56 Facts About Reading Berkshire

Reading Berkshire is 40 miles east of Swindon, 28 miles south of Oxford, 40 miles west of London and 16 miles north of Basingstoke.

Reading Berkshire is a major commercial centre, especially for information technology and insurance.

Reading Berkshire Abbey was founded in 1121 by Henry I, who is buried within the Abbey grounds.

Reading Berkshire was an important river crossing point: in 1312, King Edward II directed that its bridges should be kept in good order.

Reading Berkshire played an important role during the English Civil War.

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Reading Berkshire played a significant role during the Glorious Revolution: the second Battle of Reading Berkshire was the only substantial military action of the campaign.

Reading Berkshire's trade benefited from better designed turnpike roads which helped it establish its location on the major coaching routes from London to Oxford and the West Country.

Local government for the town of Reading Berkshire is principally provided by Reading Berkshire Borough Council, a single level unitary authority without civil parishes.

Reading Berkshire has elected at least one Member of Parliament to every Parliament since 1295.

Reading Berkshire'storically, Reading was represented by the members for the Parliamentary Borough of Reading, and the parliamentary constituencies of Reading, Reading North, and Reading South.

Reading Berkshire is the site of venues for both the Crown Court, administering criminal justice, and the County Court, responsible for civil cases.

Reading Berkshire has had some degree of local government autonomy since 1253, when the local merchant guild was granted a royal charter.

The Borough of Reading became a unitary authority area in 1998, when Berkshire County Council was abolished under the Banham Review, and is responsible for all aspects of local government within the borough.

On this subject, Rob Wilson, then Member of Parliament for Reading Berkshire East, said in a House of Commons debate in January 2006:.

Reading Berkshire is 37 miles due west of central London, 24 miles southeast of Oxford, 70 miles east of Bristol, and 42 miles north of the English south coast.

The centre of Reading Berkshire is on a low ridge between the River Thames and River Kennet, close to their confluence, reflecting the town's history as a river port.

In 2010, it was reported that Reading Berkshire had 150 different spoken languages within its population.

Reading Berkshire is an important commercial centre in the Thames Valley and Southern England.

Whilst located close enough to London to be sometimes regarded as part of the London commuter belt, Reading Berkshire is a net inward destination for commuters.

Reading Berkshire has a significant historical involvement in the information technology industry, largely as a result of the early presence in the town of sites of International Computers Limited and Digital Equipment Corporation.

Besides the two major shopping malls, Reading Berkshire has three smaller shopping arcades, the Bristol and West Arcade, Harris Arcade and The Walk, which contain smaller specialist stores.

Reading Berkshire has no indoor market, but there is a street market in Hosier Street.

Reading Berkshire Festival takes place at Little Johns Farm in Reading Berkshire, Richfield Avenue.

For some twenty years until 2006, Reading Berkshire was known for its WOMAD Festival until it moved to Charlton Park in Malmesbury, Wiltshire.

Reading Berkshire holds Reading Berkshire Pride, an annual LGBT festival in Kings Meadow.

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Amateur theatre venues in Reading Berkshire include Progress Theatre, a self-governing, self-funding theatre group and registered charity founded in 1947 that operates and maintains its own 97-seat theatre.

The demonym for a person from Reading Berkshire is Redingensian, giving the name of the local rugby team Redingensians, based in Sonning, and of former members of Reading Berkshire School.

Reading Berkshire appears in the works of Thomas Hardy where it is called 'Aldbrickham'.

Reading Berkshire has six Grade I listed buildings, 22 Grade II* and 853 Grade II buildings, in a wide variety of architectural styles that range from the medieval to the 21st century.

Reading Berkshire has a local newspaper, the Reading Berkshire Chronicle, published on Thursdays.

The town's other local newspaper, the Reading Berkshire Post, ceased publication on paper in December 2014, in order to transition to an online only format under the title getreading.

Reading Berkshire has one local television station, That's Thames Valley, which broadcasts local news throughout the Greater Reading Berkshire area.

Reading Berkshire has over 100 parks and playgrounds, including 5 miles of riverside paths.

Reading Berkshire has five local nature reserves: Clayfield Copse in Caversham, with the other four McIlroy Park, Blundells Copse, Lousehill Copse and Round Copse all in Tilehurst.

Principal National Health Service hospital in Reading is the Royal Berkshire Hospital, founded in 1839 and much enlarged and rebuilt since.

Reading Berkshire had its own power station in Vastern Road from 1895 to the 1960s.

Parts of Reading Berkshire are cabled by Virgin Media, supplying cable television, telephone and broadband internet connections.

Reading Berkshire School, founded in 1125, is the 16th oldest school in England.

English language schools in Reading Berkshire include Gateway Languages, the English Language Centre, ELC London Street and Eurospeak Language School.

University of Reading Berkshire was established in 1892 as an affiliate of Oxford University.

Reading Berkshire Museum opened in 1883 in the town's municipal buildings.

The Museum of English Rural Life, in East Reading Berkshire, is a museum dedicated to recording the changing face of farming and the countryside in England.

The Museum of Reading Berkshire Aviation has a collection of aircraft and other artefacts relating to the aircraft industry in the town.

Reading Berkshire was a major staging point on the old Bath Road from London to Avonmouth near Bristol.

Reading Berkshire is a major junction point of the National Rail system, and hence Reading Berkshire station is an important transfer point and terminus.

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Reading Berkshire is a western terminus of the Elizabeth line, which provides stopping services to London Paddington, and means Reading Berkshire is featured on the London Tube map.

Reading Berkshire Minster is Reading Berkshire's oldest ecclesiastical foundation, known to have been founded by the 9th century and possibly earlier.

Reading Berkshire was buried there, as were parts of his daughter Empress Matilda, William of Poitiers, Constance of York, and Princess Isabella of Cornwall, among others.

Medieval borough of Reading Berkshire was served by three parish churches: Reading Berkshire Minster, St Giles' Church, and St Laurence's Church.

The Bishop of Reading Berkshire is a suffragan bishop within the Church of England's Diocese of Oxford.

Reading Berkshire was the site of the death of Blessed Dominic Barberi, the Catholic missionary to England in the 19th century who received John Henry Newman into the Catholic faith.

Reading Berkshire Hebrew Congregation, which still stands on its original site at the junction of Goldsmid Road and Clifton Street near the town centre, is a Grade II-listed building, built to a traditional design in the Moorish style.

Reading Berkshire has a Liberal Jewish community which convenes in the Reading Berkshire Quaker Meeting House, an active Jewish Society for students at the university, as well as being served by a Reform Jewish community which convenes in nearby Maidenhead Synagogue.

Reading Berkshire has places of worship of other religions: the Shantideva Mahayana Buddhist centre, a Hindu temple, a Sikh gurdwara, a Salvation Army citadel, a Quaker meeting house, and a Christadelphian Hall.

Reading Berkshire is the home of Reading Berkshire Football Club, an association football club nicknamed The Royals, formed in 1871.

The Reading Berkshire Racers reformed in 2016 and joined the new Southern Developmental League upon its formation in 2017 winning its inaugural season undefeated.