Last Updated on October 16, 2023

Reading Shines Bright…

Despite being rudely overlooked in the competition which saw 38 places, from across the UK and British Overseas Territories, apply to win city status during this Platinum Jubilee year. There are many great reasons to visit Reading. Forty miles west of London, a quick hop on the train from Paddington, Reading (or to those in the know, The Ding) presents a modern, contemporary face behind which you’ll find a prosperous English town with a deep and fascinating history in the midst of verdant, gently countryside.

The History of Reading

Nestled between two rivers, the Thames and Kennet, this gateway town has always been of strategic importance, first to the Anglo-Saxons and then to the Danes.  Its Abbey was founded 900 years ago and was later seized by Henry VIII who built a long-gone palace on the site.  The Abbey ruins are a testament to its grandeur.

The “Camino”

As one of the largest religious sites in Europe, the Abbey would have earned a healthy income from those early day tourists, the pilgrims who came to visit the site of a holy relic, in this case, the hand of St James.  Fast forward a thousand years, and latter-day pilgrims are returning to Reading to walk El Camino Ingles, the English leg of the famous Camino de Compostela.  This first stage of the walk from Reading to Southampton (and on to Spain), was the most popular route in the Middle Ages.  Today the 68.5-mile route starts on the Abbey site at Pugin’s lovely 19^th century St James’ Church, then follows rivers and canals through stunning scenery, historic villages and past ancient sites.

Shopping in Reading

Our modern centres for pilgrimage are the football stadium and shopping mall.  Happily, Reading has both!  The modern Oracle Centre backs onto the river Kennett, and the waterway is sympathetically associated with the site.  Here you’ll find major brands as well as waterside cafes, bars and restaurants and outdoor entertainment during the summer months.  A very pleasant environment to meet and shop and generally hang out.

With the additional Broad Street Mall and a colourful mix of independent shops, Reading town centre continues to buzz despite the worrying times for retail.  Maybe this is due to the healthy mixture of retail and catering, as well as a vibrant music scene.

The Festivals

Reading, like many towns across the UK, fosters young talent through a plethora of live music venues and local festivals.  The season kicks off with the “Are You Listening” festival in May, followed by Readipop Festival in July and runs through to “Down At The Abbey” (in the atmospheric Abbey ruins) in September, with, of course, the famous Reading Pop Festival in August. In between there are food festivals, Eat Reading in June and the Chilli Festival, as well as the annual Reading Fringe, this year scheduled for October and promising an eclectic arts and cultural experience.

Street Food in Reading

A great place to drop into from 11 am ’til late on Thursdays to Sundays is Reading’s Blue Collar Corner, offering great street food and a fun environment to rest up and people watch.  Built out of shipping containers, it features four kitchens and a bar with a variety of food traders. At lunchtime, workers take a break from their screens and enjoy a local Double-Barrelled ale in an urban backyard setting. This couldn’t be further from the environment their forebears were inhabiting 200 years ago when Reading was synonymous with the Great British Biscuit.

Biscuits take Reading Beyond!

2022 marks 200 years since Joseph Huntley opened his first baker’s shop in Reading and began a baking revolution.  Later he opened a factory near the railway station, where ingredients from across the world arrived and from where biscuits were exported across the Empire in newly invented tins.  By 1900, Huntley and Palmer had become the biggest biscuit producer in the world with recipes for some 400 types of biscuit.

At Reading’s fantastic museum, housed in its impressive Town Hall, you’ll find one of the most surprising exhibitions.  Housed in its own Huntley & Palmers Gallery are almost 300 tins and priceless items (endorsements from Scott of the Antarctic and Lord Kitchener; picture frames crafted from biscuits and sent home from troops in World War I; the earliest surviving film of a British factory) illustrating the remarkable story of how Reading became the Biscuit Town.

