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Anyone for Tennis? #96

With The summer season well and truly upon us and Wimbledon almost here, I thought a blog about tennis might be in order!  The game of tennis first started in The Mediaeval days and involved hitting a ball with a bare hand and later with a glove.  By The 16th century The glove had become a racquet and The game had moved to an enclosed playing area and The rules had stabilized.  This was known as ‘real tennis’.  The word tennis came into use in English in The mid-14th century from French, via The Anglo-Norman term Tenez, which can be translated as 'hold', 'receive' or 'take', a call from The server to his opponent indicating that he is about to serve....

Hoar Cross Hall - Life below stairs #20

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:       This week I’ve done a history blog about The servants who lived at The Hall from The 1870s to The 1950s when The Hall became empty.  They were an essential part of keeping a big house running but were often not appreciated by The aristocracy as They went about Their day to day duties. The life of a servant in Victorian times was a hard one.  They had to rise at 5am to clean and light all The fires and dust and polish The floors, Then do a day’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight.  No wonder They didn’t live to a great age in those days!  By The end of The 19th century There were nearly...

Midnight pool parties #22

MIDNIGHT POOL PARTIES:      After leaving school I spent a year at Burton-on-Trent Technical College studying to be a secretary but my year at college had come to an end - now to find a job!  It didn’t take too long as There was plenty of employment around in those days and I was soon offered a position with a small engineering firm in Burton.  As I didn’t drive There was still The problem of me getting to work and dad managed to talk The residents of The apartments into taking me, as They were going to Burton every day as well, and it would save him coming out twice a day (no doubt he was thinking about The petrol he would save too!) Kev and The band...

Hoar Cross Hall - Life below stairs

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:       This week I’ve done a history blog about The servants who lived at The Hall from The 1870s to The 1950s, when The Hall became empty.  They were an essential part of keeping a big house running but were often not appreciated by The aristocracy as They went about Their day to day duties. The life of a servant in Victorian times was a hard one.  They had to rise at 5am to clean and light all The fires and dust and polish The floors, Then do a day’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight.  No wonder They didn’t live to a great age in those days!  By The end of The 19th century There were nearly...

Hoar Cross Hall - Life below stairs #39

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:    This week I’ve done a history blog about The servants who lived at The Hall from The 1870s to The 1950s when The Hall became empty. They were an essential part of keeping a big house running but were often not appreciated by The aristocracy as They went about Their day to day duties. The life of a servant in Victorian times was a hard one. They had to rise at 5am to clean and light all The fires and dust and polish The floors, Then do a day’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight. No wonder They didn’t live to a great age in those days! By The end of The 19th century There were nearly one and a hal...

Hoar Cross Hall - Life below stairs #18

HOAR CROSS HALL – LIFE BELOW STAIRS:   This week I’ve done a history blog about The servants who lived at The Hall from The 1870s to The 1950s when The Hall became empty. They were an essential part of keeping a big house running but were often not appreciated by The aristocracy as They went about Their day to day duties. The life of a servant in Victorian times was a hard one. They had to rise at 5am to clean and light all The fires and dust and polish The floors, Then do a day’s work, often not getting to bed much before midnight. No wonder They didn’t live to a great age in those days! By The end of The 19th century There were nearly one and a half...