Archived Page
This page is no longer maintained.
For up-to-date information please see the
new website
The Famous Skindles : Then and Now
An elegant of its age, Skindles became famous in the late Victorian and Edwardian era and its reputation was sealed with Royal approval by the patronage of King Edward V11 and Queen Alexandria and a bevy of names from Debrett. Here it is seen at its turn-of -the-century heyday. High Society relaxing on the lawn enjoying a weekend from the city and the punts out from the boat house ready for riotous trips up river to Boulters and beyond with a bonneted lady already strumming a music hall favourite on the piano perched on the long flat boat waiting at the river bank . Below this surface respectability ran an undercurrent of the risqué with the Gaiety Girls and devoted husband and fathers coming down from London for clandestine weekends. It flourished as the discreet destination of choice for 'playing away' through the Twenties and Thirties. Then came disaster in 1947 as the spring flood invaded the ballroom and a severe fire caused extensive damage. After restoration it became a favourite hideaway for stage and screen celebrities and King Hussein of Jordan was a regular visitor. Under new ownership in 1966 it attempted to appeal to a different clientele with many new features including a casino known as Skindles Sporting Club. The venture was launched with a glittering Charity Ball but it failed and the hotel closed two years later. A further change of ownership in the late Seventies brought a new lease of life through a £1,500,000 restoration and in the Valbonne night club many famous 70s and 80s bands played to sell out audiences. The sands of time are blurring memories when Skindles Hotel hosted royalty and celebrities every day. Yet not every memory. Gertrude 'Gerry' Spring, a former barmaid at the hotel, celebrated her 100th birthday on August 4th this year and the Windsor Express reported her memories of "a wonderful place to be" " how gay it was and how beautifully dressed the ladies". It was an internationally known hotel. It was built in 1743 and originally called The Orkney Arms until William Skindles bought it in the mid-19th century. Today, it stands boarded up. Its future unknown. Perhaps a new owner will preserve its historic facade to front a boutique hotel serving as the home base for tourists visiting the Thames Valley and incorporating a high quality destination restaurant! Karl Lawrence Postcard:
Detail - piano on punt:
