Former Shirwell Skittle Alley

A former railway carriage built in 1897 for Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee Train, relocated to its current position and used as a skittle alley from 1933 to 2014.

MATERIALS: green painted timber coachwork on metal and timber frames with rounded beads and pattresses over panel joints; the carriage is covered on three sides and above by corrugated-metal sheets.

PLAN: a long rectangular structure on an east-to-west alignment entered via the former rear connecting door; a 48-ft wheelbase GWR corridor bogie carriage, now without bogies; it rests alongside a hedgerow, in the north-west corner of a field, adjacent to the highway.

EXTERIOR: the former railway carriage is screened along the south, east and west sides by free-standing corrugated-iron sheets that extend over the roof. Some of the metal sheeting and guttering have suffered from the effects of weathering and rot. The coachwork at the ends, along the north side, and part of the south side, retain the original timber window frames, glazed and blind, doors and louvered ventilators, all with radius corners asymmetrically arranged. The carriage rests on supporting concrete plinths, at least one of which is broken.

INTERIOR: the interior has lost all of the internal divisions, seats and water closets. A timber skittle alley has been placed over the floor. The arrangement of the cabin can still be discerned through the contrasting alignment of the diagonal flooring visible on either side of the alley. The doors are lettered 8283 A, B, C and D internally. Timber panelling survives, as do the adjustable ventilation shutters. The frames at ceiling level form white painted coffers with border decoration.