George Edward Godsell (26 April 1907 – 1 May 1953) was a British tennis player. Based in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, Godsell was active from the 1930s to early 1950s. Locally he won the singles title at

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

four times and he was also a winner of the

East of England Championships The East of England Championships also called the East of England Lawn Tennis Championships was a men's and women's grass court tennis tournament founded in 1885 as the Felixstowe Open Lawn Tennis Tournament. In 1889 the event had by this time beco ...

. He competed regularly at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

and reached the singles third round twice. Playing into his 40s, he reportedly appeared in 49 tournament finals across 1949 and 1950, believed to be the most of any male player during this time. Godsell died at the age of 46 from

carbon monoxide poisoning Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as "flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large e ...

, having taken his own life. He was found dead at his home in West London. A neighbour revealed during an inquest that Godsell had been depressed and was suffering from a painful back injury, which had recently ended his tennis career. His death took place at 18, Sinclair Road, Kensington, London W8, and he left an estate valued for probate at £12,000.GODSELL George Edward of 18 Sinclair Road London W.8 died 1 May 1953
in ''England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995'', ancestry.co.uk, accessed 7 January 2023

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Godsell, George 1907 births 1953 deaths British male tennis players English male tennis players Tennis people from Gloucestershire Suicides by carbon monoxide poisoning Suicides in Kensington