Tudor Entertainment

1. Rich Tudors enjoyed playing real tennis, which was played in a large room with a net.

2. Players hit the ball over the net, but could also bounce the ball off the walls.

3. They scored points by hitting it into one of three goals high in the wall.

4. Tudor tennis racquets were made of wood and strung with sheep gut, the balls being made of leather and stuffed with hair.

5. Tudors hunted deer for entertainment, in special parks filled with animals.

6. Hunting dogs were used to corner the animals, so the hunters could shoot them with bows and arrows.

7. Hawking was also a favourite Tudor pastime for the wealthy who used trained birds to hunt small animals and birds.

8. The Tudors enjoyed a wide range of colourful fetes and festivals, usually linked to times on the Church calendar.

9. Tudor fairs attracted showmen, groups of travelling players, prize fighters and pedlars.

10. At the fetes there was dancing and singing, jugglers, acrobats and wild beast shows.

11. Bear baiting, staged in an arena called a bear garden, was a popular entertainment in Tudor times.

12. A bear was chained to a stake by its hind leg or neck and attacked by a pack of dogs who tried to kill it by biting its throat.

13. Football was played by the poor in Tudor times.

14. There was no limit to the number of players and goalposts were set as much as a mile apart.

15. The rules allowed the players to pick up the ball as well as to kick it.

16. Football was a rough game that led to broken necks, backs and legs, and was banned by Henry VIII in 1540.

17. This was because the casualties were usually young men who were needed for the army.

18. In Tudor England, strolling players toured the countryside performing plays in barns and courtyards of inns.

19. In 1576 the first Elizabethan theatre was built.

20. People from all classes visited the theatre because it was so cheap

21. They paid one penny to stand around the stage and sixpence for a box.