Tamworth in Staffordshire

28 March 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  5 minutes

Town Hall © panoramio.com - Tanya Dedyukhina/cc-by-3.0

Town Hall © panoramio.com – Tanya Dedyukhina/cc-by-3.0

Tamworth is a market town and borough in Staffordshire, England, 14 miles (23 km) north-east of Birmingham. The town borders North Warwickshire to the east and north, Lichfield to the north, south-west and west. The town takes its name from the River Tame, which flows through it. The population of Tamworth borough (2021) was 78,838. The wider urban area had a population of 81,964.   read more…

Portrait: Charles Darwin, an English naturalist, geologist and biologist

27 March 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: Portrait Reading Time:  7 minutes

Charles Darwin by Julia Margaret Cameron, c. 1868 © Alfred Steiglitz Collection - Art Institute of Chicago

Charles Darwin by Julia Margaret Cameron, c. 1868
© Alfred Steiglitz Collection – Art Institute of Chicago

Charles Robert Darwin FRS FRGS FLS FZS JP (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended from a common ancestor is now generally accepted and considered a fundamental concept in science. In a joint publication with Alfred Russel Wallace, he introduced his scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process he called natural selection, in which the struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective breeding. Darwin has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history and was honoured by burial in Westminster Abbey.   read more…

Lulworth Cove on the Jurassic Coast

20 March 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  5 minutes

Lulworth Cove © Nilfanion/cc-by-sa-4.0

Lulworth Cove © Nilfanion/cc-by-sa-4.0

Lulworth Cove is a cove near the village of West Lulworth, on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset, southern England. The cove is one of the world’s finest examples of such a landform, and is a World Heritage Site and tourist location with approximately 500,000 visitors every year, of whom about 30 per cent visit in July and August. It is close to the rock arch of Durdle Door and other Jurassic Coast sites.   read more…

Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire

9 March 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Ambrose113/cc-by-sa-4.0

© Ambrose113/cc-by-sa-4.0

Hebden Bridge is a market town in the Calderdale district of West Yorkshire, England. It is in the Upper Calder Valley, 8 miles (13 km) west of Halifax and 14 miles (21 km) north-east of Rochdale, at the confluence of the River Calder and the Hebden Water. The town is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Hebden Royd.   read more…

Knaresborough in North Yorkshire

22 February 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  10 minutes

The town crier in the market place © Adrian Pingstone

The town crier in the market place © Adrian Pingstone

Knaresborough is a market and spa town and civil parish on the River Nidd in North Yorkshire, England. It is three miles (five kilometres) east of Harrogate and was in the Borough of Harrogate until April 2023.   read more…

Stow-on-the-Wold in the Cotswolds

16 February 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Market Square © Bs0u10e01/cc-by-sa-4.0

Market Square © Bs0u10e01/cc-by-sa-4.0

Stow-on-the-Wold is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, on top of an 800-foot (244 m) hill at the junction of main roads through the Cotswolds, including the Fosse Way (A429), which is of Roman origin. The town was founded by Norman lords to absorb trade from the roads converging there. Fairs have been held by royal charter since 1330; a horse fair is still held on the edge of town nearest to Oddington in May and October each year.   read more…

Rye in East Sussex

8 February 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  9 minutes

The Standard Inn © geograph.org.uk - Paul Gillett/cc-by-sa-2.0

The Standard Inn © geograph.org.uk – Paul Gillett/cc-by-sa-2.0

Rye is a town and civil parish in the Rother district of East Sussex, England, two miles (three kilometres) from the sea at the confluence of three rivers: the Rother, the Tillingham and the Brede. An important member of the mediaeval Cinque Ports confederation, it was at the head of an embayment of the English Channel, and almost entirely surrounded by the sea.   read more…

Bibury in the Cotswolds

19 January 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

© LeighCousins/cc-by-sa-4.0

© LeighCousins/cc-by-sa-4.0

Bibury is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the River Coln, a Thames tributary that rises in the same (Cotswold) District. The village centre is 6.5 miles (10.5 kilometres) northeast of Cirencester. Arlington Row is a nationally notable architectural conservation area depicted on the inside cover of some British passports. It is a major destination for tourists visiting the traditional rural villages, tea houses and many historic buildings of the Cotswold District; it is one of six places in the country featured in Mini-Europe, Brussels. The world’s first horse racing club, The Bibury Club, was formed in 1681 and held race meetings on Macaroni Downs above the village until the early 20th century.   read more…

Longleat House in Warminster

14 January 2024 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks Reading Time:  8 minutes

© Saffron Blaze/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Saffron Blaze/cc-by-sa-3.0

Longleat is a stately home about 4 miles (7 km) west of Warminster in Wiltshire, England. A leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, it is a Grade I listed building and the seat of the Marquesses of Bath.   read more…

Return to TopReturn to Top