Played in Britain
Charting the heritage of a nation at play
We publish books about Britain's sporting heritage. If you like an old scoreboard, or a mildewed pavilion; if you would like to know where to find the world's oldest bowling green, or the best Art Deco grandstand in London; if you're fed up with homogenised, commercialised sport, and long to dive into a Victorian swimming pool with gorgeous ceramic tiling; if you think potting balls all afternoon in a dimly-lit billiard hall is definitely not time mis-spent; if you have ever wondered why tennis and suburbia go together so well, then Played in Britain is for you...
Find out more about Played in Britain, our books and our authors
Hugely impressive and immensely important, Played in Britain (is) rapidly becoming the guardian of the nation's sporting heritage.
Played in Britain news feed: reporting on Britain's sporting heritage
Open House London - Played in Britain recommends
September 2 2010
This year's Open House London takes place during the weekend of September 18-19 with a choice of well over 700 buildings and events to visit throughout the capital. Played in Britain has selected those venues we think will particularly appeal to those interested in sporting heritage, including the newly restored Grade II listed Marshall Street Baths in Soho.
Some venues must be booked in advance. For full details on all venues see: www.londonopenhouse.org.
Heritage Open Days - from a sporting perspective
September 2 2010
English Heritage's annual Heritage Open Days event takes place from September 9th-12th and includes several sports-related venues that may interest Played in Britain readers. Here's a round up of some places you might like to visit.
Please note that some venues require advance booking and are open for only part of the four day HODS event.
Kentish Town Sports Centre re-opens after £25m restoration
July 26 2010
One of London's finest and most cherished historic swimming pools, the former St. Pancras Baths (known since 1993 as Kentish Town Sports Centre) re-opens on Monday, July 26 following an ambitious £25.3m restoration programme, easily the largest sum ever spent on the rebuilding of a British public swimming pool complex.
Swimming costume collection
July 26 2010
An extensive collection of over 500 swimming costumes donated by a Lincolnshire woman forms the centrepiece of Life's a Beach, a new exhibition opening at Southend Museum on August 7. The exhibits include replica costumes from the early 19th century up to 1900 and then an example from every year until the late 1980s.
For more information on Life's a Beach visit southendmuseums.co.uk.
British Sporting Heroes exhibition
July 26 2010
Worcester Cathedral is getting into the spirit of the Olympics with a new exhibition, British Sporting Heroes, which runs from August 7 - 30. The exhibition will feature up to 60 sports personalities, past and present, and celebrate nine major sports with sporting memorabilia loaned by museums and private collectors, demonstrations and talks.
For more information on British Sporting Heroes visit sportingheroes.org.uk.
£5m Investment Secures Future of Historic Birmingham Sports Complex
July 15 2010
Swimmers and conservation groups in Birmingham are celebrating the announcement that Birmingham's oldest swimming pool, the Grade II listed Woodcock Street Baths, built in 1902, is to be retained by its owners, the University of Aston, as part of a £5 million refurbishment of the sports centre. The announcement is all the more timely given that next month marks the 150th anniversary of the first pool to have been built on the site.
Read more UK sport heritage news articles »
Selected titles from Played in Britain
Liquid Assets
The lidos and open air swimming pools of Britain
By Janet Smith
