Cue to begin an extraordinary life story that stretches from London and the Philippines to California—and eventually to the top of international wheelchair pool. Hydred sits down with hosts Allison Fisher, Mark Wilson and Mike Gonzalez just months after surrendering the world title she had held since the inaugural WPA Parasport Heyball Championship in 2024. She reflects on the pressure of defending a world championship, her evolving rivalry and friendship with Switzerland’s Catherine Schneeberger, and the unexpected attention that followed becoming the first woman to win the title. Then we go back to the beginning. Born and raised in London to Filipino parents, Hydred recalls childhood at the “Orchard Bungalow,” growing up as the eldest in a large family, Filipino food, festivals and traditions, her early love of art and music, and moving to Northern California as a teenager. She also discusses what it meant to grow up feeling connected to three different places—England, America and the Philippines. Everything changed on August 10, 1993, just days after Hydred’s 18th birthday. A catastrophic automobile accident left her paralyzed. Hydred recounts the crash, months of hospitalization and rehabilitation, receiving her first wheelchair, and the long emotional journey from denial toward accepting a radically different life. She also contrasts her experience of acquired disability with that of fellow wheelchair pool champion Henrik Larsson, who has used a wheelchair since infancy. This first chapter is not yet the story of a world champion. It is the story of the young woman who would eventually become one. Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text. Support the show Follow our show and/or leave a review/rating on: Our website: https://www.legendsofthecue.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/legends-of-the-cue/id1820520463 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Za0IMh2SeNaWEGUHaVcy1 Music by Lyrium. About "Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with Hall of Fame members, world champions, and influential figures from across the world of cue sports—including pocket billiards, snooker, and carom disciplines such as three-cushion billiards. We highlight the people, places, and moments that have shaped the game—celebrating iconic players, memorable events, historic venues, and the brands that helped define generations of play. With a focus on the positive spirit of the sport, our goal is to create a rich, engaging, and timeless archive of stories that fans can enjoy now and for years to come. Co-hosted by WPA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher and Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, Legends of the Cue brings these stories to life—told in the voices of the game’s greatest figures. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cu...
September 22, 202637min
Number 3: Chris Melling - Part 2 (Becoming a World Champion)
Chris Melling had the talent. Now he had to prove he could beat the best. In Part Two of our Legends of the Cue conversation, Chris takes us inside his rise from promising young professional to one of the greatest English eight-ball players of his generation—and shares plenty of unforgettable stories from life on the road along the way. We begin with Chris’s longtime friendship with Darren Appleton. The two future champions traveled, practiced and competed together as young players, and Chris recalls the pranks, road trips and outrageous moments that came with their close friendship. Some stories have to be heard to be believed. Chris then explains what it really meant to be a professional English pool player in that era: the prize money, exhibitions, sponsorships, after-hours gambling and the relentless competition against players such as Mick Hill, Darren Appleton, Jason Twist and Gareth Potts. He also gives American pool fans a fascinating lesson in the differences between English eight-ball and American pool—from smaller balls and tighter pockets to the dramatically different behavior of the cue ball. Then comes the breakthrough. Chris looks back on defeating Rob McKenna 11–10 to capture the 2001 WEPF World Eightball Championship, including the emotional moment his mother joined him after the victory. He recalls defeating snooker legend Steve Davis in nine-ball and continuing to pursue professional snooker while simultaneously becoming one of pool’s dominant players. By 2003, Melling was even better. He defeated Jason Twist 11–7 for his second World Eightball Championship and remembers producing a nearly flawless performance in one of the fastest world finals ever played. World champion. World number one. And still looking for the next challenge. Part Two captures Chris Melling as his extraordinary natural ability became championship greatness. Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text. Support the show Follow our show and/or leave a review/rating on: Our website: https://www.legendsofthecue.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/legends-of-the-cue/id1820520463 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Za0IMh2SeNaWEGUHaVcy1 Music by Lyrium. About "Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with Hall of Fame members, world champions, and influential figures from across the world of cue sports—including pocket billiards, snooker, and carom disciplines such as three-cushion billiards. We highlight the people, places, and moments that have shaped the game—celebrating iconic players, memorable events, historic venues, and the brands that helped define generations of play. With a focus on the positive spirit of the sport, our goal is to create a rich, engaging, and timeless archive of stories that fans can enjoy now and for years to come. Co-hosted by WPA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher and Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, Legends of the Cue brings these stories to life—told in the voices of the game’s greatest figures. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cu...
