TENNIS was a game made for three according to the first Victorian rule book. Our ancestors started playing the game outdoors for the first time thanks to a Birmingham lawyer who experimented with the sport. Instead of the Wimbledon as we know it with strict singles and doubles teams with no mixing of the sexes the early Victorians were MORE liberal. In a version called the Unicorn one player could play against two opponents. And while ladies were discouraged from playing - they were permitted to battle against the men. This means if Wimbledon was played the Victorian way we could be looking at a big female name like Serena Williams playing the likes of Murray AND Djokovic. History buffs of the sport insist the 1874 'Lawn tennis or Pelota rules of the game' by Thomas Henry Gem was the first of its kind. Former PE teachers Sue Elks, 69, and Christopher Elks, 68, from Wythall in the West Midlands explained the difference the modern game has with the tennis of yesteryear.
Here's a collection of art for the DIGIT-AL age as these fascinating illusions of landmarks, places and even a banana are made using just a pair of hands .
THIS LITTLE squirrel tries to keep himself snug as snow starts to fall around him .
A cheeky chipmunk offers some of his spare food, before deciding against the idea and shoving the extra peanut into his already crammed mouth .
A dog was SOW close to death after she dangerously swallowed a two-inch NEEDLE-Cute Shih Tzu Daisy could have pierced her intestines after eating the long needle and thread after finding it on the carpet .
AIRPORT staff have been put on alert after diet pills that come in grenade shaped containers sparked security alerts .
PERCHED on a branch, this Little Owl plays third wheel to two love birds .
A little caterpillar fearlessly scampers down a branch and confronts a praying mantis .
A BUMPER season of births has left zoo with three of the cutest exotic kittens you're likely to see .
SWIMMING slowly towards the shore, a small group of bottlenose dolphins arrive for breakfast at a beach in Western Australia .
FIFTEEEN years after it was closed pictures by a British teacher show the calamity Hong Kong airport that was closed for being too dangerous .
WITH the mystical clouds forming a thick blanket and the electrifying lights below, these stunning pictures provide a unique view of the cityscape of Dubai taken from the tallest building in the world .
FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters .