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
FIGHT CUB

JUMPING and bouncing off one another, these young cheetahs enjoy some harmless fun .

HUNGRY WHITE TIGER DIVES FOR FOOD

This hungry white tiger has just one thing on her mind - to taste fresh meat .

WOMAN LOSES 8ST TO DITCH 'FAT SISTER' TAG

A former takeaway addict, who once weighed 20st, has lost over 8st in a bid to ditch her ‘fat sister’ tag .

WOMAN RESPONDS TO TROLLS AFTER BEING DUBBED 'SWAMP CREATURE'

A young makeup artist has hit back at vile internet trolls who dubbed her a 'swamp creature' and 'ugly' for exposing her troubled skin in online makeup tutorials .

WELL–HEELED: WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE SHOES WORTH £276,000

Here’s a pair of shoes that really are fit for a princess, and with a price tag of more than £276,000, they are the most expensive shoes in the world .

FIGHTING FOXES

A pair of snarling foxes go paw-to-paw and brawl after unexpectedly crossing paths .

MONKEY BUSINESS

GETTING behind the camera, this monkey practices his photography skills on his friends .

BOSTON MARATHON PICTURES

T least three people have been killed and more than 100 injured, some seriously, in two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon .

STRANDED POLAR BEAR

Sitting all alone on drift ice in the Arctic Ocean, this lonely little fella looks lost .

LIGHTHOUSES OVERLOOK GLOWING SUNRISES

The lighthouses of Brittany, from Brest to Le Conquet, stand tall on France’s north-western coast against stunning scenery .

FISHERMEN IN MYANMAR BALANCE ON ONE LEG

Fishermen in Myanmar have perfected an unusual fishing technique by carefully balancing on one leg .

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: SWIMMING WITH SHARKS

Armed with a snorkel, flippers and her skimpy bikini, an intrepid female free diver swims alongside an array of reef sharks .