Book Review - Darts in England 1900-1939: A social history by Patrick Chaplin

Darts In England by Patrick ChaplinDarts in England 1900-1939: A social history
by Patrick Chaplin

(Manchester University Press, 2009 ISBN 978-0-7190-7803-3 £55)

If there was a Pub History Society award for the best pubby book of the year, then this would be a strong contender. As the title says PHS member Patrick Chaplin has written a history of darts over the first four decades of the last century, from a time when darts was little more than a novelty in playrooms and fairground sideshows to the immediate pre-war period when darts was a major craze indulged in by people of all social classes and both sexes. It became socially accepted when George VI and Queen Elizabeth played a game at the Slough Social Centre in December 1937, which they appeared to enjoy.

Patrick argues that darts reached this pre-eminence in two ways: Firstly the brewers seized upon the game as a way of making pubs more attractive at a time when they were facing increasing competition from cinemas and the wireless. In addition Sunday newspapers, particularly the News of the World, sponsored nationwide competitions as a way of promoting themselves in a very competitive market for working class readers. They gave the game prominent space in their sporting pages.

Other factors included the formation of the National Darts Association in 1925 which codified the rules and also helped promote the game, and the introduction of better darts and dartboards which were easier to keep in good condition. It also helped that most unusually for the period the sexes were regarded as equals, although it was not until 1937 that a woman, Mrs Morgan of Winchester reached the national final.

For an academic book (it is basically the author’s PhD) this is an extremely readable account and it is extraordinarily well researched: no source, however obscure seems to be have been neglected. He also interviewed a number of the original players and their families. Non-academics might however want to skip over the sociological cross-references.

It would be great if there could be a popular edition at a reasonable price perhaps including chapters covering the story up to the present day.

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