Talk Tenpin

History of UK Bowling - Part 1

1960 to the present

Ten-pin bowling was introduced in the United Kingdom in 1960. This was driven by the opening of the Stamford Hill and Golders Green bowling alleys in London. Ten-pin bowling took the UK by storm, with alleys opening up one after the other. At its peak there were over one hundred and sixty bowling alleys in the UK, but a lack of re-investment and waning interest left the fad in a sorry state. This led to a general deterioration of bowling alleys, with a commensurate decline in their image. In the 1970's a major chain operator pulled out of bowling and converted many of the more luxurious alleys into Bingo halls. The industry nearly collapsed, with two thirds of the existing alleys closing over the next few years.

Until the mid 1980's there was little, if any, new investment in the sport with the decline in interest being attributed to the complex scoring system, especially as it was a manual process then. However, this all changed with the introduction of computers and automated electronic scoring systems. This meant that the general public only had to enter their names into the computers and everything else was done automatically. This changed the face of bowling and was largely responsible for the new found interest in the sport.

AMF carried this revitalization of the sport by embarking on a major refurbishment programme. This re-investment led to the construction of many bright, modern and attractive sites and began the second golden age of bowling. During the late 1980's and early 1990's the number of ten-pin bowling alleys across the country rose to over two hundred. This was higher than it had ever been in the sixties, then the peak of the sport's popularity.

Today, over 100 million bowlers play in over 90 different countries. More men and women worldwide play bowling than any other sport, with the possible exception of football (soccer in the USA). Bowling has far more registered dues-paying participants than any other sport. The bowling industry spends significantly more money each year than any other sport on airlines, restaurants, hotels and rental cars. ^[8] There is an active movement to make bowling an Olympic sport, especially by the Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs, the world governing organization for nine and ten-pin bowling. The best players regularly play in televised tournaments, and new bowlers continue to delight in learning the game. ^[3]. In addition, modern bowling alleys have changed greatly. As people have become exposed to a wider range of entertainment options, the trend has shifted to building large entertainment centers that allow people to enjoy many different activities. These developments often include multi-screen cinemas, restaurants and night clubs. This has had a great impact on the image of the sport among families.

From Wikipedia