When the Hampshire conurbation of Basingstoke doesn’t normally rank high on tourists’ ‘must-visit’ lists. However, this 1950s ‘New Town’ and its immediate surroundings tell many a historical tale for those who look past the shopping malls, multi-storey car park and fast food joints which recently replaced the historic centre.
To this day,
hotels in Basingstoke cater more for business travellers than tourists, in spite of the town’s position on one of the main routes to the West Country and its medieval heritage as a market town. Somewhat unfairly, it’s regarded as a ‘bypass’ town, seemingly only nudging into the headlines when, as during the snowstorms of 2009, it’s victim to natural disaster. On that occasion, more than 3,000 motorists were forced out of their cars by howling blizzards and into nearby safer havens.
Leisure visitors who decide to use local hostelries as a base for travelling around the area will find a good choice at all levels, offering comfortable accommodation and good service at prices to suit most pockets. A short stroll around the town reveals London Street, with its 17th to early 20th century homes and imposing St Michael’s 19th century church, although there’s nothing left of the town mentioned in the Domesday Book.
Before setting out on exploration of the surrounding countryside, there’s one must-see in town for all visitors. Colloquially known as the Wote Street Willy, this large carved stone sculpture’s undeniable resemblance to an erect penis went apparently unnoticed by council officials until its setting on Wote Street in the town centre.
A 10-minute drive from town is the site of the Roman town of Silchester, with an impressive amount of its original architecture remaining, including the town walls and an amphitheatre as well as a pretty medieval church. The Milestones Museum in Leisure Park is a living reconstruction of a Victorian street, with Basing House in Old Basing village an atmospheric ruin of a Tudor palace and castle.
Interesting towns nearby include Farnborough, home to the annual Farnborough Air Show and the birthplace of the UK’s aviation industry, and historic Winchester, with its 2,000-year history. Once the capital of King Alfred the Great’s England, the region south of the Danelaw, it became famous for its woollen trade after the Norman invasion in 1066. Gothic Winchester Cathedral, almost 1,000 years old, is the major landmark.
Winchester is just a short drive from Basingstoke and well worth an all-day trip for its heritage. The old city centre holds cobbled, winding streets, the 15th century Butter Cross and Winchester Great Hall, built by King Henry III in the 13th century and set close to the two surviving city gates. The Round Table of Arthurian legend, or at least a fake commissioned by Henry VIII, is housed here, and ruined Wolvesey Castle, the former residence of the Bishops, attests to the one-time wealth of the city and its religious institutions.
John can be found blogging for
Holidays in the UK and wrote this article for Tylney Hall –
hotel and wedding venue in Basingstoke.
