The Local Area

The Blowing Stone Inn, Restaurant and Bed & Breakfast located in Kingston Lisle near Wantage, provides easy access to the University town of Oxford, Swindon, Newbury and Reading all within a similar distance. Map

This places the Blowing Stone in an ideal location for exploring the local area and due to its rural positioning it is an attractive alternative to hotels / Guest Houses in Oxford, Swindon and Wantage.


Wantage King Alfred was born in 849 AD in Wantage at a time when it was an important Saxon centre. The towns buildings are mostly 17th and 18th century with narrow cobbled streets and passages.

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, part of which is 13th century contains tombs of the Fitzwarren family into which Dick Whittington - four times Lord Mayor of London - married. Wantage lies at the foot of the Downs and there are numerous racing stables in surrounding villages. Nearby is the historic, probably pre-Roman, Ridgeway track running from Ashbury to Streatley on the Thames. The Downs are also the site of the famous White horse carved into the chalk hillside.

Wantage is also in the heart of an area of high technology close to AEA Technology, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Culham Laboratory, Esso Research Centre and the Williams Motor Racing Centre in Europe's second largest village, Grove.

Wantage has a thriving social life with many clubs and local organisations. Music is important with a brass band in the first division and an operatic society. A month long festival of music and arts is held in June and July. There is a Dickensian Evening before Christmas when shops open late and the Town Mayor and Town Crier lead the townspeople and visitors around the town.

John Betjeman, Poet Laureate, lived in the town for many years and wrote a number of poems about Wantage and the surrounding areas for example "Wantage Bells" and "On Leaving Wantage". A Betjeman Memorial Park with a statue of the poet and several displays of his better known works occupies a wooded area a short distance from Wantage Church.

King Alfred already has a statue, commissioned by Lord Wantage, and designed and carved in 1877 by Count Gleichen, (a cousin of Queen Victoria) it stands the town centre. On the base of the statue the following words are found:

Alfred found learning dead and he restored it
Education neglected and he revived it
The laws powerless and he gave them force
The church debased and he raised it
The land ravaged by a fearful enemy from which he delivered it
Alfred’s name will live as long as mankind shall respect the past

Winston Churchill, not usually reputed for his modesty, when being told that he must be the greatest Englishman that ever lived is supposed to have replied "No! The greatest Englishman that ever lived was King Alfred".

 

Oxford, The City of Dreaming Spires, is famous the world over for its University and place in history. For over 800 years, it has been a home to royalty and scholars, and since the 9th century an established town, although people are known to have lived in the area for thousands of years.

Nowadays, the city is a bustling cosmopolitan town. Still with its ancient University, but home also to a growing hi-tech community.

With its mix of ancient and modern, there is plenty for both the tourist and resident to do. Whether its visiting one of the many historic buildings, colleges or museums, going out for a drink or a meal, taking in a show or shopping till you drop, Oxford has it all.
 

Swindon: There is something for everyone in Swindon. The fascinating history of the Great Western Railway has been brought alive at STEAM - Museum of the Great Western railway and the refurbished buildings of the historic railways are also home to Europe’s largest covered designer outlet centre and the National Monuments Record Centre which houses the archive of England's Heritage.

Swindon is not only a shoppers delight; within its boundaries there are delightful villages, Victorian parks, historic market towns, and beautiful countryside.

When it comes to entertainment Swindon's got the lot - theatre, arts, festivals, fabulous restaurants, fashionable bars, and premier nightclubs.

 

Newbury is a classic, vibrant market town that enjoys a unique mix of heritage and technology, creating a diverse and charming environment in which to shop, work or spend time. It lies in beautiful countryside, much of which has been designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and sits astride the Kennet and Avon canal, which winds its way through the heart of the town centre on its way to the Thames at Reading.

The pedestrianised town centre has an excellent and varied selection of department stores, national multiples and independent shops. The Kennet Shopping Centre has recently undergone a major refit and boasts a host of well known names and smaller independents, offering something for everyone. There is an open air market in the Market Place every Thursday and Saturday that dates back to 1204. The market stalls sell everything from clothes to fruit and meat.

Throughout Newbury there is a wealth of eating places catering for all tastes and pockets, including traditional pubs, popular cafes and fashionable restaurants.