​"As the club approaches its 50th birthday, I thought it would be a good idea to write down a few personal memories of the club's history from 50 years ago. West Wycombe Squash Club: I joined West Wycombe Squash Club in 1966. I had not heard of the game until a friend mentioned that they had played at West Wycombe in the grounds of Lord Dashwood’s estate.

 

At the time, I had been playing tennis (poorly) with Mick Atkins on Saturday mornings. Mick and I decided to try squash and turned up one Saturday morning. Since there was a small group of us, we opponents, and the game seemed fun, but not quite as easy as a first glance from the balcony would suggest. There were two courts housed in old stable buildings, accessible via a green door with a key issued to members when the annual fees were paid. They were back-to-back, with a double-sided viewing gallery in between. Access to the courts was through an open courtyard from the room and bar area. The court booking sheet was kept in the White Swan pub in West Wycombe High Street. Mick and I played there for 2-3 years and enjoyed club nights, which were well supported. There was a management committee with local dignitaries, including John Broom Smith (of Broom and Wade fame) as chairman, along with local solicitors.

 

The club had active teams competing in the Bucks leagues, and the day-to-day of the club was in the hands of Pam and Roy Collins. Pam and Roy moved on to form Thame Squash Club in the early '70s, leaving a vacancy in the bar, a role that my dad, John Francis, filled, his cooking skills being legendary in the history of Squash. During his time there, various tournaments were held, one memorable event including Jonah Barrington and Geoff Hunt among the players. Not surprisingly, they both made the Sunday final, and the club was packed (the gallery probably only accommodating no more than 30 people). From memory, I think Geoff Hunt won, and later, when they asked my dad if he watched the game, he admitted he didn’t, as he was too busy in the bar. They said, "Come back tomorrow, and we will replay it for you!"

 

High Wycombe Squash Club: The club continued happily for another couple of years until we received a notice for an Extraordinary General Meeting, the gist of which was to say that Lord Dashwood had given the club its marching orders. Behind the scenes, the committee had been working tirelessly to find a new site for the club and had appointed an architect to design a new building at Booker Air Park, for which planning approval would be granted. The meeting was held with the committee sitting around a table in one of the courts and the members standing on the balcony.

 

The outcome of the plan to move was, stating that the club would not be able to proceed as the building cost was prohibitive, and they recommended that the club be wound up. I had seen a copy of the plans prepared by Les Brain (who I knew through work he had done for Mobil Oil, where I was working at the time) which included four courts in a line (courts 1-4) and a two-storey manager’s flat at right angles to the other courts. The meeting was opened for questions, and I stood up and said that I could redesign the club to fit the budget! A few eyebrows were raised, and the motion to wind up the club was withdrawn, and I was given the 'OK, do it then.'

 

The redesign (for which I was paid the princely sum of £50) was simply a reduction in the cost of the building while maintaining the approved footprint. I removed the manager's flat and filled in the space with court 5 (hence the odd layout), using painted brick and blockwork, and industrial roof construction. The net result was the formation of High Wycombe Squash Club, realising the building that we still enjoy today. The downside was the loss of a much more aesthetically pleasing external appearance, but the upside was the completion of the club as we know it (albeit changed a few times since) in 1973. John Morgan has a copy of the original lease documents signed by the committee and witnessed by my dad somewhere in his records.

 

From the West Wycombe days, I only know of myself, Mick Atkins, and Mike Hands who are still around. My dad continued behind the bar for a year or two before retiring. The 50 years since are hopefully common knowledge and have seen the club grow and embrace new members from other local clubs such as Wycombe Hill, Equity Law, and more recently Temple Squash Clubs, with teams competing in both the Bucks and Berks leagues."

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Julian Francis, member since 1966