Say Hello to Stratford-upon-Avon

For my Wednesday afternoon wandering this week I paid a visit to the home town of William Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon, which is in the English Midlands.

Although I only live about a forty-five minutes drive away, I had not been to Stratford for some time, leaving it a very suitable choice for one of my regular Wednesday afternoon outings, where I ensure I get away from the desk and out and about for at least a few hours each week.

Although it was a rather dull and damp day, the rain never got any worse than a drizzle and, now that we are into October, the tourist crowds are nothing like as huge as they are in the summer months. Top tip here, if you are ever thinking of paying a visit to the town then avoid the May to September period. You’ll have a much more relaxed time and find it a lot easier to visit the usual tourist destinations if you do.

So, first up, after I’d parked the car in my preferred car park down by the river, we have the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, home of the Royal Shakespeare Company. The theatre got a major face-lift some years ago but the architects worked with the existing structure rather than pulling it all down, which resulted in an interesting and unusual building that sits close to the river.

The swans and geese were out in force, as usual, and making plenty of noise as they hassled passers-by for a free meal.

Here’s a photo of the boat house and you can see how brown and dirty the river is. It was pretty high and flowing fast as a result of the rain we’ve had recently.

Now that it is off-season there were only a few boats in the little town centre marina.

As you would expect, there are plenty of old properties in the town, including a good number from the Middle Ages.

There is also this fabulous example of the Victorian Gothic style. It is the local branch of the HSBC Bank. Once upon a time you would see plenty of bank branches like this in more prosperous cities and towns, but in most cases the banks have moved out.