A little on your background ?
My parents had run a hotel in Kenya since 1920, so I was born and raised on the Equator
on 12th May 1930, I married - my husband was in the army - and came to England in 1953, then
went back to Kenya in 1954. Eleanor was born in 1955, precisely on
the Equator, and we came back to England permanently in 1957.
When did you start playing squash ?
I started playing squash at 17, training with the Army captains -
the base was quite close - and
became Kenya champion in 1950.
When we came to England in 1953 I entered the British Open at the
Lansdowne Club, and managed to take a game off England International
Ruth Turner.
I was Kenyan tennis and squash champion in 1955/56.
So back in England you moved up the rankings ?
Yes, I climbed the ladder, entering all the events I could. I
trained with the men and played for their teams at Catterick, won
the County championship and the North of England title.
In 1959 I made the England team to play in America. We sailed from
Southampton on the Queen Mary, the crossing took five days and we
played peg tennis on the deck on New Year's Day.
We took them on at their own hardball game and beat them, in 1959
and again in 1963. We had to acclimatise of course, there was one
hardball court at the RAC which all eight of us used for practice.
They were great trips, we played all down the East coast, and in
Buffalo and Montreal.
What were your training methods, and how did you play ?
I played a lot of tennis, I played Wimbledon for four years and was
Yorkshire champion four times, but I gave up tennis in 1965.
I did a lot of skipping in my training, it's very good, I recommend
it. I did a lot of fencing too, and that helped my reactions and
balance.
My service was practically unreturnable on a cold court, I could win
a game 9-0 on serve, and it almost always put me in an attacking
position.
My best shot though was my dropshot, it was my winning shot,
especially on the backhand, it was very accurate. The forehand drop
was a bit weak by comparison, but it got me through.
You had some good runs in the British Open ?
In 1960 I played well to get to the final,
but lost to Sheila McIntosh. They'd just brought in penalty points
[strokes] which I wasn't used to and it really threw me. I was
leading 2-0 but they started awarding points against me and I lost
9-6 in the fifth.
I told myself I had to sharpen up, which I did, and I went on to win
the final 3/0 the next year.
And then came Heather McKay ...
She came out of nowhere - apparently she was just knocking up on
court in Canberra and a Slazenger rep saw her, took her up to
Sydney, and she just went from strength to strength.
In 1962 she came across to London. She was given all the support and
coaching down there, as a visitor, I just had to train with the men
in Catterick.
I played her in the final of the Scottish Open in Edinburgh, and
beat her 3/2 in an hour and a half. She went into the changing rooms
and said out loud that that was the last time anyone was going to
beat her, and it was. She always thrashed me after that, and
everyone else too.
She beat me 3/0 in the British Open final that year, and in the next
two finals. I made one more final a few years later and she beat me
again and went on to win 16 British Opens in a row.
She was the best ever player, by a long way. Even in this day and
age she would win. I saw a few matches at the World Open in
Manchester last month and they weren't a patch on her.
But you were still top in England ?
It's a lonely place at the top, everyone's gunning for you. People
were really up for it when they played me, so I knew I had to get
better and better myself.
In 1971 I was still number one for England, virtually a vet, but
they wouldn't let me play for the team.
Eventually I had to say goodbye to the number one spot, but by then
it was about time.
What happened after you stopped ?
A few people took over from me, and I disappeared off the scene
after that, although I was still playing for the County.
I came back to squash in 1974, started coaching. We taught Suzanne
Horner how to play and she learned quite fast. In 1975 I could still
beat her, but after that she moved ahead. I did a lot of coaching at
Hallamshire, did it for years and loved it.
We moved to Spain in 1983 and that's when I gave up. I played tennis
in the Lew Hoad Tennis Club in Marbella, won the mixed and ladies
doubles a few times in the 80s and into the 90s, but no squash.
Any thoughts on the modern game ?
In modern squash the ball is much faster, harder to control. It was
always cold at Catterick, but the Lansdowne Club was hot, I had to
go down two weeks before to practice.
Today's players are fitter, and the equipment and the courts makes
the game much faster, but I think my serves and drops would still
cause them trouble!
Your best moments ?
My best moments were beating Heather in Edinburgh, what a match that
was. Then when I played her in 1965 in front of 400 people - they
all saluted when I finally got a point!
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The Dynasty
Fran's Daughter Eleanor Bowles inherited her mum's serves and
dropshots, won the Northumbria title several times and represented
England at Junior and O40 levels.
Eleanor's daughter Sarah also won the County title,
represented England and plays on the WISPA tour.
Heather McKay
Northumbria past and future - Fran with England Under 13 number one
Lucy Beecroft
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