Ah…the other beautiful game, beloved of park fence jumpers and upper class grunters alike. Like many popular sports, tennis may have originated in Britain, but we’re pretty consistent in our ineptitude at it. This is not for the lack of trying: the country’s capital is packed full of tennis clubs, outdoor park courts and large sports complexes.
Tennis is certainly not as exclusive as it once was, with an hour’s playing a lot cheaper than ten-pin bowling, for example. You can mince about amidst leafy surroundings in Hyde Park (Hyde Park Tennis and Sports Centre, 020 7262 3474), flail in the dark depths of Finsbury Park on a turn-up-and-play basis, or in the luxury of the historic Queens Club (www.queensclub.co.uk, 020 7386 3429 for membership information). Also commendable are the Paddington Sports Club (psclondon.com or 020 7286 8448) in Maida Vale and the courts in Regent’s Park: go to www.tennisintheparks.co.uk for information on, uh, playing tennis in parks. Indicative of the new equalitarian nature of the game are Tennis London International (www.tennislondon.com) who take pride in being ‘the largest gay and lesbian tennis group in the UK.’ But it’s not all democratic: there’s always Wimbledon (www.wimbledon.org, which due to the jaw-dropping ticket prices, still is as exclusive as it’s always been. If you still want to get caught up in the annual tennis frenzy, head to Henman Hill, or Murray Mound, or whatever it’s called these days. Essentially a hill outside Centre Court, here you can sit on the grass and watch the action on video screens with all the other poor proles who don’t have any kidneys left to trade for a ticket.
Like some weird secret society, squash players spend their time locked indoors, organised into little private clubs and engaged in an activity which will eventually mess them up. Squash is hard—just ask your poor knees. The squash court is a high-octane containment tank swimming in adrenalin, which explains why Londoners have taken to it with such gusto. A court at Sobell Leisure Center (020 7609 2166) in Finsbury Park for example, is near impossible to book at peak times. Be warned—a lot of sports centres don’t have squash facilities, but somewhere like the Oasis Sports Centre (020 7831 1804) in Tottenham Court Road is a church to all things sweaty and squashy…and you can go for an outdoor swim afterwards, too. For a quirkier court try Maiden Lane Youth Club (020 7267 9586)—a community centre in a housing estate, which has one beat-up court for an hourly fee. If there isn’t a yoga class in progress, that is.
They may be worlds apart in many ways, but badminton and table tennis are usually offered in the same place, and both are ‘genteel’ sports in which it is almost acceptable to be beaten by the opposite sex (whichever sex you are). Badminton is especially popular across the board, with almost all sizeable sports centres offering courts and equipment. However, if you’ve any experience in attempting to book a court at most public sports complexes you’ll know of the often depressing amount of phone wrangling and frustration that arises from these exchanges. Chief perpetrator is Kings Hall Leisure Centre (020 8985 2158) in Lower Clapton, who will test your patience to inhumane limits. The Brixton Recreation Centre (020 7095 5100) caters to badminton and squash players but always sound like they can’t wait to get you off the phone; their rates are £6.25-£8.50 for badminton, which is pretty competitive. The Sobell Centre, as mentioned above, also caters for table tennis (doesn’t “ping pong” sound nicer?) and badminton. The best strategy is to phone your local centre to ascertain which racquet sports they cater for and then prepare yourself to be either double-booked, misinformed or given a free session depending on the ability of the desk assistant!