Hurlingham Club
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The Hurlingham Club is an exclusive sports club in Fulham in southwest London, England.
The club, founded in 1869, is situated by the River Thames in Fulham, west London, and has a beautiful Georgian clubhouse set in 42 acres (170,000 m2) of grounds. The Hurlingham provides social and sporting facilities for its members and their guests, including tennis, croquet, cricket, bowls, golf, squash and swimming (with both indoor and outdoor pools) as well as the fitness facilities provided in the Fitness Centre and gymnasium.
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[edit] History
In 1867 Frank Heathcote obtained the leave of Richard Naylor, the Victorian capitalist, to promote pigeon shooting matches at Hurlingham. His next step was the formation of the Hurlingham Club for this purpose and 'as an agreeable country resort'. The club leased the estate from Mr Naylor in 1869 and in 1874 acquired the freehold.
The pigeon is still the club's crest. Until 1905 clouds of pigeons were released in the summer from an enclosure near what is now a tennis pavilion.
The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), an early patron, was a keen shot and his presence ensured the club's status and notability from the beginning. The club has recently hosted several prestigious motorshows.
Before the Second World War Hurlingham was the headquarters of British polo, and the governing body of British polo is called the Hurlingham Polo Association. However polo is no longer staged at Hurlingham after the size of the club was significantly reduced after the war when the polo fields were compulsorily purchased to build council housing (the Sullivan Estate).
The Guards Polo Club in Windsor Great Park has succeeded to the status of the leading British polo club.
[edit] Membership
Members must be proposed and seconded by two current full members of the club. There is currently a waiting list for membership, but children of current members are given preference when vacancies do arise. Because of this, some recent joining members have had to wait fifteen years, and the club advises new applicants that longer waits could be possible in future. The top 1,400 candidates on the waiting list are offered temporary off-peak membership. In 2008, some of those offered this level of membership had waited nine years.[1]
The club currently has more than 10,000 members.[2]
[edit] Notable Members
'Nasty' Nick Bateman from the first series of Big Brother, Amanda de Cadenet, Lord Fowler, Lord Temple-Morris, Adam Raphael, the 'Carry On' actress Liz Fraser, the actor Trevor Eve and his wife Sharon Maughan are all members of the Hurlingham Club.
[edit] Facilities
Hurlingham Club members enjoy sporting activities including tennis, croquet, cricket, bowls, golf, squash and swimming (with both indoor and outdoor pools) as well as fitness facilities and a gymnasium. Regular social events; games such as bridge, backgammon and chess are popular indoor pursuits. It also has a notable rackets court, of which there are few in England.
[edit] References
- ^ "The Hurlingham Club, Waiting List Information". Hurlingham Club. 2008-06-03. http://www.hurlinghamclub.org.uk/ViewDetails.aspx?node_id=1&portal_id=1&inst_id=26&item_id=166. Retrieved on 2008-06-22.
- ^ "The Hurlingham Club, History". Hurlingham Club. 2008-04-01. http://www.hurlinghamclub.org.uk/View.aspx?node_id=1&portal_id=1&page_id=12. Retrieved on 2009-03-17.
