The three eco-mob pensioners who stormed Wimbledon in Just Stop Oil's latest stunt
The protesters who caused chaos at Wimbledon yesterday included a climate hunger striker, a grandmother, and a former trumpeter and Green Party candidate with a passion for countryside stiles. Three activists in their 60s invaded courts at Wimbledon yesterday in the latest salvo of disruptive protests against some of Britain's most iconic sporting events, including the , and the Ashes. Mancunian retired musician Simon Milner-Edwards, 66, and Deborah Wilde, a 68-year-old former teacher from North , were met with groans from the crowd when they leapt onto Court 18 and littered it with orange confetti and a jigsaw puzzle at 2pm yesterday. The stunt disrupted a game between Grigor Dimitrov and Sho Shimabukuro. Then, two hours later, retired civil engineer William Ward, 66, invaded a game between The activist stood as a Green Party candidate for Chorlton-cum-Hardy in the November 2018 by election, coming third with 608 votes. He is also a minor social media influencer in the unlikely topic of countryside stiles, with his 'stile guru' Instagram account sharing photos of the crossing points in a variety of locations in the Peak District and Lake District. Mr Ward is another veteran green activist who, in 2021, launched a hunger strike in the second week of COP26 in a bid to persuade negotiators to strike an agreement. A video shows him sitting in an office chair on a pavement near his home in Surrey next to a desk topped with a Sports Direct mug and signs reading 'climate crisis hunger strike - governments need to act'. Although he stayed outside in all weathers for four days, he ate at the end of the second day before switching to only tea and coffee. He told local newspape : 'I have started a hunger strike because I am disappointed in the lack of progress during the first week of COP26.' He had held an earlier hunger strike in August 2021 to coincide with Extinction rebellion protests. At the time he said he was not involved in any road blocking protests but understood the value of 'annoying people' because it created 'an enormous number of conversations'. Describing his motivation, he said: 'My big motivation is my grandchild that was born in June 2020. 'It's her future that I've really got my eye on, wanting to do my best for her, and all other children her age throughout the world. There's lots of children out there that need some kind of security in the future.' After being arrested yesterday, Ms Wilde also said she was motivated to protect her grandchildren. She said: 'I'm just an ordinary grandmother in resistance to this government's policy of serving us new oil and gas licences. In normal circumstances this sort of disruption would be entirely unacceptable, but these aren't normal circumstances. 'We've just had the hottest June on record, breaking the previous record by nearly a whole degree, We don't need Hawk-Eye to see that our government issuing over 100 new fossil fuel licences is a very bad line call.' Pensioners have also often been spotted at disruptive demos organised by Just Stop Oil. Tom Burke, a co-founder of independent climate think-tank E3G and a former executive director of Friends of the Earth, said it was a case of 'boomers rebelling against being blamed for the climate crisis by forging an alliance with youngsters'. He told MailOnline: 'Older people have more of a grasp about what a mess we are in. 'Their experience has brought them to understand what the consequences are for their children and grandchildren and they want to give voice to that concern. 'They know what's at stake when they do these kinds of disruptive protests but they have less of a future to worry about when it comes to having a criminal record. 'They're freer than younger people to take those risks.' Mr Burke said it would be 'lazy' to assume it was only young people who were organising the protests and deliberately recruiting older activists. He continued: 'You're talking about 60s kids. They could have been involved in other movements against things like Vietnam and now they're protesting against climate change. 'There's an idea around that this is just a bunch of young hooligans, but that's not true. 'These older people see that governments are failing to fulfil their promises on climate change and feel compelled to do something. 'It's a signal politicians should pay attention to.' Meanwhile, Simon Morgan, a former Met royal protection, public order and firearms officer, said Just Stop Oil may be using older protesters to sneak into Wimbledon because they are less noticeable. He told MailOnline: 'When you're talking about a sporting event like Wimbledon people are likely to be older - in their late 30s and above. That means you've got a lot of people who seem the same. 'Security will be profiling a certain demographic. If that demographic changes by age then those people may slip through the net.' Mr Morgan, who now works for Trojan Consultancy, said Just Stop Oil protesters risked diverting resources away from tackling terrorists. He continued: 'This is drawing police and security away from the people who want to do us harm. You are looking at a constantly changing situation where people are having to balance different threats.' It came as Just Stop Oil donor Dale Vince today warned the eco-mob on its 'target list' in a bid to grab headlines. He added that the 'most effective protest is a disruptive one' and he believes 'a few minutes delay at a sporting event really is nothing' compared to the number of people who are losing their lives to climate change. Stuart Pringle, the managing director of Silverstone, said earlier this week there is a 'high likelihood of serious injury or death' if similar protests are carried out at the F1 event and urged people 'not to be so stupid'. Vince also recognised that people might be sympathetic towards Just Stop Oils views rather than their methods. But he added that protests where people wave placards and stand to the side of the road are 'less effective' than causing disruption to people's everyday lives. Last week two Just Stop Oil activists ran onto the pitch during the second Ashes test at Lords after just one over of the first morning's play and attempted to throw orange powder paint on the grounds. England wicket keeper Jonny Bairstow quickly picked up one of the protesters and carried him off the field and has since been hailed on Twitter for his actions. Vince, who is also the chairman of league two football team Forest Green Rovers, said that play at Lords was only disrupted for 'three or four minutes', which he compared to figures from the UN which say four million people have been killed so far as a result of the climate crisis. He added that the 'real target' of the protests is the Government, who he claims are 'hellbent on drilling for more fossil fuels in the face of all of the science and political consensus globally'. Following the disruption caused on Court 18 at Wimbledon yesterday, the and stop Just Stop Oil eco-clowns from interrupting play. Home Office minister Chris Philp agreed that fans could intervene in the way the England cricketer last week picked up a climate change activist and carried him off the field at Lord's. But he added that 'nobody should do anything dangerous or hurt anyone' - and insisted it was firstly the job of stewards and marshals to deal with demonstrations. Mr Philp also said anyone who intervenes should be 'reasonable'.