THE stars have flocked to centre court to catch the action of day one at Wimbledon.
Superstars from all walks of life are filling the seats in the Royal Box as the iconic tournament gets underway.
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David Beckham was amongst the big names earning an invitation to the exclusive viewing area.
And the Manchester United and England hero brought his mum with him to enjoy the tennis alongside him.
Also in attendance was famous Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins who watched with her husband Andrew Levitas.
Other stars watching the tennis included pop star Pixie Lott and music icon Sir Cliff Richard.
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As well as Sky Sports presenter Kirsty Gallacher, pop sensation James Blunt and a number of actors from some of TV’s biggest shows.
While Sir David Attenborough was also spotted watching on in the Royal Box.
The environmentalist and broadcasting legend, 98, has a long standing connection to tennis.
Attenborough spearheaded a campaign to change tennis balls to the colour yellow.
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In the late 1960’s while working for the BBC, Attenborough was tasked with bringing colour to British televisions.
And in a bid to make things easier for viewers at home, he recommended changing the colour of the ball from white to yellow.
All the stars were hoping to watch some good tennis as they took their seats on centre court.
And the opening tie for them to tuck into was Carlos Alcaraz vs Mark Lajal.
While Emma Raducanu will start her campaign against Reneta Zarazua afterwards.
The 2021 US Open champ was due to face Ekaterina Alexandrova, but saw the 22nd seed pull out with illness this morning.
She was swiftly replaced by ‘lucky loser’ Zarazua.
Stars have to be invited into the Royal Box, with only 74 seats up for grabs for the elite fans.
It’s been used for guests of Wimbledon since 1922 and has seen British and overseas Royal Families attend over the years.
How Sir David Attenborough made tennis balls yellow
DID you know Sir David Attenborough is one of the main reasons tennis is played with yellow balls?
It’s hard to imagine Wimbledon being played without the signature fluorescent balls.
However, the truth is that upon the inception of lawn tennis in the late 1800s players would normally use white or sometimes black balls.
That went on until fans started to buy colour televisions.
Attenborough worked as a controller for BBC Two in 1967 and it was up to him to transition viewers to colour from black and white.
The legendary presenter quickly realised that it is hard to notice the white ball when it travels over white lines and suggested tennis chiefs switch to the bright, yellow colour.
The International Tennis Federation approved what is now known as the “optic yellow” ball in 1972.
But it took Wimbledon another 14 years before they finally saw the light, eventually making the switch for the Championships in 1986.
SEE WHICH OTHER STARS WERE IN ATTENDANCE…
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