Twickenham Stadium has been named in the top ten places for sport and leisure by Historic England.

As part of HE’s campaign ‘A History of England in 100 Places’, parliamentarian and former athlete Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson chose ten places- from a “long list” of public nominations- to tell the story of the country’s sport and leisure.

The campaign aims to find the 100 places which best tell the remarkable history of England.

In 1907 sportsman and property entrepreneur William ‘Billy’ Williams chose the site of a four-hectare market garden for the home ground of the England game, prompting the nickname The Cabbage Patch.

Historic England recounted: "The first game, Harlequins v Richmond, was played in 1909, and the first international, in which England beat Wales, in 1910.

"During World War I the ground was used for cattle, horse and sheep grazing.

"The Rugby Football Union encouraged all its players to enrol in the army, and in 1921 King George V unveiled a war memorial at the ground.

"During World War II the stadium was used as a Civil Defence Depot and earmarked as a potential decontamination centre in the event of a chemical attack on London."