Berkshire Accommodation:
Reading
Newbury
Ascot
Maidenhead
Windsor
Charvil
Bracknell
Colnbrook
Crowthorne
Datchet
Donnington
Hungerford
Kidmore End
Kintbury
Sindlesham
Slough
Sonning On Thames
Wokingham
Aldermaston
Chieveley
Cookham
Cookham Dean
Hurley
Pangbourne
Stratfield Mortimer
Stanford Dingley
Streatley On Thames
Winkfield
Mortimer
Goring On Thames
Burghclere
Bray
Eton
Binfield
Boxford
Highclere
Lambourn
Sunningdale
Sunninghill
Swallowfield
Thatcham
Wargrave
Yattendon
Emmbrook
Sandhurst
Twyford
Stockcross
Inkpen
Earley
Woodley
Mapledurham

Berkshire

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River Kennet River Kennet

Information

County Town: Reading
Population: 763,000
Area: 487
Berkshire Jobs
Berkshire Tips Page
County Reviews
Rather interesting Berkshire facts
Berkshire weather
Visitor reports
Your opinion of Berkshire
Famous Dates
Famous People
Food Legends:Eton Mess
Poor Knights of Windsor
George IVs Punch
Brown Windsor Soup
Folk Customs:
Beating the Bounds
Eton Wall Game
Hungerford Hocktide Court
Swan Upping
Ufton Nervet Bread and Cloth Dole
Haunted Britain:
Landlady Barred from The Bull
The Berystede’s Blue Lady
Cultural Britain:
Wind in the Berkshire Willows
Lore & legend:
Edward the Confessor cures the blind woodcutter
Herne the Hunter
King Alfred's Blowing Stone
The Fairies of Burrow Hill
The Newbury Coat
Natural Britain:
Berkshire Downs
Goring Gap
Greenham Common
Lardon chase
North Wessex Downs
River Kennet
River Pang
Thames Valley
The Ridgeway
The River Thames
Walbury Hill

Events

March
Alternative Queen of Reading
Annual Charity Pancake in aid of British Heart Foundation
Beale Park Country & Craft Fair
Reading Half Marathon
Reading Vintage Toyfair
Runnymede Spring Open
The British Leisure Show
Ufton Nervet Bread and Cloth Dole

April
Annual Royal Windsor Spring Home & Garden Show
Art & Leisure in the Gardens
Easter Crafts
Easter Egg Hunt
Easter Egg Trail in Caversham Court
EasterEggstravaganza
Heart2Heart Walk/Run
Hocktide Festival
Spring Style at The Oracle
Trinity Concert Band - Spring Concert

May
Brightwalton Village Fete
Caversham Arts Trail
Crown and Tiara Walk
Henley Arts Trail
Launchpad Big Sleep Out
Newbury Crafty Craft Race
Newbury Fringe Festival
Newbury Spring Festival
Reading Children's Festival
Royal Windsor Horse Show
Windsor Castle Royal Tattoo

June
Beale Park Boat Show
Butser Festival of Flight
Eat Reading Live!
Maidenhead Carnival
Reading Arts Week
Reading Children's Festival
Reading Water Fest
Royal Ascot Race Meeting
West Woodhay House Garden Show

July
Goring & Streatley Regatta
Hong Kong Day
Marvellous Festival
Newbury Carnival
Newbury Comedy Festival
Newbury Waterways Festival
outside:inside Festival
Race for Life
Reading Arts Week
Reading Fringe Festival
Royal County Game Fair
Windsor Beer Fest
Windsor Globe

August
Berkshire 4x4 Motor Show
Inland Waterways Assoc National Festival & Boat Show
Music and Dance in the Park
Reading Festival
Reading Fringe Festival
Stubbings House Opera
The Royal Berkshire Festival of Wings, Wheels, Speed & Steam
Windsor Globe
World Rowing Championships

September
Berkshire Royal County Show
Heritage Open Days
National Carriage Driving Championships
Newbury Races
Reading & Wokingham Country Show
Reading Pride
Windsor Festival
Windsor Park Walk

October
German Beer Fest
Michaelmas Fair
Newbury Races
Real Vintage and Good Food Market

November
Eton Wall Game
Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup
Windsor Contemporary Art Fair

