Swindon (other)
Swindon () is a large town in Wiltshire, England. At the time of the 2021 Census the population of the borough was 233,400, making it the largest settlement in the county. Located in South West England, Swindon lies on the M4 corridor, 71 miles to the west of London and 36 miles to the east of Bristol. The Cotswolds lie just to the town's north and the North Wessex Downs to its south. Recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as ''Suindune'', the arrival of the Great Western Railway in 1843 transformed it from a small market town of 2500 into a thriving railway hub that would become one of the largest railway engineering complexes in the world at its peak. This brought with it pioneering amenities such as the UK's first lending library and a 'cradle-to-grave' healthcare centre that was later used as a blueprint for the NHS. Swindon's railway heritage can be primarily seen today with the grade II listed Railway Village and STEAM Museum. The McArthurGlen Designer Outlet is housed in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Borough Of Swindon
The Borough of Swindon is a local government authority in South West England, centred on the urban area and town of Swindon and forming part of the ceremonial county of Wiltshire. History In 1974 the Thamesdown district of Wiltshire was created from the areas of the municipal borough of Swindon (created 1900) and Highworth Rural District (created 1894). On 1 April 1997 it was made administratively independent of Wiltshire County Council, and its council became a unitary authority. The council adopted the name Swindon on 24 April 1997. The former Thamesdown name and logo continued to be used by the municipal bus operator, Thamesdown Transport, until 2017 when it was sold and renamed to "Swindon's Bus Company". Geography The borough of Swindon occupies an area forming the north east corner of Wiltshire and is bordered by two other counties, Gloucestershire (to the north) and Oxfordshire (to the east). West Berkshire is also only a short distance from the borough's south easter ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nationwide Building Society
Nationwide Building Society is a British mutual financial institution, the seventh largest cooperative financial institution and the largest building society in the world with over 16 million members. Its headquarters are in Swindon, England. Nationwide is made up of around 250 different building societies. Among the most significant mergers were those with the Anglia Building Society in 1987 and the Portman Building Society in 2007. It is now the second largest provider of household savings and mortgages in the UK and has a 10.3% market share of Current account (banking), current accounts for the 2021/2022 financial year. For the financial year 2021/2022, Nationwide had assets of around £272.4 billion compared to £483 billion for the entire building society sector, making it larger than the remaining 42 British building societies combined. It is a member of the Building Societies Association, the Council of Mortgage Lenders and Co-operatives UK. History The Society's ori ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oasis (band)
Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as the Rain, the group initially consisted of Liam Gallagher (lead vocals, tambourine), Paul Arthurs (guitar), Paul McGuigan (bass guitar) and Tony McCarroll (drums). Liam's older brother Noel (lead guitar, vocals) later joined as a fifth member, finalising the group's core lineup. During the course of their existence, they had various lineup changes, with the Gallagher brothers remaining the only staple members. Oasis signed to independent record label Creation Records in 1993 and released their record-setting debut album ''Definitely Maybe'' (1994). The following year they recorded '' (What's the Story) Morning Glory?'' (1995) with drummer Alan White, in the midst of a chart rivalry with peers Blur. Spending ten weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart, ''(What's the Story) Morning Glory?'' was also an international chart success and became one of the best-selling albums of all time. In addi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oasis Leisure Centre
The Oasis Leisure Centre (commonly called Swindon Oasis) was an entertainment and sports complex just outside the town centre of Swindon, Wiltshire, England, with facilities including a lagoon swimming pool, gym, bar, and concert hall. It was in operation from 1976 to 2020. History The building was designed by Peter Sargent of Gillinson, Barnett and Partners for Thamesdown Borough Council, on part of the site of the former railway works. It was constructed in 1974–5 at a cost of around £3million and opened on 1 January 1976. Its diameter glazed dome, rising from a grass berm, is described by Historic England as "a sophisticated and architecturally striking structure which provides a dramatic setting for the pool within". The leisure pool was designed to appeal to families, irregular in shape, overlooked by balconies and decorated with artificial rocks and planting troughs. There were waterslides and a wave machine. Alterations in 1987 added three enclosed waterslides, a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wyvern Theatre
