I visited Sheffield city centre, and businesses told me the same thing ahead of the World Snooker championship

The big screen is in place in the fanzone, The stage has appeared in the Winter Garden.

Sheffield is getting ready for the World Championship snooker to start at The Crucible, and The Star has been out to find out how Sheffield is preparing for its spell in the sporting spotlight.

As soon as I reached Tudor Square, it was clear that preparations for the tournament, which puts Sheffield at the centre of the sporting map for two weeks, were well underway.

Already, the Winter Garden has been done out as a television studio, with the stage where the BBC presenters will be standing to introduce the coverage from this weekend. As I walked past, you could hear people asking staff in high vis tops when it was due to start.

At the far end of the Winter Garden, staff at the popular Zooby’s deli said they were already getting prepared for what is expected to be one of their busiest times of the year.

Catering assistant Jake Johnson said: “We’re ordering loads of extra stuff like bacon, water and sausages because we know that we’ll be getting a lot of extra customers. We’re getting some extra staff in because obviously we’re going to be busy. We’ve been prepping a lot and we’re reminded of how busy it’s going to be.”

He said bacon and sausage sandwiches, breakfast foods were expected to be the best sellers.

“We like to be busy,” he said. “We have the odd player turn up.”

On the other side of the Winter Garden, work was well underway on transforming Tudor Square

A giant television screen could already be seen in front of the library building, already showing snooker action. Some sat in nearby cafes watching the screen, while workmen’s heads could be seen popping up from behind hoardings under screens as they got on with the work setting up.

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A huge roll of plastic sheeting was in place on the ground at the centre of the square, bordered by a low fence. Inside, men wearing high vis were beginning to drop wooden picnic tables inside the space of what looked to be the fan zone, as rain started to fall.

At the Crucible itself, no one was being admitted to the theatre, with security personnel on the door. Outside, lorries and mobile cabins were being fitted up, ready for the television crews who will be broadcasting the action inside the theatre.

Just around the corner, staff at Mama’s and Leonie’s, an Italian restaurant on Norfolk Street, were also getting busy.

Supervisor Tracy Ellerington, who is hoping her favourite former player, John Parrott, will visit, said it was an exciting and busy week.

She said: “We have to do a lot of stock control to make sure that we’ve got a lot of stock in. Our takeaway boxes and foils, we double up on them because we get a lot of the camera crews in, and get everything clean and up and running.”

She said she expected next week to be extremely busy.

She said: “As soon as the snooker finishes, we get absolutely rammed, with a quick turnaround so they can get back in for the afternoon.

“I’ve worked the snooker here at Mamas, and I bet I’ve done 25 years of it. It’s fantastic. We’ve seen the younger snooker players become the older snooker players, and now the younger ones are coming in. It’s been brilliant.

She said they get the players coming in, but it is the older ones that they see the most.

There is already snooker going on in Sheffield, but only at the English Institute of Sport, where the qualifiers are taking place. As far as the Sheffield snooker is concerned it is the starters.

Now the main course is getting closer.