Wimbledon Village and Town

Although synonymous with the world’s leading tennis tournament, Wimbledon is first and foremost a place. Situated within the London borough of Merton, it comprises an urban town centre, a village, a large common and a park which is of course the site of the famous All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club.  

Its history dates back to the Iron Age when the area was constructed on a hill fort, a structure of banks and ditches built into the ground as a form of military defence. Its inhabitants centred around the hill in the middle of the common and it was originally known as “Wimbedounyng”. The land was owned by the church until the late 14th century when it passed to the crown and was subsequently bought and sold to a succession of monarchs and nobility. In the mid 18th century it was owned by the first Earl of Spencer, the 8th Earl being Diana, Princess of Wales’ father.  Over time Wimbledon continued to attract wealthy families and a number of architecturally grand houses were built, which still stand today. These include the Jacobean manor, Eagle House, Cannizaro House which now operates as a hotel in the village and Chester House, a private home estimated to be worth around £15 million.

To cater to this growing affluent community, shops began to spring up. The first being the town’s butcher, Phanuel Maybank, in 1670, and was followed by a tailor, bakers and a builder, amongst others. Many of these original shops still stand though they are now populated by the more ‘chi-chi’ Cath Kidston, Bang & Olufsen and Molten Brown! To most locals Wimbledon Village is where ‘town meets country’. Acres of greenery offering outdoor pursuits such as golf, horse-riding and of course tennis, alongside chic restaurants and shops in keeping with stylish London.

As transport links improved and expanded, first with the stagecoach service then a variety of rail services, the population rapidly expanded. This meant more housing and retail which eventually led to the formation of Wimbledon Town Centre located at the foot of the hill away from the village. This is home to Ely’s department store which was established in 1870 and is still going strong today.

For open space, fresh air, nature trails and a windmill thrown in, head to Wimbledon Common. Well-known in the 1970s as home to the fictional children’s characters ‘The Wombles. These furry creatures lived on the Common and spent their time collecting litter and recycling objects people had no use for. Essentially early adopters of the green movement! Massively popular at the time, the TV series led to all manner of merchandise including placemats and duvet covers as well as a rather illustrious pop career; spawning  four top ten hits and four albums that went gold.  Sadly you won’t actually find any Wombles on the Common but you will find the rather delightful Windmill Tearooms selling an array of drinks and homemade food. Once refreshed, it’s just a short hop to visit the Windmill itself which houses a museum and gift shop.

Wimbledon’s other green space is the park which as well as offering facilities such as a Bowling Green and Crazy Golf, has a beautiful lake originally created when the area was landscaped by Capability Brown in the 18th Century. Considered an artist as well as ‘England’s Greatest Gardener’ he also designed and landscaped Warwick Castle and Blenheim Palace in Oxford.  The Park also incorporates part of London’s Capital Ring Route. This is a 78 mile walk that encircles central London, devised by the London Walking Forum to encourage walking for exercise while appreciating London’s landscape. Two sections of the Capital Ring cross through the Park linking up to other areas locally and there are leaflets available to follow the routes.

Wimbledon Tennis

But the Park’s most well-known resident is of course The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet  Club, venue for the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament. The Club is located in Aorangi Park which is just across the road from Wimbledon Park and has been hosting the tournament for 134 years. Still considered the most prestigious, it is the only Grand Slam tournament played on grass. Originally set up in 1877 as an amateur competition, its sole aim was to raise money in order to purchase a pony-drawn roller for its prized Croquet lawns. The winner was 27 year old Spencer Gore who along with all other entrants, paid a guinea (worth £1 and a shilling) for the privilege of taking part. By 1884 Ladies Singles and Gentlemen’s Doubles competitions were added then eventually Ladies & Mixed Doubles by 1913. Brits dominated the championships winning all titles until 1905 when the first overseas winner was May Sutton from the USA who took the Ladies title. Britain’s most famous player was of course Fred Perry who not only won the title 3 times and has an iconic range of clothing named after him, but was the last British man to win in 1936. A constant source of frustration to the average British tennis fan! There are a total of 19 courts including the show courts Centre & Number 1. In 2009 a retractable roof was finally installed over Centre Court in order for play to carry on in the likely event of rain. Though the sight of green-shirted ground staff running across court dragging the tarpaulin behind them is as much a tradition of Wimbledon as the strawberries and cream!

