We loved making the Eastbourne Trail. It gave us an excuse to visit our friends over a few weeks popping back and forwards - and to delve deeper into the wonderful seaside town on the south coast.
The first thing we do when creating a trail is to go out and walk round and round and round and investigate all the local history. It’s then sitting on the computer typing everything up over the next few weeks. Once we have the bones of the history laid out, we then set about making the trail. That’s the bit we love – the three of us go out with pen and paper and seek out clues. We’re always being asked “Are you lost? Can we help?” which is very kind of people!
Eastbourne revealed some very revealing history – including how Teddy Tinling got into trouble for revealing knickers at tennis!
Cuthbert Collingwood 'Ted' Tinling was born in Eastbourne on 23rd June 1910 - he is considered the foremost designer of tennis dresses of the 20th century. It was a design in 1949 that got Teddy in trouble at Wimbledon. That year he designed the dress for American tennis player, Gussie Moran, and also added a pair of white underwear that were adorned with lace to the outfit. This created a media storm with photographers fighting for positions where they could get low-angle shots of Moran.
Wimbledon chairman, Sir Louis Greig, blasted Tinling for "having drawn attention to the sexual area". Teddy was banned from the tournament for 33 years. Wimbledon officials accused Moran of "putting sin and vulgarity into tennis" - however, the media dubbed her 'Gorgeous Gussie'. Teddy remarked about the incident, "the situation snowballed out of all proportion. Gussie was inundated with requests for personal appearances – hospitals, garden fetes and beauty contests. The Marx Brothers, in London at the time, invited her to join their act. A racehorse, an aircraft and a restaurant's special sauce were named after her. She was voted the best dressed sports woman by the US Fashion Academy. The whole thing was staggering."
After Teddy's death in 1990 it was revealed he had been a British Intelligence spy during the Second World War.
Eastbourne was also the place from where Sir Ernest Shackleton set off for the Antarctic – via London!
In 1914 Sir Ernest Shackleton and his team set off on the ship Endurance, aiming to cross Antarctica via the South Pole. It was from Eastbourne that this infamous journey began! Shackleton boarded a train in Eastbourne, where he was living with his wife and children, and travelled to London. He went to Buckingham Palace and met with King George V before travelling to embark on Endurance, which set off on 1st August 1914. World War One commenced on 4th August 1914.
Plus lots more to discover – even if you don’t do the trail … the 24 page Eastbourne Quiz Trail makes a great read of the local history!
The trial of Dr John Bodkin Adams caused a sensation in Britain in the 1950s … The Secret Life of a Secret Service Agent … the Duke with the nickname of ‘Harty Tarty’ … his mistress ‘the Double Duchess’ … Scandal at the Grand Hotel … it’s all in there!
