Twickenham Stadium. Photo Credit: Hanna Hauck

Usually Twickenham is relatively quiet and sleepy. It’s got history, though, with its neo-gothic Strawberry Hill House, the elegant Marble Hill House, and York House. And Hampton Court Palace isn’t far away either. At the same time Twickenham also has a history of Rock’n'Roll. The Rolling Stones, the Who, Black Sabbath and many more reportedly played on Eel Pie Island, a small Thames isle.

But Twickenham really comes alive when rugby is on. It’s match day, the streets are green and white: Six Nation Champion Ireland plays against England. Trains and buses overflow with rugby fans.

Emma Digby lives in the area. She likes rugby and doesn’t mind going out of her way on match days: “It is difficult. But at the same time you are given so much warning; you’ll know months and months in advance when every match is. On a match day, traffic is a bit of a nightmare. For example, rather than doing my shopping at Tesco’s, I’ve got to go to Waitrose now. But I could have gone shopping last night. You just learn to live around it.”

Along the congested road to the 82,000 seat stadium booths selling food and merchandise have been set up – some even in front yards. The local pubs are full to bursting. Many show the game for those who couldn’t get a ticket and conveniently sell many pints of beer. Some students at the local college also benefit financially from Twickenham’s rugby stadium. Many supplement their pocket money by helping out at events and matches held at the venue.

But rugby days are not lucrative for everybody in Twickenham. Tim Zekki from a local Deli says rugby means less customers for him. “I took this shop here in Twickenham’s Church Street, because I thought rugby could be a safety net. But surprisingly, it’s not working for us. Saturdays are the busiest days. But on rugby days, we lose our regular customers and the rugby fans don’t come into our deli.”

It’s a somewhat different story in the bookshop next door, which also hosts an organic cafe. The assistant manager Richard Bull said: “We very much rely on locals – our regulars – and on rugby days, they tend to stay at home to avoid the crowds. So we may do a bit less business in the bookshop. But as far as the cafe is concerned – it tends to get quite busy with passing rugby trade. So we get a bit of both here.”

He feels positively about rugby and believes that Twickenham benefits from the lively atmosphere. His friends who work in local pubs love it, he says, even though things can get unpleasant, too. “I’ve worked in pubs before. You get the occasional rude person, who will urinate in places where they are not supposed to, et cetera.”

Still, Richard Bull says he hasn’t experienced any violence so far. Local resident Emma Digby agrees that the atmosphere is generally positive. “There’s no violence. I’ve never seen any problems at a rugby game in Twickenham. In the stadium, they’ll put an English fan next to an Irish fan and in the crowds on the street, you can see English fans talking to their Irish friends.”

After the match, Twickenham’s pubs fill up with those who want to drink to a win or drown their disappointment. But only one night later – after the streets have been cleared of plastic pint glasses – its back to the usual tranquility.

How to get to there: A 20 minute train ride from Waterloo on the fast service, or take a bus (R68, H22, R70, 490) from Richmond Underground station to Twickenham King Street.

What to do: Twickenham Stadium hosts rugby games and other events like concerts. But there are also many pubs, restaurants and cafes. For a quiet atmosphere and a good read, visit the organic cafe in Langton’s Bookshop in Church Street. Close-by are pubs like the Eel Pie Pub, the historic Fox, the Pincho Med Tapas Bar and the Deli Syon. For some live music go to Filthy’s, which is close to Twickenham Green.

A visit to Eel Pie Island with its history of Rock’n'Roll, the neo-gothic Strawberry Hill House, Marble Hill House, York House and Twickenham’s Museum are also a must.

And Henry VIII’s famous Hampton Court Palace, Richmond, the Royal Botanical Gardens and the National Archives at Kew aren’t far away either.

Universities and Colleges in the area: St Mary’s University College Twickenham, Richmond University, the American International University in London, Kingston University London, Roehampton University,) Richmond upon Thames College.

Related Posts:

• March 30, 2010 -- Ode to Cask Ale
• February 18, 2010 -- Crumbling universities ‘unfit for purpose’
• February 12, 2010 -- New rules for international student visas announced
• January 15, 2010 -- Ale-ienation