
Played in London
Charting the heritage of a city at play
Simon Inglis(Author)
Historic England (Publisher)
Published on 1. September 2014
Book
Paperback/Softback
360 pages
978-1-84802-057-3 (ISBN)
Description
From its first century Roman amphitheatre to the 21st century Olympic Stadium at Stratford, London has always been a city of spectacles and sporting fever.
In the 12th century crowds would gather at Smithfield to watch horse racing and ball games. In Tudor times they flocked to the tiltyards of Whitehall and Westminster to enjoy jousting, while in the 17th century the Stuarts were keen exponents of a game with the familiar name of Pall Mall.
From more recent times Wembley, Wimbledon, Twickenham, Lord's and the Oval are known around the world. As the first city to have hosted three Olympic Games, London has also led the way in the development of athletics, boxing and gymnastics and, in the 20th century, of greyhound and speedway racing, and even of darts, once a fairground favourite, now contested in front of massive crowds at one of the capital's latest coliseums, the O2 Arena at Greenwich.
Profusely illustrated with detailed maps and in-depth research, Played in London is the most ambitious offering yet from the acclaimed Played in Britain series. Capital sport guaranteed!
In the 12th century crowds would gather at Smithfield to watch horse racing and ball games. In Tudor times they flocked to the tiltyards of Whitehall and Westminster to enjoy jousting, while in the 17th century the Stuarts were keen exponents of a game with the familiar name of Pall Mall.
From more recent times Wembley, Wimbledon, Twickenham, Lord's and the Oval are known around the world. As the first city to have hosted three Olympic Games, London has also led the way in the development of athletics, boxing and gymnastics and, in the 20th century, of greyhound and speedway racing, and even of darts, once a fairground favourite, now contested in front of massive crowds at one of the capital's latest coliseums, the O2 Arena at Greenwich.
Profusely illustrated with detailed maps and in-depth research, Played in London is the most ambitious offering yet from the acclaimed Played in Britain series. Capital sport guaranteed!
Reviews / Votes
Simon Inglis is rightly renowned for his writing on the cultural significance of stadia and other sporting buildings. Simon's 'Played in Britain' project has helped transform our understanding of what these structures mean to their localities, and his latest account of this relationship, 'Played in London' not only continues the richness of Simon's explanation but is unarguably his finest book in this extraordinary 'Played in...' series yet.Mark Perryman, Philosophy Football The epic breadth of sport and places covered with a forensic level of research is something to marvel at. ... a beautiful encyclopaedia of London's sporting and social history.
Sport Magazine Sports historian Inglis's compendium of facts, figures, stories, street signs and photos is the perfect present for sports loving Londoners.
Neil O'Sullivan, Financial Times What makes this journey so enjoyable is Simon Inglis' witty, sagacious and tremendously informative text... London's sporting heritage could have no finer guardian and watch-keeper.
Groundtastic A sumptuous, meticulously researched book... also a cracking good read.
Matthew Syed, The Times This magnificent tome will stand as the masterwork authority on the capital's sporting heritage for many decades to come. We picked it up with only a passing interest in sport. We put it down, 240,000 words later, with a newfound appreciation for the stadia, pitches and sporting traditions of the capital... It's not only a publishing achievement of the highest order, but also an immensely good read.
Londonist.com Our Book of the Year... Quite simply an exceptional work of social and architectural history. Deeply researched, superbly written, beautifully designed and printed with hundreds of photos, illustrations and maps.
London Historians This latest volume from Simon Inglis provides a fascinating portrait of the sporting grounds in the 2012 Olympic City of London. ... Magnificent illustrations, many of them reproduced for the first time in many years, are complemented by a bright, informative but never over powering text.
Philip Barker, Journal of Olympic History This is a quite remarkable publication and I am not at all sure that I - or any reviewer - can do it justice; you must see it for yourself to discover the range, the depth and the detail, all of which are soon evident. ... It cannot ve too highly recommended.
Gerald Gurney, The Tennis Collector Simon Inglis's writing is lucid, personal and thought provoking. ... the book is endlessly fascinating in its detail and depth. It is almost impossible to do full justice to such a compendious publication - there are hundreds of illustrations (photographs, paintings, drawings, maps and more) which enhance and illuminate the text.
Richard Pugh, Journal of the Islington Archaeology & History Society
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Swindon
United Kingdom
Illustrations
933 Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 280 mm
Width: 210 mm
Weight
1470 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-84802-057-3 (9781848020573)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Simon Inglis has written and contributed to numerous books on the history, architecture and heritage of sport.
Content
Foreword by Rod Sheard
Introduction
1. Played in London
SPORTSCAPES
2. Open space
3. River Thames
4. Crystal Palace Park
5. Wembley Park
6. Lea Valley
7. Dulwich
8. Westway
SPORTS BUILDINGS
9. Pavillions
10. Grandstands
11. Membership clubs and institutes
12. Company sports clubs
13. Gymnasiums and drill halls
14. Billiard halls
15. Skateparks
16. Outdoor swimming pools
17. Indoor swimming pools
SPORTS
18. Bowls
19. Archery
20. Cricket
21. Golf
22. Football
23. Rugby
24. Real tennis
25. Fives
26. Rackets and squash
27. Lawn tennis
28. Athletics
29. Cycling
30. Greyhound racing
31. Speedway
32. Conclusions
Links
Credits
Index
Introduction
1. Played in London
SPORTSCAPES
2. Open space
3. River Thames
4. Crystal Palace Park
5. Wembley Park
6. Lea Valley
7. Dulwich
8. Westway
SPORTS BUILDINGS
9. Pavillions
10. Grandstands
11. Membership clubs and institutes
12. Company sports clubs
13. Gymnasiums and drill halls
14. Billiard halls
15. Skateparks
16. Outdoor swimming pools
17. Indoor swimming pools
SPORTS
18. Bowls
19. Archery
20. Cricket
21. Golf
22. Football
23. Rugby
24. Real tennis
25. Fives
26. Rackets and squash
27. Lawn tennis
28. Athletics
29. Cycling
30. Greyhound racing
31. Speedway
32. Conclusions
Links
Credits
Index