Because of its illustrious history the Championships have seen an impressive array of talent and witnessed some memorable matches over the years:-

• •    Boris Becker’s win in 1985 at the age of 17. Not only the youngest, but the first unseeded player to win. He charmed the crowd with his infectious enthusiasm and dazzling displays of dives across the court.
• •    John McEnroe’s talent and tantrums. A naturally gifted player, McEnroe was a joy to watch, but often drew more attention through his bad behaviour which resulted in him almost being ejected from the tournament in 1981
• •    Martina Navratilova’s contribution and domination of the women’s game. She has won the Ladies title 9 times but holds the record for the most career titles of either men or women with a record-breaking 167.
• •    Billie-Jean King. Probably the greatest ever competitor at Wimbledon winning 20 titles in total.
• •    Rod Laver. Considered by many to be the world’s greatest player, he was certainly the forerunner to the modern game and took it to a whole new level from the 1960s.
• •    Pete Sampras’ cool and calculated dominance of the game in recent times. Holds the record for most Men’s titles, along with William Renshaw from the pre-war era, with 7 wins.
• •    Steffi Graf. Wimbledon Ladies title holder 7 times and still the only player (male or female) to have won all four grand slam titles in one year along with the Olympic Gold medal. Known as the “Golden Grand Slam”.

 

 

 

Wimbledon 'Hot Picks' - the best matches in recent memory

Bjorn Borg v John McEnroe  1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7, 8-6  - Men’s Final 1980

Considered by many to be the best final of all time and featuring two personalities and styles that could not have been more different. Borg was at his peak having won the Championship four consecutive years previously. McEnroe seemed ready to take the title and won the first set easily. Borg quickly took back the next two then the game took a nail-biting turn in the fourth which played out to 34 points with McEnroe winning it 18-16. Borg finally took the match in the fifth set admitting years later that it was the first time he had felt real fear about losing his dominant position in tennis.

Jimmy Connors v Mikael Pernfors  1-6, 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-2 -  Men’s 4th round 1987

What appeared to be a fairly pedestrian match at the start became one of the most impressive ‘turnaround’ performances ever seen. At 34 Connors’ career was effectively considered on the wane. Pernfors was 10 years his junior and part of the dominating Swedish stable consisting of Mats Wilander & Stefan Edberg amongst others. Pernfors took the first 2 sets easily and was leading 4-1 in the 3rd and with Connors struggling to cope with a knee injury it looked like an easy victory for the Swede. But miraculously Connors found his fighting spirit and proceeded to take 18 of the final 25 games to ultimately win the match. He said afterwards his battered ego had spurred him on to fight back.

John Isner v Nicolas Mahut  6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68   -  Men’s 4th round 2010

The epic match to end all epic matches which officially entered the record books as the longest in tennis history! Lasting 11 hours and 5 minutes the game was played over 3 days in total and proved to be a massive crowd-pleaser. Afterwards, both players were presented with a special crystal bowl and champagne flutes in recognition of their performance.

Steffi Graf v Jana Novotna 7-6, 1-6, 6-4    Women’s Final 1993

A match brimming with emotion and a classic ‘rooting for the underdog’ scenario. Steffi Graf was on course to take her 5th Wimbledon title when she won the first set. But Novotna, a Wimbledon final first-timer hungry for victory, proceeded to fight back taking the second set 6 - 1. An upset looked on the cards as Novotna took a 4 -1 lead and was 40-15 up to make it 5 – 1. Sadly nerves got the better of her and she allowed Graf back in to the game and to subsequently win it. What made this match so memorable was Jana Novotna’s emotional reaction. Unable to fight back her tears during the presentation she earned a hug from the Duchess of Kent and the support of the crowd who really empathised with her disappointment at throwing away such an opportunity.

The All England Lawn Tennis Club, Church Road, Wimbledon, London, SW19 5AE

Call:  +44 (0)20 8944 1066

Nearest Tube: Wimbledon, Southfields or South Wimbledon.

Rail: Wimbledon Station (from Waterloo)

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