Tag: Waterstones

Harborne – Saturday 22nd March 2025 

Harborne is an affluent town in the West Midlands about 3 miles from Birmingham.   In the morning, we had visited the National Trust’s Hanbury Hall near Droitwich Spa on our way to Solihull, and as this wasn’t a million miles out of our way, we decided to visit the Waterstones.  It’s located in a modern building in the High Street and opened in 2023 in what was previously a bank.  We didn’t have long to explore the small town, but it seemed very nice.

National Trust Hanbury Hall

Hanbury Hall is a pretty, red brick house built in the early 18th century in the William and Mary style for a wealthy lawyer called Thomas Vernon.  We stopped there for the obligatory coffee and cake, and to have a look round the house, which was very interesting, and the pretty gardens.

Currently reading: Murder Before Evensong (Canon Clement #1) by The Reverend Richard Coles

Romsey – Saturday 25th January 2025 

Romsey is a market town in Hampshire with pretty medieval streets and a large Abbey, which was rebuilt in the 12th century, having replaced an earlier Anglo-Saxon building, and is dedicated to St Mary and St Ethelflaeda. The town is the location of Broadlands House, the country home of the Palmerston family, of whom Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount was Prime Minister of the UK twice, from 1855 to 1858 and then from 1859 to 1865.  Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip spent their honeymoon there.  There is a statue in his honour in the centre of the town.  The Waterstones is located in the main shopping road through the centre of the town.  I came across a website about Lost Pubs, which states that the building was a hostelry called the Queens [sic] Head which closed in the 1860s.

Romsey Abbey

Pretty Romsey

Wells – Saturday 4th January 2025 

Wells is England’s smallest city and also a market town which was granted market status in the 12th century.  It is also well-known as being the filming location of the comedy film Hot Fuzz (one of our favourites) in which it is called Sandford.  At the top of the city stands Wells Cathedral, with its beautiful west front aspect and the famous scissor arches inside. The Waterstones, which is our closest store, is located in the High Street (which has a stream running down the edge) in a Grade II listed building, parts of which date to the 18th century and, according to Historic England, parts are possibly even from the 1400s.  The inside of the building is very pretty, with wooden beams in the ceiling at the front.

Wells Cathedral

The Bishop’s Palace

The Bishop’s Palace has been home to the Bishops of Bath & Wells for around 800 years.  The building is surrounded by a moat, and the city’s resident swans (more than one…) ring a bell when they want feeding! 

Wells

Currently reading: At Christmas We Feast by Annie Gray     

Chichester – Monday 30th December 2024

Chichester is a Roman city and the county town of West Sussex. The Romans, who called it Noviomagus Reginorum, chose the location to build their town as it had good access to the sea, which allowed them to easily receive supplies from France and made it the perfect place for trade.  The Waterstones is located in a grade 2 listed building which was part of the Dolphin and Anchor hotel – the ballroom upstairs still has its chandelier from hotel days!

Chichester is also a Cathedral city, being home to the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity which was consecrated in 1108.  The Cathedral is home to some Roman remains which can be seen via a viewing panel in the floor.

The photos below, are: Shippams (2) – the well-known paste company was established in Chichester in 1786, but was sold in 1974.  When the factory was demolished, the facade was left.

Chichester Market Cross (1746) and The Buttermarket (1808)

The Council House (1731) and John Keats statue – the poet stayed in Chichester in 1819.

Currently reading Mr Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva        

 

Winchester, High Street – Friday 11th October 2024

The second Waterstones in Winchester is located in an attractive two-storey shop in the High Street, but I have been unable to find out the history of the building, although from the mosaic tiling at the entrance, it was once a branch of Hatchard’s Booksellers. 

Winchester High Street 11th October 2024 (1)

Winchester High Street 11th October 2024 (1)

The Winchester Bollard Project

Since 2005 there has been an ongoing project to decorate bollards in the city.  Starting with 16, there are now apparently 28 bollards, but we only had time to spot a few as we didn’t have much time left on our parking, but some of them were being touched up, so it’s good that they’ve lasted so long.  Here are three – Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, one celebrating Winchester’s Roman heritage and one for Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

Various shots of Winchester

Top row  – Winchester Guildhall, built 1875.  An ornate clock on the Lloyds bank building.
Middle row – Ghost signs for Nestle Milk on a former shop.  A channel of the river Itchen located in Abbey Gardens.
Bottom row – Winchester’s Coat of Arms.  The statue of King Alfred the Great. 

 

Winchester, The Brooks – Friday 11th October 2024

Winchester is a cathedral town in Hampshire which was, once upon a time, the capital of Wessex and the seat of King Alfred the Great, for whom there is a statue in the town.  Today, remnants of Winchester’s historical significance are everywhere, from its preserved medieval walls to the mighty cathedral that dominates the skyline.  It is also home to Winchester College, the oldest public school in the country.  There are two Waterstones in Winchester. The first we visited is located in a modern shop in the Brooks Shopping Centre.

