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This article examines the different roles that amusement, recreation and occupation played in Victorian institutions, using Caterham Imbecile Asylum as a case study. It explores the intentions of the asylum staff in the design, use and application of these activities, including sport, music, theatre and work, and their purpose as forms of treatment and patient management. It also considers the ways that amusement, reaction and occupation shaped both the material culture of the asylum and the patient experience. In certain circumstances these activities provided opportunities for patient and staff interactions outside formal institutional relationships. Studies that focus on the institutional regime have helped to open up the inner life of asylums, showing them to be diverse and multifaceted sites. The article argues that at Caterham, a long-stay institution, sport, amusement and occupational work took on a particular purpose and meaning, used to both combat the inevitable monotony of institutional life, as well as offer opportunities for patients to engage in meaningful activities, to soothe fractious minds and bodies. Moreover, amusement, recreation and occupation saw patients go beyond the walls of the asylum, affording engagement with the local community, and expanding the social geography of the institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]