| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Residence | London, England, United Kingdom |
| Born | 15 November 1963 Epsom, Surrey, England |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Turned pro | 1986 |
| Retired | 1992 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Career prize money | $344,338 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 22–57 (27.85% at ATP Tour, Grand Prix tour, WCT tour, and Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup) |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 80 |
| Grand Slam results | |
| Australian Open | 1st Round (1987, 1988, 1991) |
| French Open | N/A |
| Wimbledon | 2nd Round (1986, 1987) |
| US Open | 3rd Round (1987) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 63–70 at ATP Tour, Grand Prix tour, WCT tour, and Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup) |
| Career titles | 3 |
| Highest ranking | No. 45 |
| Grand Slam Doubles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (1991) |
| French Open | 3rd round (1987) |
| Wimbledon | 2nd Round (1986, 1987) |
| US Open | QF (1987) |
| Mixed Doubles | |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
| Australian Open | F (1987) |
| Last updated on: 11 June 2011. | |
Andrew Nicholas Castle (born 15 November 1963) is an English retired tennis professional, former British No. 1, and now television presenter.
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Castle was born in Epsom, Surrey. His mother, Lavinia Pollock (born Kathleen Mary, great-grandchild of Annie Besant), was adopted shortly after her birth. She married fishmonger Frank Castle in April 1953. The couple had five children: James; Richard; David; Fiona; and Andrew, who was born in 1963.[1]
Castle's father was a master fishmonger who ran the fishmongers in Westerham, Kent, where his customers included the lady of nearby Chartwell House, Winston Churchill's wife Clementine. He went on to own shops in North Cheam; Norbury; Stoneleigh, Surrey; and in Taunton, Somerset.
At the age of nine, Andrew was asked by a friend to come and play tennis: "I can remember every detail about the day, from the feel of the ball to how it sounded when coming off the net. I insisted we played for eight hours non-stop." His parents supported him, but ran out of money, and his father was declared bankrupt, so both of them became taxi drivers. After winning the UK under-12 national tennis championships, Castle was given a full tennis scholarship to Millfield School. When Castle was 15, his parents separated, and he had to leave Millfield, taking his A-levels at a local grammar school.[1]
Castle became a professional tennis player in 1986, after completing a Marketing degree whilst on an athletic scholarship in the United States. During his playing career, he was regularly ranked number one in Great Britain. He won three tour doubles titles, and was a mixed doubles finalist at the 1987 Australian Open. 1987 also saw his best career singles performance at a Grand Slam event, when he reached the third round of the U.S. Open, losing to Boris Becker in four sets. He represented Britain at the Seoul Olympic Games of 1988, and the Barcelona Olympic Games of 1992. Castle was a regular member of the British Davis Cup team and the European Cup team. His career-high rankings were world number 80 in singles and number 45 in doubles.
Castle represents Surrey at squash at over-45s level, and continues to play representative tennis around the world.
| Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
| Runner-Up | 1. | 1988 | Seoul Open, South Korea | Hard | Dan Goldie | 3–6, 7–6, 0–6 |
| Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score in the final |
| Winner | 1. | 1988 | Seoul Open, South Korea | Hard | Roberto Saad | Gary Donnelly Jim Grabb |
6–7, 6–4, 7–6 |
| Runner-Up | 1. | 1988 | Toronto, Canada | Hard | Tim Wilkison | Ken Flach Robert Seguso |
5–7, 3–6 |
| Winner | 2. | 1988 | Rye Brook, USA | Hard | Tim Wilkison | Jeremy Bates Michael Mortensen |
4–6, 7–5, 7–6 |
| Winner | 3. | 1990 | Adelaide, Australia | Hard | Nduka Odizor | Alexander Mronz Michiel Schapers |
7–6, 6–2 |
| Runner-Up | 2. | 1991 | Manchester, England | Grass | Nick Brown | Omar Camporese Goran Ivanišević |
4–6, 3–6 |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score in the final |
| Runner-Up | 1987 | Australian Open | Hard | Anne Hobbs | Zina Garrison Sherwood Stewart |
3–6, 7–6(5), 6–3 |
After retiring from professional tennis in 1992, Castle served as a commentator and presenter for BSkyB. He presented basketball, motor racing, and golf for Sky.
He joined GMTV in September 2000 as a presenter. After a decade, it was announced in June 2010 he was to leave the programme. Castle presented the final broadcast of GMTV on 3 September, 2010.[2]
He is also a key member of the Bafta-nominated BBC tennis team, covering Wimbledon, the AEGON Championships at Queen's Club, the French Open, Australian Open, and the Davis Cup. Castle has been lead commentator on all men's singles finals since 2003, working alongside John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Jimmy Connors, Tim Henman, and John Lloyd.
In 2005, he presented the quiz show Perseverance; he is the presenter of game show Divided; and has appeared on Beat the Star on 24 May 2009 - all on ITV. He took part in a new ITV programme 71 Degrees North in 2010.[3]
In 2011, he was the front man for First4lawyers's television advertisement.
Castle competed in the sixth series of the celebrity dance competition, Strictly Come Dancing. His partner was Ola Jordan. Castle's appearance marked the third time a main GMTV presenter has participated in the show. After Week 4, he was placed 11th out of the remaining 12 contestants, with an average score of 22.5/40. Andrew was voted out after round 7 of the competition on Sunday, November 2. He scored 21 points for his samba, which placed him second from bottom on the judges' leader board. He appeared in the dance-off with Heather Small, who was saved by all four of the judges.
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||||
| Horwood | Phillips | Goodman | Tonioli | Total | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha / Mercy | 4 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 23 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango / 20th Century Boy | 4 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 22 | Safe |
| 5 | American Smooth / You Know I'm No Good | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 17 | Safe |
| 6 | Viennese Waltz / Annie's Song | 5 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 24 | Bottom Two |
| 7 | Samba / Ain't it Funny | 4 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 21 | Eliminated |
On May 18, 1991, Castle married former Japan Airlines air hostess Sophia, whom he had met in Tokyo whilst competing in The Japan Open tennis tournament.[1] The couple have two children: Georgina (19), and Claudia (17).Georgina sang for the Great Ormond Street Hospital charity at the Inter Continental Hotel in May 2008, and gained considerable attention from press and record companies. Both children are sports scholars at their schools. On August 11, 2009, Castle challenged Health Secretary Andy Burnham during an interview on GMTV, after news reports had cast doubts on the effectiveness of Tamiflu against the swine flu virus. He said: “I can tell you that my child — who was not diagnosed at all — she had asthma, she took Tamiflu and almost died.”
Castle is a supporter and Patron of Shooting Star Chase which supports families at Christopher's Hospice in Surrey, and in their own homes and communities in South West London, Surrey, and Sussex, England. In April 2006, he attempted to run the London Marathon as President of The Brain and Spine Foundation Team but was hospitalised after falling unconscious after managing 25 miles of the 42.195-kilometre (26.219 mi) course.[4]Other charities of which he is a patron or supporter include Brainwave, The Dan Maskell Tennis Trust,Great Ormond Street Childrens hospital,Macmillan Cancer Care, the NSPCC and Clic Seargent cancer care for children.
In 2009, Andrew became a Patron of Festival4Stars talent competition, his daughter Georgina Castle was twice a runner up in the national finals.She now attends Central School of Speech and Drama in London DramaFestival4Stars: Welcome, International Songwriting Competition and UK Wide Talent Contest</ref>
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