Andy "The Viking" Fordham is a professional darter from England with a long list of achievements notably winning the '2004 Lakeside World Championships. Most recently he has been diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and reportedly needs a liver transplant to survive. His quest is to regain his health and get back to the line to compete.

Towards this goal, he's given up alcohol and works to incorporate good nutrition and exercise into his lifestyle. I've seen him compete in Vegas, and interviewed others who know Andy Fordham personally. Everyone who has commented about Andy Fordham has only nice things to say about him as a friend, fellow competitor, darter and all-around man of the world. His reputation is that of a genuinely good guy, a teddy bear with a gentle disposition and his family, friends and darters from around the world hope and pray for his recovery. He's literally in a fight for his life and hopefully he'll bring that fierce fighting "Viking" gale-wind force to his recovery and triumph over this challenge in his life, so he can get back to new challenges at the line!

I contacted the company that sponsors Andy Fordham in hopes he would answer few questions. Here is the reply that I received from Simon of Nodor-Winmau-Red Dragon Darts:

Hi Sherilyn,

I’ll forward your questions onto Andy and I’m sure he’ll be happy to answer your questions. As for the requested articles please see the attached PDF files that I have provided. I just had a look over your site and it’s brilliant, so informative!!

Best Wishes, Simon Hall
Red Dragon Darts

It took a bit of time, but Simon did indeed contact Andy Fordham who was gracious with his time and energies in answering a few questions...My thanks to both Simon and Andy Fordham.

Chit Chat With Andy "The Viking" Fordham...

At what age did you begin playing darts? 20

What kind of darts do you throw? Winmau 19 gram darts that I designed.

When did you realize that you had a real talent for throwing and when did you enter the professional dart arena? After playing for 4/5 years in the local pub leagues, I won a few doubles and singles events.

And things then started to roll as I entered more and more events and before you know it I was playing Superleague, then selected for the County and one of my proudest moments was then being selected to play for England.

It took about 7 years before I really ended up as a Pro, but the time flew by. My First Lakeside was in 1995 but the real tour travelling was in 1993 & 1994 as I was then chasing every single ranking point that I could.

What have been your most joyful experiences playing darts? Winning the 2004 Lakeside World Championships was simply amazing.

Your best moments? Winning my first big event, the Finland Open was a huge relief and satisfaction as it made me believe I was amongst the best.

What have been your favorite tournaments? The Lakeside is very special because it’s such a great week. I meet all my old darts mates and catch up with loads of fans and people, where we play loads of darts and soak in the atmosphere.

Does your wife support your dart career? Yes she’s always been a huge support for me, especially in view of the fact that she’s not a great darts fan!! She loves the Lakeside as it’s a great week off work!!

What advice do you have for the passionate darter just starting to play and compete? Play as many events as you can, and try to enjoy it. And don’t expect too much from the start.

What darters do you admire and why? Eric Bristow as he’s such a great character as well as an awesome darts player, and it was great to see him back on the stage at the Betfred League of Legends.

What countries have been the most hospitable to you with regards to playing darts? Holland dart fans and people are unbelievable, they make you feel like a huge star and they are so friendly and encouraging, they just seem to love me and it’s a special place for me.

Have you been treated well in the US playing darts? Yes! I played in the North US Open and Vegas and it was amazing as everyone was great fun and I really enjoyed the darts scene.

Ever shot a Ton70 out? A perfect '501 game? Yes '170 and yes the perfect '501.

What is your practice routine like? When I first started I practiced at every opportunity I could, where I would hammer doubles, trebles, 501, round the clock and anything anyone wanted to play. However, as I started travelling to events more and doing more pro darts the amount of competitions and exhibitions was enough to keep me sharp.

Do you have any words of wisdom for other darters? Keep enjoying the game and make sure you throw from the same distance all the time!!

What do you hope to accomplish with regard to your future in darts? Darts is a little on the back burner behind my health, but I still hope to make it back on the world stage.

Would you do anything differently? Yes, not drinking too many spirits!!

What changes have you made in an effort to become more healthy? Given up drink and focusing on eating a balanced diet with as much exercise as I can handle.

Editor's Note: A special note of thanks to Andy Fordham for graciously taking the time and energy to indulge me with a bit of chit chat. As with everyone else in the world, I wish Andy Fordham only the best, a speedy recovery and return to good health. God speed and God bless.


Andy "The Viking" Fordham

Sponsor Winmau Extends Fordham's Contract Thru '2010 - Winmau Confident in Fordham's Future Dart Career...

Winmau has announced that it has signed a contract with one of the most popular personalities in darts, Andy Fordham. Andy has become a major TV celebrity since being seen by 4.6 million BBC viewers when he was crowned the BDO's '2004 Lakeside World Professional Darts Champion...

Note: In order to read the PDF articles listed below, you must install Adobe Acrobat Reader software on your system. This software is free, only needs to be installed once and is quick and painless to install.

Winmau and Andy "The Viking" Fordham - New Sponsorship Deal

Winmau Signs Dart Champion and TV Star Andy "The Viking" Fordham

The Winmau Interview: Tea and Bisquits with Andy Fordham

Additional Reprinted Articles About Andy "The Viking" Fordham...

Red Dragon Darts

This UK based online dart store has TONS of *SPECIAL* items ready to ship to passionate darters worldwide, including darts, personalized dart accessories for men AND women, books, the Dragon's Lair Dart Forum, special value deals, unique accessories, some unique pins, Dart Wii games, and much more. Red Dragon Darts also includes links to sponsored/affiliated professional passionate darters including Trina "Golden Girl" Gulliver, Andy "The Viking" Fordham, Dennis Priestley and more.