September 08, 202638min
Number 4: Chris Melling - Part 1 (From Keighley Kid to Cue-Sports Pro)
Long before Chris Melling became known around the pool world as “The Magician,” he was a working-class kid from Keighley, West Yorkshire, who found both a refuge and a calling in a local snooker club. In Part One of our Legends of the Cue conversation with one of the most naturally gifted and versatile cueists of his generation, Chris takes us back to the very beginning. He recalls playing on a tiny pool table as a three-year-old, spending Saturday afternoons in the pub with his father, and the neighbor who recognized something special in the young Melling and introduced him to a full-size snooker table. What followed was remarkable. Chris made his first century break by age twelve and his first 147 at fourteen, practicing virtually every available hour while his parents made extraordinary financial sacrifices to support his dream. But his childhood story is about much more than prodigious talent. Chris speaks candidly about being bullied at school and how the snooker club became his escape. He discusses his extraordinary memory and ability to recognize patterns and angles, offering fascinating insight into the mental processes behind some of the seemingly impossible shots that would later earn him his famous nickname. Chris also opens up about his youthful gambling problems, the family members who supported his career, his memorable stint playing on a ladies’ pool team at age ten, and his rapid rise through the English junior ranks. The episode closes with the young Melling traveling and practicing alongside future champions Darren Appleton and Mick Hill and earning his place among the professional English eight-ball players. This is the origin story of Chris Melling: the family, sacrifice, adversity, confidence and thousands of hours at the table that created “The Magician.” Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text. Support the show Follow our show and/or leave a review/rating on: Our website: https://www.legendsofthecue.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/legends-of-the-cue/id1820520463 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Za0IMh2SeNaWEGUHaVcy1 Music by Lyrium. About "Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with Hall of Fame members, world champions, and influential figures from across the world of cue sports—including pocket billiards, snooker, and carom disciplines such as three-cushion billiards. We highlight the people, places, and moments that have shaped the game—celebrating iconic players, memorable events, historic venues, and the brands that helped define generations of play. With a focus on the positive spirit of the sport, our goal is to create a rich, engaging, and timeless archive of stories that fans can enjoy now and for years to come. Co-hosted by WPA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher and Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, Legends of the Cue brings these stories to life—told in the voices of the game’s greatest figures. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cu...
September 08, 202636min
Number 5: Henrik Larsson - Part 1 (Growing Up, Rock Guitar and Discovering Wheelchair Pool)
In Part 1 of our Legends of the Cue conversation with Swedish Parasport pool legend Henrik “Henke” Larsson, we go back long before the world championships and European titles to explore the experiences that shaped one of wheelchair pool’s greatest competitors. Henrik was just months old when a hemangioma inside his spinal cord resulted in the loss of movement in his legs. Growing up in Sweden in the 1970s, he entered a world with few accommodations for children with disabilities—but also a family determined that Henrik would be treated no differently from his two older sisters. He recalls the freedom, responsibilities and sometimes remarkable adventures his parents allowed him, along with the Swedish Parasport camps that reinforced a lifelong belief that problems existed to be solved. His reflections on childhood disability, self-worth, belonging and the emotional struggles he kept largely hidden provide some of the most revealing moments of the interview. Before pool, there was music. Henrik fell in love with the guitar, absorbing everyone from Paco de Lucía and Gary Moore to Eddie Van Halen. For a time, becoming a professional musician seemed entirely possible. Then he walked into a Swedish poolroom owned by Jörgen Sandman. Sandman had never seen a wheelchair player shoot pool, but he immediately recognized possibility. He offered to train Henrik, beginning a three-year mentorship that changed the course of his life. Henrik recounts working with the demanding Sandman, refereeing world-class players in Las Vegas, developing a stroke and technique adapted to playing from a wheelchair, and eventually leaving home at 19 for Stockholm in pursuit of one thing: becoming a better pool player. It’s the origin story of a champion—and of a life built around independence, curiosity and an unwavering willingness to try. Give Allison, Mark & Mike some feedback via Text. Support the show Follow our show and/or leave a review/rating on: Our website: https://www.legendsofthecue.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/legends-of-the-cue/id1820520463 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4Za0IMh2SeNaWEGUHaVcy1 Music by Lyrium. About "Legends of the Cue" is a cue sports history podcast featuring interviews with Hall of Fame members, world champions, and influential figures from across the world of cue sports—including pocket billiards, snooker, and carom disciplines such as three-cushion billiards. We highlight the people, places, and moments that have shaped the game—celebrating iconic players, memorable events, historic venues, and the brands that helped define generations of play. With a focus on the positive spirit of the sport, our goal is to create a rich, engaging, and timeless archive of stories that fans can enjoy now and for years to come. Co-hosted by WPA and BCA Hall of Fame member Allison Fisher and Mosconi Cup player and captain Mark Wilson, Legends of the Cue brings these stories to life—told in the voices of the game’s greatest figures. Join Allison, Mark and Mike Gonzalez for “Legends of the Cu...
August 25, 202634min