SW19 Diary: Murray clan foundations lie beneath Centre Court

Just at the point that Andy Murray has made Centre Court his own, it is drawn to our attention that Centre Court was once the actual home of the Murrays. It was the site of a mansion built by John Murray III, of the Murray publishing dynasty. Murray III considered calling his house Murrayville, before he settled on "Newstead".

The SW19 Diary is grateful to reader Bernard Andrews for drawing our attention to this fascinating tale, which can be found in a book published last year, The Seven Lives of John Murray – The Story of a Publishing Dynasty by Humphrey Carpenter.

In the summer of 1892, the Murray mansion was occupied by John Murray IV and his family, including his brother, Hallam. John IV and Hallam fell out, John IV moved and Hallam made alterations including adding "stabling for half a dozen horses, a tennis court, and even a lake."

Hallam sold the house not long after the First World War. It was soon demolished, to make way for a tennis club, which in 1922 became the All England Club of today. Carpenter tells his readers: "So next time you're watching a nail-biting Wimbledon final, don't forget that the secrets of the Murrays lie buried beneath the Centre Court."

The original owner of the house, John Murray III, was the grandson of John Murray, founder of the publishing house of the same name. The firm's authors included Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Lord Byron, and Charles Darwin. As Andrews points out: "Whilst the John Murray clan had roots at Athol, Perthshire, Andy Murray was born 59 miles south at Dunblane, Stirling."

He says his hope for Andy Murray is that "the energy of his kinsmen will rise up like radon gas through the green of Centre Court and help spur him to win".

That really would be a story.

The sporting hero some love to hate...

Sticking with the British No 1, we asked yesterday for theses on why Murray is seemingly not as appreciated by Britain at large as Chris Hoy. Is it really because of one historical quip about not supporting England?

Dafydd Taylor writes: "Chris Hoy brought home gold medals for Britain. The Davis Cup in tennis hardly has the same profile as Wimbledon, which is very much an English event. Moreover, Wimbledon is a posh English event... Andy Murray's proud Scottishness forces an English fan to make a choice."

Bry Val, a Scot who has lived in England for 30 years, says he doesn't support England at football or anything else, nor does he expect his English neighbours to support Scotland. "It is all just a bit of good-natured banter, the lifeblood of being a sports fan," he writes.

"I did always support Tim Henman. He was a good player, but just didn't have the mental toughness to finish people off. Murray is now developing that essential winning quality."

Max Findlay writes: "He [Murray] is a surly git... Lots of Scots do hate the English. Lots of the English know it and hate them right back. Andy was stupid enough to make a football joke that tied him to the Scots-hate-the-English camp."

At fever pitch? Flu – what a scorcher!

Wimbledon was on swine flu alert yesterday as a small number of ballboys and ballgirls were sent home with a flu-like illness. It is not known if they have come into contact with any top players. The Health Protection Agency says "there is no particular extra risk to all those connected with the event", and advised people, on one of Wimbledon's hottest days, to watch for symptoms, including feeling hot.

It's not unusual to see umbrellas around here, of course, but it was so hot yesterday that they were being used to keep everyone cool, before being pressed into normal service as the rain tumbled.