TV antiques expert Raj Bisram learned about the oldest table tennis league in the world when the BBC show Antiques Road Trip visited Bristol.

Raj visited the Bristol Civil Service Sports Club for a segment on the history of the sport during an episode broadcast last week and now available on the iPlayer.

Raj was met at the club by Duncan Jones, secretary of BCSSC and former chairman of the Bristol & District League, who told him all about the origins of the sport, including the foundation of the pioneering Bristol & District League in 1902.

Duncan also explained how bats and other equipment have developed over the years, before Raj took on 95-year-old club member Brian Ellison, watched by other club members (see picture above).

The four-and-a-half-minute segment was filmed in April during the tail-end of covid restrictions, meaning it was carried out within social distancing protocols.

Click here to watch the show – the Bristol segment begins at 24min 13sec.

Duncan said: “Raj is a great guy, very professional and good fun to be with and he was very interested in the fact that Bristol is the oldest league, and showing him a few items to do with the history of the game.

“It was good to get that story out there and fun to do and getting my four minutes in the limelight and publicising the game we all love.”

Antiques Road Trip features two antiques experts undertaking a trip in a classic car, competing against each other along the way by buying antiques and trying to make the biggest profit by selling them at auctions.

In this episode, Raj and fellow expert Irita Marriott were travelling from Suffolk to Penzance in an MG midget.