Browse Exhibits (10 total)
Know these Netballers?
Four of the eight players in the 1968 England Netball Team — Peta Tiptaft, Jane Manser, Helen Mitchell, Cathy Hickey — played for Kent. If you know — or indeed are — one of these women, please get in touch. We would love to hear their sporting stories.
New Sporting Memories Clubs in Folkestone
Volunteers are wanted for two new Sporting Memories Clubs in Folkestone.
The clubs, which are being developed in partnership with the Sporting Memories Foundation, offer a fun and friendly way of improving the health and wellbeing of older people in Folkestone, by tapping into their love of sport. As well as reminiscence, they also include fun sports-based games and light, fully inclusive physical activities.
Sporting Memories Foundation co-founder Chris Wilkins said: ‘We are really excited to see Sporting Memories coming to Kent. Our Sporting Memories Clubs are designed to bring isolated older people who have a love of sport, whether they watched or took part, together.
‘It gives an opportunity to share memories and have fun taking part in quizzes and light physical activities that everyone can take part in.’
The clubs are to be held at Folkestone Sports Centre every Friday between 10:30am and 12:30 pm, and at Folkestone Care Centre every Wednesday between 2pm and 4pm.
For more information contact Michael Romyn via email: michael@thesmf.co.uk or by phone: 07423 284045
Kent's Sporting Memories in the Folkestone & Hythe Express
A Folkestone & Hythe Express article (5 June, 2019) publicising our project
National Sporting Heritage Day, 2019
To celebrate National Sporting Heritage Day, 2019, Kent's Sporting Memories explored the fascinating history of Folkestone Sports Centre Trust, now in its fiftieth year of trading. Our mini-exhibition drew upon archive material and oral history testimony to examine the centre's origins and opening, the numerous facilities and sports it offered, the way the centre's changed over time, and its abiding importance to the town.
Kent's Sporting Memories on talkSport
On May 17, 2020, Kent's Sporting Memories interviewee and Folkestone Sporting Memories Club member Alan Bartley shared some of his favourite footballing stories on talkSPORT radio. Alan, who grew up in Dover, also spoke about living with dementia, and he even read one of his football-themed poems, 'Every Boys Ambition'. Click on the adjacent link to hear the recording.
Harry Beeson: A Pictorial Tribute
A short illustrated tribute to Harry Beeson, who was the coach and founder of Folkestone Sports Centre's over-55s Badminton Club.
Harry, who once served as a Beefeater at the Tower of London, decided to set-up the club when he moved to Folkestone in 1979, because he was 'struck by the number of elderly people just wandering around' the town!
A 'dozen hardy souls' attended the first badminton session; by the time Harry retired from coaching in 1989, the club had more than eighty members.
His retirement, which was marked by a party at Folkestone Sports Centre, elicited many well wishes, as well as tributes to the transformative role he had on the provision of sport for older people in Folkestone.
One member said: 'We were all complete beginners, but under Harry's guidance (what patience he had) we enjoyed half an hour of excercises followed by half an hour of badminton all for 25 pence inclusing coffee!'
Harry said of the party: 'I was so overcome with emotion and atsonishment...I don't know what I would have done without the sports centre and all the lovely people I have met.'
Award-winning contributions to wellbeing and heritage!
Kent's Sporting Memories won both the 'Contribution to Wellbeing' award and the overall 'Winner of the Best Community Archive and Heritage Group' at the 2020 Community Archives and Heritage Group (CAHG) awards!
It was an honour to be recognised for our work with these two fantastic awards. Thank you to CAHG; to our fantastic volunteers, participants, and partners; and to the Heritage Lottery Fund and the National Lottery players for making the project possible.
More information on the awards here: https://www.sportingmemoriesnetwork.com/news/award-winning-contributions-to-wellbeing-and-heritage
Kent's Sporting Memories eBook
A free eBook comprising the edited transcripts of many of the oral history recordings carried out by the project.
Launched during an online event hosted by former rugby union star John Taylor on 17 June 2020, the book, titled Kent's Sporting Memories, touches on a wide range of sports, including men’s and women’s football, wheelchair racing, cricket, boxing, basketball, as well as those active pastimes orientated around the east Kent coast, such as wind surfing, waterskiing, and sea swimming.
By talking about their personal experiences, and reflecting upon how their lives have changed over the years, the interviewees featured in the book also shed light on many social aspects of Kent village and town life, including the forging and experience of friendship.
The eBook is availiable as both an epub and Kindle file.
Duncan Saunders: The History of Cheriton Road Ground
We asked Folkestonian and local historian, Duncan Saunders, to write an article for us on the history of the Cheriton Road ground, a subject he has researched and documented extensiveley on his website: https://www.cheritonroad.co.uk/
What follows is a fascinating photo-essay that not only recounts the history of Cheriton Road from the early 1900s, but also explores Duncan's own experience of and attachment to the ground.
I'm Duncan Saunders — Folkestone born and bred.
I've been told that my grandfathers on both sides of my family used to attend football matches at Cheriton Road. Not what you would call regulars, and I can't recall them mentioning it, but at least they've been there. My dad is a season ticket holder at Folkestone Invicta. I think it's in the blood. Black & Amber blood.
I attended secondary school at the Harvey Grammar, next door to the football ground. At the time, like many youngsters, I followed the 'big clubs' without actually going to any games. My first visits to Cheriton Football ground clearly had a big effect on me though and I've followed the senior Folkestone club ever since.
I'd always had an interest in stadiums form an early age. I'd generally kept it quiet as no-one else I knew seemed to have the same obsession. I figured it was a bit geeky. However, the Simon Inglis 1987 book, The Football Grounds of Great Britain, was a revelation to me — not only did someone have my obsession, not only was there a book published on it, but people were buying it. I WAS NOT ALONE!
1995 saw the first publication of Groundtastic — a magazine about football grounds. Geeky? Yes. It has even been on Have I got News For You as the guest publication. However a further realisation that it's not just me. As the internet grew in popularity and use, the final realisation that there are people with my interest all over the world. That's why my website https://www.cheritonroad.co.uk/ exists. Putting it together has been a pleasure.
Getting some of the material has not been easy as I now do not live in Folkestone. I've not lived permanently in Folkestone since 1984. I've travelled, lived and worked all over the world, but where you are brought up seems to influence the rest of your life: You can take the boy out of Folkestone, but you can't take Folkestone out of the boy.
Kent's Sporting Memories Book Launch
The virtual launch of Kent's Sporting Memories, a book of oral histories celebrating the recent history of sport in east Kent. Link to video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IG6jqfYJbng
The event was hosted by former rugby union star John Taylor, on Thursday 17 June, and included a reflection on the region’s rich sporting heritage with some of the participants featured in the book.
The book comprises the edited transcripts of many of the oral history recordings carried out by the award-winning Kent’s Sporting Memories project. It touches on a wide range of sports, and sheds light on many social aspects of Kent village and town life, including the forging and experience of friendship.