The BBC has enraged snooker fans by cutting its live coverage of the epic quarter-final clash between Mark Williams and John Higgins. In what proved a match for the ages at the Crucible, Williams, 50, prevailed 13-12 to become the oldest player in history to make the semi-finals of the World Championship.

The ‘Welsh Potting Machine’ appeared to be cruising through after taking the first four frames of the morning to lead 12-8. Higgins responded in kind, though, to level the match and a thrilling decider, it was Williams who sank the blue, pink and black to take the frame 74-69. However, some fans were forced to miss almost two hours of the epic finale.

The coverage on BBC Two broke at 11.15am for Politics Live, while BBC One showed Homes Under the Hammer. The snooker returned at 1pm, just moments after Higgins had sensationally levelled the contest again.

Some viewers were left seething, with @ConorGibney posting on X: “BBC world snooker shows one hour of a super important match then goes to another show. I’ve signed up for TNT snooker, I will never watch snooker on BBC again.”

@TheDaveBrookes added: “Poor from the BBC. A classic quarter final in the World Snooker Championship makes way for Politics Live and can’t even be moved onto BBC1 to replace Homes Under The Hammer, which is on every single day!”

@BingoSnooker wrote: “TNT coverage is far better.” @76BHAT noted that other important sporting events on the BBC weren’t treated equally, saying: “Wimbledon seems to be the BBC’s annual sporting priority.”

The Beeb did show uninterrupted coverage on iPlayer and online. However, disgruntled fans pointed out this option wasn’t available to everyone, including viewers in Ireland.

The BBC has shown the World Championships daily since 1978. After negotiating a new deal two years ago, the channel now holds the broadcast rights to the tournament until 2027.