The EU Withdrawal Bill is proving a contentious piece of legislation. The Peers are flexing their pecs, making amendments to give the Commons a greater say on the outcome of the negotiations with the EU. The Bill shuttles between the two Chambers in a process known as Parliamentary ping-pong.
Here in Barons Court we are more interested in tennis this week, described as “outdoor ping-pong” by PG Wodehouse. Yesterday I watched a good Match between Nick Kyrgios and Andy Murray that went to three Sets and, as happened at Queen’s last year, Murray lost. It was a glorious day in the low 20s and three Centre Court matches made for about eight hours of play. Our tickets (£95) were good value per minute compared to football or opera. As Fever-Tree are this year’s sponsors the bar was doing a brisk trade in G&T as well as Pimm’s. Tennis seems rather an exhausting game. The Match went on for about two and a half hours and Murray had Kyrgios’s powerful service to contend with; the fastest I clocked was 142 mph. ‘Twas ever thus.
John Julius Norwich, who sadly died earlier this month, describes the reign of Louis X of France. He had the credentials to be dubbed a Good King. He abolished serfdom but with the provision that serfs must either pay for their freedom or have their possessions (if there were any) confiscated. Not many serfs were freed. He allowed Jews back into France but on terms frighteningly similar to those imposed by the Nazis. For their first twelve years they were obliged to live in ghettos and wear an armband.
His private life was no more satisfactory. He accused Margaret, his wife and a daughter of the Duke of Burgundy, of adultery and had her murdered by suffocation. Five days later he re-married. However, after reigning for less than two years he died aged twenty-seven after a gruelling game of tennis. Not a Good King but the first recorded tennis court fatality.
Curiously two other French royals had tennis related deaths. Charles VIII died after hitting his head on the way to watch a game and the Dauphin Louis, eldest son of Francis I, died after drinking a cooling cup of water at the end of a game in 1536. Tennis again plays a part in French history in the reign of Louis XVI. The Estates General, meeting at Versailles, displeased Louis and were locked out of their Chamber. They reconvened in his indoor tennis court; it must have been large as there were 188 nobility, 247 clergy and 500 “third estate”.
Centre Court at Queen’s Club has seating for almost 9,000 spectators so plenty of room for the House of Lords if the Prime Minister locks them out.