December
Art on the Street
BHF Newbury Santa Jog
BHF Santa Jog – Reading
Christmas Fayre
Royal Windsor Ice Rink
Woodley Winter Extravaganza

Berkshire - 259 places to stay

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The county of Berkshire, sometimes known as the 'Royal County' is one of the oldest in England. It dates back to at least 860 AD but probably it predates even this. The county changed significantly on April 1st 1974 when the Local Government Act 1972 moved the boundaries of many English counties. Berkshire lost ground to Oxfordshire but gained Eton and Slough . Reading , county seat since taking over from Abingdon in 1867, remained as the county's capital. Berkshire lies mainly south of the River Thames , which forms the northern boundary of the county except at Slough and Reading which are on land to the north of the river. The River Kennet also flows through Berkshire. Beyond the flood plains formed by the Thames and its tributaries, the land rises toward the county boundaries with Surrey and Hampshire . This part of Berkshire is still heavily wooded, especially around Bracknell and Windsor Great Park. The highest point in the county lies near the border with Hampshire. At 297 m (974 ft), Walbury Hill is also the tallest hill in South East England and was once the site of an Iron Age hill fort. Visitors to the county of Berkshire are spoilt for choice. Perhaps its most famous landmark is Windsor Castle , home to the British Royal Family since it was first built by William The Conquerer in the 11th Century. It is claimed to be the oldest and largest continually occupied castle in the world. Visitors to the castle can tour the State Apartments, the extensive suites of rooms at the heart of the working palace. For part of the year visitors can also see the Semi State rooms, featuring some of the most sumptuous interiors on view. The Castle complex has many attractions apart from finely decorated rooms. Visitors can enjoy the Drawings Gallery, Queen Mary's dolls' house, and the fourteenth-century St. George's Chapel, the burial place of ten sovereigns and the setting for many Royal weddings. Windsor Great Park, for many years the private hunting ground of the Royals, is now a popular recreational area and is especially popular for residents of the western reaches of London. This 5,000 acre deer park is owned and managed by Crown Estates and is home to many species of native tree, including some very mighty old oaks. Windsor is also famous for the nearby Eton College , which was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI . The school opens its grounds to visitors from March to October. Windsor also hosts another, completely different experience at Legoland - one of Britain's most visited tourist attractions. A little further along the Thames lies the larger town of Maidenhead . The town was called 'Maydenhyth' or 'maiden's landing place' during medieval times, the river providing the town with enviable transport links both to the capital and into the heart of middle England. The town is still popular with those that enjoy messing about in boats and an annual regatta is still held in Maidenhead during August. Maidenhead is home to two of the finest bridges to span the Thames. The first was originally built out of wood in 1280 and this bridge helped Maidenhead to expand and establish itself as a major berkshire town. The current stone bridge, known as Maidenhead Bridge, was built in 1777 and operated as a toll bridge until 1903 when the people using the bridge threw the gates into the river in protest over the charges. With the coming of the railways a new bridge was constructed over the Thames at Maidenhead by Isambard Kingdom Brunel . Often known as the Maidenhead Viaduct, the bridge is famous for its two massive brick arches which were the largest and flattest of their kind in the world when it was completed in 1838. The arches span 128 feet (39 m) and have become famous for the tremendous echoes produced under the right hand arch or Sounding Arch, through which the Thames passes. The river here provides many wonderful walks, including that upstream from Brunel's bridge to Boulter's Lock, which has long been a famous riverside setting for walks and picnics. Berkshire is home to a great number of outstanding estates and nature parks, many of which are now open to the public. These include those at Donnington Castle , Beale Wildlife Park and Gardens , Bisham Abbey and the magnificent Palladian mansion at Basildon Park which was used as a location (as 'Netherfield Park') for the acclaimed 2005 film Pride & Prejudice. It was also used as a filming location for the movie Marie-Antoinette. With a mix of rural beauty, bustling towns and quiet riversides, Berkshire is one of England's most attractive counties and has plenty to offer visitors and residents alike.

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Brit Quote:
Pleasure is none, if not diversified. - John Donne
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On this day:
Henry VIII marries Anne Boleyn - 1533, Robert Burns Born - 1759, The Scotsman Launched - 1817, Fox Talbot Shows First Photos - 1839, Burns Day Killer Storm - 1990
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