VICTORIAN TENNIS RULE BOOK REVEALS GAME PLAYED BY THREE

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.

Other great stories
I LOST 12 STONE…AND MY VIRGINITY!

A former food addict who had spent her whole life dreaming of romance shed an astonishing 12st 7lbs to experience love for the first time .

OUT-STANDING FIREFIGHTER BREAKS ENDURANCE WORLD RECORD

A US firefighter has battled osteoarthritis and four hip replacements to break the world paddleboarding record .

MENINGITIS TOT TAKES FIRST STEPS ON NEW LEGS

A little girl who lost all four limbs to meningitis has taken her first steps since the illness thanks to her new 'Princess legs' .

PELICANS RUFFLE EACH OTHER'S FEATHERS

THIS is the moment one irritated pelican nearly swallows the entire head of his unlucky competitor .

ADORABLE SQUIRREL TRIES HER HAND AT PHOTOGRAPHY

A curious red squirrel takes a break from collecting nuts and tries her hand at photography .

THE END OF THE WORLD CINEMA

SITTING in the middle of a vast desert, an abandoned cinema is still waiting for its first movie to be screened .

THE INCREDIBLE BEAUTY OF ICELAND’S ICE CAVES

A stunning ice cave in Iceland is illuminated by sunlight as the bright blue ice appears glow inside .

WAVING SEAL PUP

RAISING his flipper, this two day old seal pup gives a wave to the camera .

MILEY MASH-UP

HOTSPOT MEDIA - MILEY MASH-UP: MILEY CYRUS’ naked wrecking ball vid has been lampooned in this side-spitting photo-mashup .

NAKED SLACKLINERS TACKLE NEW CHALLENGES

BALANCING 30 metres above ground, these slackliners take the expression of living dangerously one step further, by tightrope walking NAKED .

ADORABLE POLAR BEAR CUBS PLAY-FIGHT IN THE SNOW

A pair of adorable polar bear cubs play-fight with each other in the Alaskan snow .

GIVE US A KISS - CHEEKY ORANGUTAN PUCKERS UP FOR CAMERA

SHOWING off her best assets for the camera, this cheeky orangutan is in the mood for love, puckering up her lips to blow the biggest kiss she can .