Читать книгу Regency Gamble - Bronwyn Scott - Страница 9

Billiards is just about as English as horse racing. References note that by the seventeenth century there wasn’t a village in England that didn’t boast at least one billiards table in an assembly hall or tavern. Here are some fun facts about Greer and Mercedes’s story:

1838 is part of the ‘gateway’ period of billiards as it moves closer to the modern pool game.

John Thurston is a real historical figure and has a cameo appearance early in our story. In 1799 he established the House of Thurston in London, and is credited with new inventions for the table such as his 1835 rubber cushions, the use of warming pans to keep the cushions supple and replacing wood table beds with slate (c.1826). The table Greer mentions from his time in Greece is based on a true story.

1838 also sees the introduction of the ‘run’ style of today’s pool game. The run is first officially mentioned by Game Master Hoyle, in association with ‘the French following game’ in an 1845 edition of game rules. It crosses the Atlantic to America in 1857.

I should also take a moment to mention Alan Lockhart. He is modelled after the nineteenth-century billiards champion Edwin Kentfield.

I hope you enjoy this first of two stories in my Ladies of Impropriety duet. Stay tuned for Elise Sutton’s story. In the meanwhile, stop by my blog at www.bronwynswriting.blogspot.com for forthcoming news.