A People’s History of Tennis

Product Description

Pristine lawns, tennis whites, strawberries and cream, tennis is synonymous with the upper echelons of society, but scratch beneath the surface and you’ll quickly discover a different history, one of untold struggles on and off the courts. 

From the birth of modern tennis in Victorian Britain to the present day, we bear witness to struggles around sexuality, gender, race and class that have transformed the nature of tennis and sport itself. A People’s History of Tennis is populated by diverse voices, recounting the sport’s gay origins, ‘Workers’ Wimbledon’, battles for gender equality and more.

Going beyond center court, this book reveals the hidden history of the game, providing a rich account of the challenges faced and victories won.

Review

‘A People’s History of Tennis is beautifully written and sensibly organized. It is also balanced and careful in its analyses, a credit to the author’s thorough, and at times evidently painstaking, research. The flow from narrow to broad, from personal to political, was seamless. I rather enjoyed the numerous historical and contemporary anecdotes that illuminated the broader arguments being made throughout the text. Through these personalised stories of players ranging from recreational to elite level, you get a “feel” for how tennis featured in their lives, why it mattered to them and what opportunities and challenges it provided them. Overall, the book has left me with more questions than answers, and that is probably the best compliment I could pay it.’  Professor Robert J Lake, Author of ‘A Social History of Tennis in Britain’ 

About the Author

David Berry is a writer, journalist and filmmaker. He has written about health and leisure for a variety of publications, and for twenty-five years he was a documentary director for the BBC. He has been playing tennis since he was eleven years old.