What to visit within a 40m radius of Reading

Reading was apparently a settlement in 600 named after a chief called Reada. It was near the meeting of the Thames and the Kennet and commanded the fords to North and South.

By 870 Reading was an agricultural and administrative centre for King Aethelred of Wessex. It was involved in fighting between the Saxons and the Danes for the next 150 years. It then evolved as a crossroads centre where roads South from the Midlands crossed the highway of the Thames running east-west from London.

Reading Abbey was built in 1121 and consecrated by St Thomas Becket in 1164.
Henry the eighth destroyed it in 1539. It is now sometimes used for Shakespearean plays.

Medieval Reading was noted for leatherworking and cloth production.

The Kennet and Avon canal was completed in 1810 and gave good transport from London to the West via Reading.

In the last 200 years Reading made a name for itself with Beer, Biscuits, and Bulbs. Simonds brewery was established in 1785. The long tradition of beer making is now continued in the town by Scottish and Newcastle Brewery.  http://www.scottish-newcastle.com/sn/beer/scottishcourage/breweries/

The biscuit business took off around 1820 when Mr. Huntley thought of putting biscuits into tin boxes for travellers. He subsequently went into partnership with George Palmer and the business expanded rapidly. By 1914 they employed 600 people and made 200 varieties of biscuit. Since the Second World War the premises in Reading became more difficult to use economically and the last buildings were demolished in 1991.

The fertile river valley soil was (and is) good for horticulture and this led to the creation in 1837 of Suttons Seeds which became a large enterprise. In 1976 the company moved to the more windy climes of Torquay.

The clay layers around Reading were a good source for brick making. The largest and most famous local company was S&E Collier, which closed in 1965. Some of the workings are now lakes for sport or conservation.

In 1895 Reading Goal achieved notoriety as the temporary abode for Oscar Wilde.

Started as the Reading Extension College in 1882, Reading University was formally inaugurated in 1926 and has had a strong interest in agriculture, soil science and microbiology.

Many electronics and data processing firms have recognized the advantages of locating in Reading.. These include Veritas software, Microsoft UK, Prudential, Cisco Systems. Oracle, Sage and Compaq computers.

The Oracle shopping and Leisure complex was opened in the town centre in 1999. It has 80 shops, a 10-screen cinema and 28 bars and restaurants.Cafes and Bistros are on the side of Kennet And Avon Canal. Oracle-shopping.com

Some of the present-day attractions of the town include:-

Womad music festival each year
Reading Rock Festival each year
Hexagon Theatre
Nearby Windsor castle and Hampton Court Palace
Sonning Herb Farm and Saxon Maze
Wyld court Tropical Rainforest near Beenham
Museum of Reading:
University: Museum of English Rural Life;
   Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology; Cole Museum of Zoology.
Woodley: Museum of Berkshire Aviation
Legoland near Windsor

For more information go to:-

 Readingtourism.org.uk                   reading.gov.uk
 Reading town and around              Reading Guide
 uk-berkshireexplore.co.uk