Description

BRAY HOLYPORT STREET
SU 8977
(north-west side, off)
ZJIO Holyport
01.06.84 Royal County of Berks Real Tennis Club
(formerly listed as Real Tennis Club
at Holyport Lodge)

II

Real tennis court. 1889 by Joseph.Bickley for Samuel Heilbut in a utilitarian Queen Anne style.
Brick with rendered and stone dressings, low pitched, hipped steel-frame roof, slate covered and
with continuous lantern light over main section (tennis court). Rectangular plan of 7 bays to
tennis court, with lower section on south east comprising reception, bar and changing rooms. One
storey and one and a half storeys. 3 chimneys on outer walls near corners, with offset pedimented
heads and decorative clay pots. Tennis court: deep implied plinth, continuous external balcony
supported on iron brackets; curtain glazing between shallow pilasters with moulded stare capitals;
parapet with moulded stone coping and urns on top of pilasters. Central bay on south-west front
has clock in aedicule frame with broken pediment and moulded base on large curved brackets,
breaking into parapet. Lower section: former entrance on south-west front on left with pair of
half-glazed and panelled entrance doors in ashlar surround, cornice and moulded, semi-circular
arched head, with the date 1899 and crossed tennis rackets in the spandrel. Above this a moulded
base to a sash window in moulded architrave frame, reeded head; surmounted by a moulded pediment.
To the right of this, set back is a 3-bay blind arcade with semi-circular moulded heads between
pilasters; parapet with moulded coping and urns over pilasters. Entrance now on north-east front
in small late C20 extension in similar style. Interior: reception area: wooden fireplace in the
Adam style with festoons and floral decoration. Mirror over moulded mantel, with 4 mirrors, shelf
unit and pedimented top. C19 cast-iron fireplace in first-floor dressing room with moulded wooden
surround and plain tile inset. Joseph Bickley (1835-1923) was renowned for his patent method of
constructing the wall and floor finishes for tennis and rackets' courts.

Listing NGR: SU8923477947

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26605486

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  Sussex: West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Nottinghamshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides): Written by Charles O'Brien, 2014 Edition, Publisher: Yale University Press [Hardcover]
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  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)