The 1978

Pot Black ''Pot Black'' was a snooker tournament in the United Kingdom broadcast on the BBC. Each match was contested over a single , where other tournaments were significantly longer. The event carried no ranking points, but played a large part in th ...

was a professional invitational snooker tournament, which was held in the

Pebble Mill Studios Pebble Mill Studios was the BBC's television studio complex located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, United Kingdom, which served as the headquarters for BBC Birmingham from 1971 until 2004. The nine-acre site was opened by Princess Anne ...

in Birmingham, and this year, the tournament returned to 8 players competing in 2 four player groups. All matches were one-frame shoot-outs but the final this year was played in the best of 3 frames on a one-hour programme. Broadcasts were on

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matter, incorporating genres such as comedy, drama and ...

and started at 21:00 on Friday 6 January 1978

Alan Weeks Alan Frederick Weeks (8 September 1923 – 11 June 1996) was an English television sports reporter and commentator for the BBC from 1951 to 1996. He was assigned to work as the publicity manager of the Brighton Sports Stadium after he was d ...

presented the programme with

Ted Lowe Edwin Charles Ernest Lowe (1 November 19201 May 2011) was an English snooker commentator for the BBC and ITV. His husky, hushed tones earned him the nickname "Whispering Ted". Life and career Born in Lambourn, Berkshire, Lowe was general manage ...

as commentator and Sydney Lee as referee. The previous year's finalist

Doug Mountjoy Douglas James Mountjoy (8 June 1942 – 14 February 2021) was a Welsh snooker player from Tir-y-Berth, Gelligaer, Wales. He was a member of the professional snooker circuit from the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, and remained within t ...

beat twice Pot Black Champion

Graham Miles Graham Miles (11 May 1941 – 12 October 2014) was an English snooker player. Career Miles turned professional in 1971. He first gained recognition in 1974, when he reached the final of the World Championship, losing 12–22 to Ray Reardon. As ...

in the first final to have a best of 3 frames format 2–1.

Main draw

The draw for the group stages was made by comedian

Eric Morecambe John Eric Bartholomew (14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984), known by his stage name Eric Morecambe, was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise formed the double act Morecambe and Wise. The partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's de ...

Main draw

Group 1

Group 2

Knockout stage

References