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This listings directory of over 950 entries is being phased out.
It now excludes places and things of interest in North East England.
These can be found in ABAB’s Places.
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England’s Jurassic Coast encompasses 95 miles of lovely coastline from Exmouth in East Devon to Old Harry Rocks in Studland Bay in Dorset. It actually covers three geological time periods - the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous which together make up the Mesozoic Era, from around 250 to 65 million years ago. The area's significant fossil sites and model coastal geomorphologic features have contributed to the study of earth sciences for over 300 years. The coast includes some wonderful geological features, like Durdle Door and Chesil Beach, dramatic views and seaside towns and resorts such as Bournemouth, Poole, Swanage, Lyme Regis and West Bay. Walk, bathe and hunt for fossils.
Managed by the Jurassic Coast Trust
“Who can ever be tired of Bath?” Jane Austen enquired. Apart from being a favourite of one of England’s most-loved novelists, Bath is probably most famed for its Roman and Regency heritage. The Romans built extensive baths there and called the town Aquae Sulis (the waters of Sul, a local Celtic deity similar to Minerva). The remains of the complex were discovered in the 18th C, by which time the healing waters of Bath had again become fashionable, with the help of the dandy, Beau Nash, and the town evolved into a go-to Regency place. Thus Bath is also loved for its surviving honey-coloured Georgian architecture, not least its elegant Royal Crescent and unusual Pulteney Bridge over the Avon, designed by Robert Adam and containing shops built across its full span. Among Bath’s many other attractions is the Gothic 15th C Abbey, where a monastery was founded in the 7th century. Bath is a World Heritage Site, one of Britain’s tourist magnets and features heavily on overseas visitors’ itineraries, as well as being a desirable romantic weekend destination.
Longleat House was built for Sir John Thynn in the 16th century on the site of a former Augustinian Priory. It is currently the seat of the Marquesses of Bath and still the private residence of the Thynn family. The house is set within 900 acres of Capability Brown landscaped gardens and is widely regarded as one of the best examples of Elizabethan architecture in Britain, as well as one of the most beautiful stately homes open to the public.
Visitors can see the Great Hall, scene of lavish banquets with 35 feet high walls adorned by giant paintings, libraries filled with over 40,000 books, some of them rare, a dining room laid out ready to host the next VIP guests and the 90 feet long Saloon with its exquisite Flemish tapestries. It is also possible to see Lord Bath’s ‘famous & fabulous’ Murals.
In 1966, Longleat Safari Park opened as the first drive-through safari park outside Africa. It is now home to over 500 animals, including giraffes, monkeys, rhino, lions, tigers (no bears?), cheetahs and wolves.
There are different ticket types. Historic House members will need to pay to access the Safari Park and other outdoor attractions.
Image credit: Historic Houses
South Cadbury Castle is an Iron Age hill fort, overrun by the Romans in the 1st century and subsequently used by them, but then reoccupied and its defences restored in the sub-Roman period and in occasional use up to at least the 10th century. It is one of several places associated with the legendary King Arthur and suggested as a possible location for the mythical Camelot. The walls and defences are now wooded, but the size of them can be appreciated, and there is a wonderful view of Glastonbury Tor, on the mystical Isle of Avalon, from the top.
Take the pathway, Castle Lane, from the village; it is invariably muddy.
The Fleet Air Arm Museum is Europe's largest naval aviation Museum and tells the story of the Royal Navy in the air. There are over 90 aircraft, from biplanes to supersonic jets, plus thousands of other artefacts, on show in four exhibition halls. In addition, it houses the first British Concorde, which you can go on board, and the 'Aircraft Carrier Experience', a fascinating tour round a realistic mocked-up carrier. The museum is exceptionally well laid out - one of the best.
Yeovilton
The charming garden of Tintinhull Hall, designed by an amateur gardener, Phyllis Reiss, who lived there from 1933 to 1961. The garden is divided into a series of 'rooms', each with its own character. Don't miss the swing!
The hall is not generally open to the public, but can be hired for self-catering breaks.
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts was first held in 1970, the day after Jimi Hendrix died, when the headlining act was T Rex (who replaced the Kinks). It was the brainchild of farmer Michael Eavis and is now a regular event, the largest of its kind in the world. Though best known for its music (as well as its mud and awful toilets), the festival, as its name implies, covers all performing arts - such as dance, cabaret and comedy. For 5 days during June, Worthy Farm is transformed into a major conurbation of 175,000 people - it is a masterpiece of logistics and organisation. Headline acts over the years have included the likes of the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Who, Adele and Dolly Parton.
Attendance is ONLY possible by allocated ticket obtained via the festival website.
Pilton
Shepton Mallet
Part-ruined home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells for 800 years, the palace dates from 13th century and is surrounded by a moat, upon which swans glide gracefully; they are trained to ring a bell when they're hungry. Croquet is played on the lawn. The highlight, though, is the gardens. These are a delight to wander in and include the well pools that give the city its name.
Vicars’ Close is a cobbled medieval street adjacent to and north of Wells Cathedral. It is believed to be the only complete medieval street still surviving in England – some say in Europe. The houses were ordered to be built in the 14th century by Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury to provide accommodation for the ‘Vicars Choral’ – cathedral priests whose duties included singing divine services. Chimneys were added later, in the 15th century and (no doubt) other improvements have been made since. Originally, there were 42 houses, one per priest, but some were combined after the Reformation when vicars were allowed to marry. Today, there are 27 residences in Vicars’ Close, as well as a chapel, library, treasury and muniment room. There is also a dining hall connected to the Cathedral by a covered walkway, the Chain Gate Bridge. All of the buildings are Grade I listed. The current occupants still include the Vicars Choral, plus the organists and virgers. Vicars’ Close has, unsurprisingly, been used as a film location.
Wells, the second-smallest city in England (after the City of London) is often missed in favour of larger attractions. Bamber Gascoigne once referred to it being renowned for “the unspoilt perfection of a range of ecclesiastical buildings” – and he was right. Wells’ crowning glory is probably its extraordinary cathedral, with its amazing west front depicting the hierarchy of heaven with some 300 individual statues, and the astonishingly modern-looking scissor arches added to the nave in the 14th C to strengthen the tower. On the north transept is a 24-hour astronomical clock, also 14th C, with knights striking the hours; and the octagonal chapter house is stunning. Outside is Vicars Close, an entire street of 14th C houses. The nearby moated Bishop’s Palace is surrounded by beautiful gardens; swans on the moat ring a bell when they think it’s time for food.
If your favourite attraction is not listed yet, and you have a good quality digital photograph of it that you are able to freely send, please get in touch.