An eccentric yet, extremely charitable preacher, a prize fighter convicted to hard labour and a former dancer who eventually becomes the first women boxing promoter in the world.

This one spot in South London brings together the stories of these forgotten people.

For the thousands of commuters rushing trough Southwark tube station, the building across Blackfriars Road, home to the Transport for London offices, stands out as a modern, steel and glass, architectural development.

The building itself is, metaphorically, supported by the spectacular history of its location.

The Palestra is a cantilevered building, meaning that, the protruding building block at the top is attached to the main structure at only one end, a technique originally used in bridge construction, currently a major architectural trend, employed all over the world with spectacular effects.

Surrey Chapel

On the same site, towards the end of the 1700’s, an energetic and resourceful pastor, Rowland Hill, built an octagonal shaped chapel, claiming that this rounded shape will prevent the devil from hiding in the corners.

You might think that this idea of a rounded shape chapel would be impractical, the devil, as we all know is nothing if not flexible in his strategies, however, the absence of dark corners had a an unforeseen result, it exposed the accidental churchgoers, passers by, who often, when getting caught in the frequent London rains, would rush through the wide open doors of the Surrey Chapel, in search for shelter.

Once inside, the preacher’s famously humorous sermons, resembling, what today would be a roast battle against sin, would entertain and engage its audience up until he’d signal for the chapel doors to be shut. The now trapped audience would, jokingly, be shamed into donating as much as the preacher assumed each of them were able to.

The collected money and other funds, cleverly raised by Rowland Hill, would go towards charitable projects amongst which was the enthusiastic promotion of the newly discovered smallpox vaccination by Rowland’s friend, the famous physician Edward Jenner.

Back then, the “anti-vaxxers,” didn’t stand a chance when debating the witty reverend and so the Surrey Chapel established itself as one of the most effective vaccination centres in London.

Rowland Hill

After the reverend’s death in 1833, the chapel fell into disrepair, at one point used as a warehouse, up until, in an intriguing twist of fate becomes “The Ring,”

The original “Boxing Ring”

London’s most popular boxing venue, attended by the working class, prominent figures and the rich aristocracy.

London’s greatest boxing arena was built on a love story worthy of Hollywood.

Dick Burge, a former lightweight boxing champion meets Leah Belle Orchard a New York born dancer, they fall in love and, in 1901, as it was customary in those times, get married.

Dick Burge

Converted the Chapel into a boxing venue

Dick, already retired from boxing and, in search of income sources, becomes entangled in a scam involving conmen who were cheating other scammers, cheques forgery, high stakes horse race gambling, an entire entire criminal enterprise that resulted in one of the largest bank frauds in the country at that time, the equivalent of 15 million pounds in today’s money.

Even though his involvement was minor, Dick is convicted to ten years hard labour and, only one month after his wedding, goes to prison.

Things seem to have taken a wrong turn for the newly wed couple.

Dick, very much a tough and, one might say, dangerous man, one of the finest fighters of the 1890’s, proves to be cool headed and honourable. Eight year into his sentence, during a violent prison riot he saves the life of a guard, this selfless act, considering the brutality of prison life during that time, secures him an early release.

While Dick was imprisoned, Bella remained faithful and focused on her stage career, saving a large part of her income.

Those savings were put together with Dick’s boxing knowledge and in 1910 the couple decides to open a boxing club, one that would be accessible to everyone, meaning also the poor and overlooked working class who, due to lack of expendable income, were virtually barred from enjoying many forms of popular entertainment.

The chapel on Blackfriars Road with its peculiar shape, was perfectly appropriate for a boxing ring.

As a teenage girl, Bella developed a passion for the stage, she becomes dresser to one of its stars, Marie Lloyd, a job which turned into a lifelong friendship between the two, Marie Lloyd, herself a larger than life character, not just one of the greatest music hall stars but also a beloved comedian whose double entendres filled shows would regularly bypass the censorship laws of the day.

The Ring becomes an instant success attracting the finest boxers from all over the British Empire as well as U.S.

Amongst the enthusiastic audience, here they were, ring side, Bella and Marie Lloyd, two elegant women in a raging sea of blood thirsty men, at a time when women weren’t even allowed to vote and certainly not expected to be associated with such violent spectacles.

Everything went well for the happy couple up until the Great War, Dick enrols in the “Sportsman’s Battalion” and in a cruel fate, dies of double pneumonia in 1918, leaving Bella in charge.

That is how the legend of “Bella of Blackfriars” is born, she becomes the first woman promoter in a sport that, still today, is male dominated.

The Ring itself continues to thrive and it seemed destined to complete its transformation from a religious chapel into a legendary sport arena for the ages

In October 1940 during the bombing campaign of the 2nd World War, virtually unnoticed amongst the destruction unleashed upon London, The Ring is destroyed by a German bomb

Only few years earlier German boxers would have been taken part in many of the 22.000 bouts that made The Ring legendary.

Bella died in 1962, but her legend and that of The Ring live on.

A popular pub with the same name is located near by and if you feel inspired by all the boxing memorabilia inside the pub, a short distance away you’ll find the modern version of “The Ring” boxing club, always open to enthusiastic beginners.

The Good, the Bad and the Beautiful