richmond yacht club eel pie island

Thames Rowing and Sailing Clubs

Richmond Yacht Club

Eel Pie Island Twickenham TW1 3DY

Tel: 01932 231391 E-mail: [email protected]

Additional information To find out about our friendly family club, its river- and land-based activities and its picturesquely situated clubhouse (available for hire), and to see issues of our newsletter The Signal, visit our website  www.richmondyachtclub.co.uk

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The History

Eel Pie Island is the largest island in the London section of the Thames and until 1957 it could be reached only by boat. Originally called Paryshe Aite, some historians argue that it was once the site of a monastery and there are rumours that Henry VIII used it as a courting ground. In the 17th century it was used by day trippers and became well known for the eel pies made from locally caught eels.

In 1860 Twickenham Rowing club was established and runs to this day, one of the largest and oldest rowing clubs in London. From the early 20th century ramshackle huts and yards were built on the island and many of these structures exist today as do two of the boatyards built to construct and repair working boats on the Thames. The boatyards are also home to workshops for artists and craftspeople and moorings for houseboats.

From the 1920s the Eel Pie Island Hotel hosted ballroom dances and from the 1950s and 60s a bohemian crowd began to move to the island and it became a venue for jazz and rock musicians including the Rolling Stones, The Who, Pink Floyd - some say that the island is where the 1960s began in the UK. The Eel Pie Island Hotel that hosted many gigs became a hippy commune after concerts stopped in 1967 and it then burned down in 1971.

This little hidden part of London never lost its allure to artists and musicians who continued to move in during the 1970s, many of whom remain to this day and comprise a number of its residents. Today there are 50 houses and 120 residents.

Photo by Mike Peters

The project.

This project is run by digital:works who set up a group of local residents from the Richmond area. They researched the history of the island at Richmond Local Studies Centre, were treated to talks by two local historians and took part in a guided walking tour of the island. In Spring 2017 they undertook oral history workshops with digital:works before researching and meeting current and former residents to record oral history interviews with them.

They explored the rowing club, the history of the music scene, the boatyards and many of the island's quirky residents.

These interviews have been deposited with Richmond Local Studies Centre and the Eel Pie Island Museum and also sit on this project website.

The interviews have been edited to make an oral history based documentary about the island that will be free to view online. The film will also be shown at local events, film festivals, community groups, schools and also at two launch events in September 2017.

Launch Event

Acknowledgements

This project is run by digital:works with the support of the Upper Tideway Branch of the Thames Society , the Eel Pie Island Museum , Richmond Local Studies Centre , Richmond Yacht Club and Age UK Richmond .

We are grateful to the Heritage Lottery Fund and the London Borough of Richmond's Civic Pride Fund for their financial support.

All photos by Michele Whitby except when otherwise stated.

Guided History Walk

Visit to Richmond Local Studies Centre

Interviewing

Oral History Training

Developing Questions

Launch Screening

Due to popular demand we had two launch screeenings at Richmond Yacht Club for interviewees, volunteers, funders, friends and islanders. It was a great way for everyone involved to get back together and enjoy the fruits of their labour!

digital:works · [email protected]

Eel Pie Island in Twickenham’s heritage, river sports and business community

• April 13, 2021

Eel Pie Island’s residents, sports clubs, boatyards and other business enterprises are an essential part of the community of Twickenham and the town’s cultural and river-based heritage, sporting activities and business life. 

The town’s music culture was for decades centred on the Eel Pie Island Hotel, an iconic venue in the fifties and sixties for top jazz bands, R&B musicians and rock groups.  Today the island is home to approximately 50 households and 120 residents, as well as providing artists’ and designers’ studios, craft workshops and moorings for houseboats, plus two slipways and four boatyards for building, repairing and maintaining the river’s working boats. 

A large part of the island is a dedicated nature reserve.

The island’s boatyards are among the few still operating on the tidal Thames.  They include a dry dock and can accommodate large vessels. Work is undertaken on more than 30 or 40 boats annually.

Twickenham’s strong connections with the river are also seen in three river-based sport clubs established on Eel Pie Island:

• Richmond Yacht Club was originally founded in 1897
• Twickenham Rowing Club is one of the oldest and largest rowing clubs on the Thames
• Twickenham’s Standing Up Paddleboarding club, affiliated to Canoe England, is based on the island as well. 

Since 1957 Eel Pie Island has been connected to the town by a single footbridge, on which the island’s residents and businesses depend. 

Large equipment, materials and supplies for the boatyards are unloaded along the embankment and ferried across to the island.  Rowing eights and other racing boats are taken across the river and loaded and unloaded for transport on road trailers.

Eel Pie Island is privately owned.  It is not included on the Twickenham Riverside development site, but plans for restricting motor vehicles and developing The Embankment will inevitably have adverse impacts on people who live and work there.

The Twickenham Coalition

Eel Pie Island

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The revival of UK rhythm and blues in Richmond

• 1 November 2023
• Taaseen Choudhury
• Follow @SW_Londoner

The Eel Pie Club is holding live music concerts in a bid to preserve UK Rhythm and Blues. 

The club, located at The Cabbage Patch in Twickenham , is hosting new young talent alongside tribute acts and legends from the 1960s.  

Founders Gina Way, Warren Walters and guitarist Tom Nolan formed the club in 2000 in homage to Eel Pie Island, to preserve the heritage of UK Rhythm and Blues. 

Way said, “We have at least 10 bands a week who want to play.”

“We’re doing events and gigs every two weeks, so we have a lot of people to choose from.” 

