Family who ran golf club for 101 years say goodbye

After 101 years running a golf club, the Mitchell family have made the difficult decision to say goodbye.

Beeston Fields, in Nottinghamshire, has only been run by three people in the family in its century of existence, and now owners Philippa Marshall and her sister Cheryl English have decided to sell.

On 29 October, the family business was handed over to new owners, with an agreement in the contract for them to continue the much-loved golf course, and its Walled Garden wedding venue.

Mrs Marshall looks back on her family's ownership over the last century.

She said: "I think I should start with Fred Mitchell who was my father's uncle and he was born in 1878 in Hyson Green. He was one of 12 children."

After completing an apprenticeship, he started his own bicycle shop in Nottingham, and then moved on to buying the field nestled between Beeston and Bramcote in the early 1920s.

That is how the golf club started in 1923, Mrs Marshall said.

She said he sold off land to the north of the golf course, which became Beeston Fields Drive, for the houses to help him raise the money to build the course.

She said: "They had a little farm on Beeston Fields Drive – where Eagle Close is now – they had cows and Fred’s wife Clarrie used to make butter and cheese in the back of the golf club house.

"There was also a walled garden, which they absolutely loved with beautiful green houses going all the way around edge of the walls.

“They grew peaches, nectarines, and grapes and used to have some lovely parties in that garden which has become The Walled Garden at Beeston Fields, our wedding venue."

Mrs Marshall added the pair did a lot for the World War Two effort.

“It was quite an important time for Beeston Fields – they gave over part of the golf course to food production so there is a picture of some sheep grazing on the golf course in the 1940s."

Mrs Marshall said her father John Mitchell - who was born in 1923, when the golf club was founded - took over the business in 1970 when his father died.

"He had known Beeston Fields all his life and was quite dedicated to the place.

"He absolutely loved it and knew all the members by name."

She said he and her mother - Peggy - were very involved in the club together, and updated it when they first took over.

"There would be lots of mixed games of golf, competitions with a party in the evening afterwards."

She said her father was president of Nottinghamshire Union of Golf Club and was quite a prominent character in the county.

She added: "When Beeston Fields played at a different course, my father was always there to support them."

Mrs Marshall said she took over as managing director of the business in 2008 before her father died in 2013.

She said: "So there has only been three of us running Beeston Fields in the 101 years it has been in existence.

"I think that is quite extraordinary really, and I think I am quite unique in being a female managing director of a golf club.

"I don’t think there are many because golf is quite male centric so it’s something I am quite proud of."

She said during her tenure, she firstly refurbished the clubhouse.

"As time went on, we built up a really nice Sunday lunch venue. We would do 80 to 100 lunches each Sunday.

"Having updated the clubhouse, we moved onto to the Walled Garden. Having been beautiful in the 1940s and 50s, it had become derelict."

She said her and her partner - Alastair Wright - created it together.

"It is the thing I'm most proud of because we created something that is really beautiful and very successful.

"The rest of the golf club was there before but The Walled Garden feel like it's ours."

She said it had been the venue for more than 1000 weddings since it opened in 2012.

Mrs Marshall said for the last couple of years, her and her sister have been thinking their time owning the business was coming to an end.

"I don’t have any children and my sister’s sons are both in London.

"So time has caught up with us, and we felt it was out time to retire.

"It has been a really hard decision because we love the place so much but we realise that you can’t go on forever."

However, she said they will continue to play golf at Beeston Fields, so it is not goodbye forever.

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