Nephew of late snooker supremo Mike Watterson finds rare photos of 15-times world champion Joe Davis on Chesterfield market stall

Mark Watterson, 54, chanced upon a plastic wallet containing photographs and cuttings relating to the world snooker champion Joe Davis and his second wife June Malo.

He said: “It’s a treasure trove. There are private photographs that are clearly the only copies in the world. It’s amazing to find that collection on the market square only around the corner from Vicar Lane where Joe Davis won a world snooker final in 1932 or 1933 and had a snooker centre.”

Incredibly, stallholder Ray Heard had put the collection on display in the market for the first time despite getting his hands on it several years ago. Ray bought the memorabilia from a house clearance business then stashed it away in a banana box in his garage.

Mark said: “It was pot luck that I happened to go to the market that morning and found it.”

The wallet, which Mark bought for £38, contains photos of Joe receiving his OBE in London and theatre programmes relating to June’s career as a singer in Jack Hylton’s band.

There are pictures inside Joe and June’s opulent home in Phillimore Gardens in Kensington where property today costs between £30million and £37million. Mark said: “You could buy half of Chesterfield and Sheffield for that!"

Joe, who was born in Whitwell in 1901, won the World Snooker Championship 15 times and was four times English billiards world champion. He was the first person to win world championships both in billiards and snooker. His younger brother Fred was born in Chesterfield and was snooker world champion eight times.

Mark said: “June passed away in 2009 and Joe died in 1978. It’s a mystery as to how that wallet, which would have been in London, ended up here. I wonder whether it had gone to a family member who lived in Chesterfield and then died.”

Keen collector Mark is the nephew of the late professional snooker player and former Chesterfield FC chairman Mike Watterson who is credited with bringing the World Snooker Championships to Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre.

Mark, who lives in Sheffield and works for a bank, said: “I have always had an interest in snooker since I first went with my uncle and my dad, Peter, who was Mike’s older brother. My uncle bought Joe Davis’ car number plate CUE 1 in 1976. I’ve got a big snooker collection including items from the Forties and Fifties relating to Joe Davis. This wallet will be going into the Watterson snooker archive.

"I’ve got autographs of Prime Ministers. I’ve got every (football) cup final programme going back to the war. I have a World Cup final ticket from 1966 which was never used and belonged to one of the player’s families.

"I love going to Chesterfield market on Thursdays – I’m always finding bits and bobs. Ray had a newspaper from the King dying in 1936 and Winston Churchill dying, they were a bit yellow but he sold them to me for 50p each. I’ve also bought a letter from him that the wife of the guy who produced Buddy Holly sent.”