Upcoming bands this month include the Dave Thomas Band, the Thomas Heppell Band and Supernatural – A Tribute to Peter Green.

2023 Independent Blues award winner Dave Thomas is to play his album One More Mile, which reached Roots Music Report’s Top 50 UK Album Chart in 2021. 

The British Blues veteran is a survivor of the Blues boom of the 60s and is expected to draw a crowd. 

Three-time UK Blues awards nominee Thomas Heppell is set to play alongside his band. 

The young Berkshire based musician performs Blues, Rock & Roll and Jazz covers, alongside his own compositions with an energetic and engaging performance. 

Supernatural – A Tribute to Peter Green is comprised of members Tim Hain, Robin Bibi and Alan Glen and will return with their tribute to the late musician Peter Green. 

Attendees can expect to listen to classics such as Albatross and Need Your Love So Bad, as well as a few stories and some songs that were directly inspired or influenced by him. 

The Eel Pie Club is an institution of the Richmond area, a remnant of the raving, rock, and rhythm and blues culture once present on the Eel Pie Island in the 1960s. 

In 2009, The Eel Pie Club received the accolade of being voted ‘best place to hear blues music in the UK’ by The Saturday Guardian.   

Eel Pie Club continues to hold down the music heritage of the area with regular events.

Andrew Humphreys, author of Raving Upon Thames, notes the significant history of the Eel Pie Island in his book. 

Humphreys notes the influence the area of Richmond had on music icon David Bowie, who made the commute from Kent to Richmond just to see gigs and hang out on the island in his youth. 

The island gained a reputation at the time for lawless behaviour, serving as a haven for teenagers to run wild. 

Humphreys said: “It was like this private little island where adults never went, only the kids went unsupervised.

“So, it was rave culture 30-40 years before rave culture happened.”

Though Eel Pie Island is not what it once was in the sixties, Humphreys is optimistic about rave culture and music in Richmond. 

He said, “I see this as an ongoing thing.

“I look around and see kids forming bands now and playing gigs, it’s an ongoing process.

“It’s not finished.” 

Find dates and tickets on www.eelpieclub.com

Image credits: Eel Pie Club  

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• Village Disco

Tickets on sale now Saturday September 24st, 6pm-11pm Richmond Yacht Club Eel Pie Island, Twickenham TW1 3DY

Three Peas  are bringing the  Village Disco  back to the wonderful  Richmond Yacht Club on Eel Pie Island on Saturday September 24th 2 022.

After the success of the past year’s  incredible parties,  Jem Stone  steps back up to the decks with his unique blend of the tastiest  pop, rock, funk and disco  classics, guaranteed to get feet moving and hips wiggling before the summer is up! It all takes place right on the site rich with British rock and R&B heritage.

With a generous and  delicious dinner  (vegetarian option available) and  exquisite welcome cocktail included in the entry fee , it’s going to be another crazy, crazy night….

As ever  ALL PROCEEDS  go directly towards our projects helping people fleeing war and persecution. .

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RICHMOND YACHT CLUB

Founded in 1934

Clubhouse Hire Enquiry

Clubhouse event hire.

Thank you for your interest in hiring the Richmond Yacht Club for your Private Event. We have experience of hosting a wide variety of events at our Clubhouse, and we very much look forward to talking to you about your requirements.

One of the first considerations for any event is the capacity of the venue: our Clubhouse can accommodate a maximum of 120 guests for a non-/partially-seated event and up to 100 guests for a seated event (though 70-80 seated guests is a more comfortable fit).

The second consideration is usually cost: hire charges are detailed in the Hiring Notes below.

EVENT HIRE INFORMATION

Use the links below to find out more about Richmond Yacht Club as a venue for your Event:

• Hiring Notes - an outline of what the Club can offer
• Photo gallery of previous events held in the clubhouse
• Clubhouse measurements - is the Clubhouse a suitable venue for your Event?
• Booking Terms and Conditions
• Booking Form - to be completed on confirmation of your Event booking

If, having read all about us, you would like to enquire about booking the Clubhouse for a Private Event, please complete the Clubhouse Event Hire Enquiry Form below , and we will be in touch to discuss your event requirements.

PLEASE NOTE: The clubhouse is also available for REGULAR HIRES e.g. weekly dance or exercise classes. Please use this link (shown in blue) to go to our Contact page to use an alternative enquiry form.

Send Us a Message

Thanks for submitting a hire enquiry to Richmond Yacht Club. A committee member will be in touch soon.

Gina and Warren have been producing and promoting live music events, specialising in UK Rhythm & Blues, Blues, Rock and Blues-Rock since 1998.

They met at Pineapple Dance Studios in Covent Garden in the early 1980s and for over 20 years produced dance and musical theatre events (under the label f Aspects of Dance) for charity, including 2 Royal Galas at Richmond Theatre.

Gina was a regular visitor to The Eel Pie Island Jazz Club in the 1960s (when she was still at school) where she was lucky enough to see Cyril Davies, The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Long John Baldry and The Downliners Sect.  Warren was from the East End of London where he worked as a lawyer for 32 years, while at the same time organising annual football competitions and disco events before embarking on producing the Aspects of Dance galas.

The Eel Pie Club was started in 2000 by Gina Way and Warren Walters, and guitarist, Tom Nolanto preserve the heritage of UK Rhythm & Blues that started in the South West London area (notably on Eel Pie Island in Twickenham) in the 1960’s.   In 2010, Tom moved away from the area and since then the Club has been owned and run by Gina and Warren.

Thanks to Jennifer Noble and Paul Dubbleman for the photos.

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