Winchester The Brooks Map

Winchester Cathedral

The city’s Gothic cathedral, which was built between 1079–1532, is one of the largest in Europe with the longest nave in England, and the author Jane Austen is buried there.  The cathedral came within the brink of collapse in the early 1900s, but was saved when a diver called William Walker carried out repairs on the foundations of the cathedral to stop it from sinking into the ground.

Borrowed Breath

Some of the pieces from an exhibition called Borrowed Breath by sculptor Laurence Edwards, part of a set of fifteen inspired by Winchester Cathedral’s west window.

Currently reading:  Frankie by Graham Norton

Llandudno – Monday 9th September 2024

Llandudno is a popular seaside town and holiday destination on the Creuddyn Peninsula on the north coast of Wales.  The town is known for its well-preserved Victorian and Edwardian architecture, long, sandy beaches and pier, the latter of which opened in 1877 and was given Grade II listed status in 1969.  Being on a peninsula, the town has beaches on both the north and west sides of the headland. Apparently Kashmiri goats can often be found wandering the town – they are descended from a pair presented by the Shah of Persia to Queen Victoria, but sadly we didn’t see any! The Waterstones is located in a modern building in the main shopping area.

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Llandudno map

The Alice in Wonderland connection

Alice Liddell, on whom Lewis Carroll (real name Charles Dodgson) based his  literary character Alice, spent many summers in the town in her family’s holiday home, and whilst evidence of his visit is anecdotal, it is suggested that Carroll visited the family there.  The Prime Minister David Lloyd George unveiled a statue of the White Rabbit in 1933 in Carroll’s honour, and the nonsense poem The Walrus and the Carpenter is said to have been inspired by two rocks of the same names at West Shore in the town. 

There is also a town trail of Alice characters by wood sculptor Simon Hedger in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

North Shore

Aberystwyth – Thursday 5th September 2024

Aberystwyth is a historic coastal town in mid Wales known for its spectacular sunsets and winter storms.  It’s a university town and a popular holiday destination.  The town has a mile-long Victorian promenade with a sweeping dark sandy beach.  It also has a funicular railway and a pier.  The Waterstones is located in the centre of town – I haven’t been able to find out the history of the building.

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Aberywtwyth map

Aberystwyth Cliff Railway

Aberystwyth is home to the longest electric funicular cliff railway in Britain.  It opened in 1896, and carries passengers from the base of Constitution Hill to its summit, offering breathtaking panoramic views of the town and the surrounding coast.  We were here on a really hot day, so we were happy to find a café at the top serving beer and ice cream!

National Library of Wales / Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru

The National Library of Wales was established in 1907 and is the largest library in Wales – it holds around 6.5 million books and magazines.  It’s a beautiful building inside and out, and the North Reading Room is especially attractive.  It’s open to visitors, so we popped in to take a look. 

Aberystwyth

Currently reading: Rainbow Valley (Anne of Green Gables #7) by L M Montgomer

Carmarthen – Tuesday 3rd September 2024

Carmarthen is a large town in south Wales that sits on the banks of the River Tywi.  It’s been a market town since Roman times, and there is still a market there six days a week, as well as plenty of independent shops.

The film Jurassic Park was shown in Carmarthen before anywhere else in the UK after the manager of the only cinema in the town, The Lyric Theatre, and the town’s mayor, sent a fax to the film’s director Stephen Spielberg to tell him how unhappy they were that the film wasn’t going to be shown there!  The theatre is no longer used as a cinema, but they definitely had their moment, and the event was made into a film called Save the Cinema!

The Waterstones is located in Guildhall Square, which is a large pedestrianised area in the centre of town, and is set over two floors.

Carmarthen 3rd Sept 2024 (1)

Carmarthen Map

Carmarthen Guildhall

This gorgeous building is now the Cofio Lounge café bar (we love a Lounge), but started life as a Guildhall with a market below.  It was used as a courthouse until it closed in 2016.  The old courtroom is still upstairs, and can be visited when it’s quiet, but sadly it was really busy in the café, so we just popped upstairs and peered through the windows!

The Lyric Theatre – site of the UK premiere of Jurassic Park

Carmarthen Castle

The stone castle was built in the 1190s, replacing an earlier timber motte and bailey version. The castle was partially demolished in the 17th Century. Not much remains, but it is free to wander round what’s left.

Currently reading: A Disappearance in Fiji by Nilima Rao

Hemel Hempstead – Wednesday 10th July 2024

Hemel, as it is known colloquially, is a town of two halves.  The Old Town was granted a town charter by King Henry VIII in 1539, although the area had been inhabited for centuries before.  After World War II, the population of London expanded rapidly, and so, in 1949 Hemel was designated for development as a “New Town” to take in some of the overspilling population who were displaced by the Blitz and London’s slum clearance programme. New Hemel Hempstead is located about half a mile south of the Old, and the Waterstones is located here in a modern building in the Riverside Shopping Centre.

Hemel Hempstead 10th July 2024 (1)

Hemel Hemptead map

The Old Town    

New Town