Great Museums

Reading Museum is a real gem and should be your first port of call if you’re planning to explore the town.  Check out the displays covering the Abbey Quarter before venturing out to the ruins and the stone walls subsequently coming to life.  On the first floor is the remarkable full-size copy by Victorian ladies of the Bayeux tapestry (complete with the odd pair of modesty pants) and with some significant pieces of taxidermy (red deer from Windsor donated by George V), this is everything a local museum should be, a centre of excellence and a cabinet of curiosities.

The Museum of English Rural Life

Following the biscuit crumbs takes us to another Reading special, the MERL or the Museum of English Rural Life, a collection covering all aspects of past village and country life (as well as a rather wonderful collection of original Ladybird books spanning 1915-2006).  The museum has a beautiful garden and a very nice tea room, but if you’re pining for some wide-open space why not head to the River Thames?

Cruising on the River Thames

On the riverside, you’ll find open fields, walks and 18th-century Caversham Court Gardens, an oasis of calm. Nearby, Thames Rivercruise operates an extensive timetable of short and longer tours through this quintessentially English landscape. Why not spend a full day, Edwardian style, on the river, drifting through this most beautiful countryside?

Bathing at Thames Lido

That brings us to a perfect bathing spot.  Thames Lido, once the Edwardian Ladies Pool, is now a stunning, swimming and relaxing destination, all within a short walk from the station. Closed for 40 years, the site reopened four years ago with a fabulous open-air pool (hydro-powered by the nearby Thames), treatment rooms, bar and restaurant.  On offer is a range of packages for swimming, treatments and dining.  Pop in for a refreshing dip or reward yourself with the full poolside experience including some tempting cocktails and dishes from a deliciously appetising menu.

Afternoon Tea at The Roseate 

An alternative sanctuary in the heart of the town can be found at The Roseate, a handsome listed building, with its wide hallways, vaulted ceilings, and exposed central lift shaft featuring a glittering Italian chandelier of 86,000 individual glass beads, is now Reading’s gem of a five-star hotel. This splendid townhouse hotel features 55 individually decorated luxurious bedrooms, each a perfect blend of art, lighting, sound and comfort.

The attention to detail extends to the hotel’s restaurant offer.  This year, to celebrate the legacy of ‘Biscuit Town’, the team, inspired by Huntley & Palmers’ original recipes, are offering a very special Afternoon Tea. The ingredients, exotic in their day, are used in a way which reminds your taste buds how special they are: ‘Strawberry Mousse and Breton Coconut & Ginger Biscuit’ and ‘Rich Dark Chocolate, Hazelnut Praline Tart, Coffee Gel and Chocolate Biscuit Crumbs’.  Biscuits never tasted so good!

Guided Walks

A great way to uncover Reading is with the help of “Mr Reading” himself. Terry Dixon is a local enthusiast offering 15 themed walking tours of varying lengths and customisation.  His devotion to the town is infectious and his knowledge impressive.  All proceeds, after expenses, go to local charities.  I’ll leave it to Terry to tell you about the five international architects represented in the town, the 150 years of Reading Football Club, the uncrowned king who may be buried under the Town Hall and, of course, Oscar Wilde in Reading Prison…

 

For more information on great things to do and see in Reading see: www.visit-reading.com

Or visit:

For more information on the St James’ Way, its history and route: The Camino Ingles

Biscuit Town – visit-reading.com/ideas-and-inspiration/itineraries-and-breaks/biscuit-town-2022

Reading Museum, The Town Hall, Blagrave St, Reading RG1 1QH. 0118 937 3400

Museum of English Rural Life, MERL, 6 Redlands Rd, Reading RG1 5EX. 01182 378 8660

Thames Rivercruise, Pipers Island, Bridge Street, Caversham, RG4 8AH. 01189 481088.

Thames Lido, Napier Road, Reading, RG1 8FR. Reservations & Enquiries: 01182 070 640. Email: reservations@thameslido.com

The Roseate Reading, 26 The Forbury, Reading RG1 3EJ. 0118 952 7770

Terry Dixon, Terry’s Reading Walkabouts. 07505 351517. Email: terry.dixon89@virginmedia.com

For more about where to eat in Reading, check our roundup