The Wyvern Theatre in Swindon, Wiltshire, England, opened in 1971. It is managed on behalf of Swindon Borough Council by Wyvern Theatre Ltd, a subsidiary of HQ Theatres Ltd. The auditorium has 635 seats, all designed to be within 70 feet from the stage. History The theatre was built in 1968–71 by Casson, Conder and Partner as part of Swindon Civic Centre. It is named after the mythical wyvern which was once the emblem of the kings of Wessex. The building was opened on 7 September 1971 by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. The first performance was by a Ukrainian dance company. On 3 September 2006, it closed temporarily after the discovery of traces of asbestos in the venue's offices and roof void during a routine inspection. It remained closed until September 2007 and the opportunity was taken to refurbish the venue, bringing new decor, bars, cafés, disabled entrances and new seating costing £1.3 million. The first performance afterwards was on 25 September 20 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Honda UK Manufacturing
Honda of the UK Manufacturing Ltd (informally HUM) was a British automotive manufacturing company, and the United Kingdom-based manufacturing subsidiary of the multinational automotive company Honda. Based in Swindon, England, HUKM operated manufacturing plants that included casting, engine assembly, pressing, welding, painting, and car assembly activities. At the time of its closure, it employed around 3,400 people at the plants, which occupied a site covering around 370 acres. Honda has made a total investment of over £1.5 billion in the Swindon plants. In 2008, HUKM produced 230,423 cars. By 2016 annual unit production was down to 134,146 units, although this still represented an increase of 12.3% over the figure for 2015. In early 2019, it was announced the entire manufacturing plant in Swindon would close, which was later confirmed by Honda. The plant closed on 30 July 2021, officially ending over 36 years of Honda production in Europe. Honda in the United Kingdom Having ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Honda
is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a production of 400 million by the end of 2019, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than 14 million internal combustion engines each year. Honda became the second-largest Japanese automobile manufacturer in 2001. In 2015, Honda was the eighth largest automobile manufacturer in the world. Honda was the first Japanese automobile manufacturer to release a dedicated luxury brand, Acura, in 1986. Aside from their core automobile and motorcycle businesses, Honda also manufactures garden equipment, marine engines, personal watercraft, power generators, and other products. Since 1986, Honda has been involved with artificial intelligence/robotics research and released their ASIMO rob ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Science Museum, London
The Science Museum is a major museum on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, London. It was founded in 1857 and is one of the city's major tourist attractions, attracting 3.3 million visitors annually in 2019. Like other publicly funded national museums in the United Kingdom, the Science Museum does not charge visitors for admission, although visitors are requested to make a donation if they are able. Temporary exhibitions may incur an admission fee. It is one of the five museums in the Science Museum Group. Founding and history The museum was founded in 1857 under Bennet Woodcroft from the collection of the Royal Society of Arts and surplus items from the Great Exhibition as part of the South Kensington Museum, together with what is now the Victoria and Albert Museum. It included a collection of machinery which became the ''Museum of Patents'' in 1858, and the ''Patent Office Museum'' in 1863. This collection contained many of the most famous exhibits of what is now t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Historic England Archive
The Historic England Archive is the public archive of Historic England, located in The Engine House on Fire Fly Avenue in Swindon, formerly part of the Swindon Works of the Great Western Railway. It is a public archive of architectural and archaeological records and holds over 12 million historic photographs, plans, drawings, reports, records and publications covering England's archaeology, architecture, social and local history. It is a dynamic collection, with records being added to this day. The PastScape website allows searching of over 420,000 records (as of 2016). History The roots of the archive go back to 1908 and the foundation of the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England (RCHME) which was set up to compile and publish an inventory of all ancient and historical monuments up to the year 1700 by county and by parish. Its more immediate forerunner, however, was the National Buildings Record (NBR), an independent body set up in 1940 under the inspiration ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in Britain after the British Library. Under the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003, it is one of six legal deposit libraries for works published in the United Kingdom, and under Irish law it is entitled to request a copy of each book published in the Republic of Ireland. Known to Oxford scholars as "Bodley" or "the Bod", it operates principally as a reference library and, in general, documents may not be removed from the reading rooms. In 2000, a number of libraries within the University of Oxford were brought together for administrative purposes under the aegis of what was initially known as Oxford University Library Services (OULS), and since 2010 as the Bodleian Libraries, of which the Bodleian Library is the largest comp ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Zurich Insurance Group
Zurich Insurance Group Ltd is a Swiss insurance company, headquartered in Zürich, and the country's largest insurer. As of 2021, the group is the world's 112th largest public company according to ''Forbes'' Global 2000s list, and in 2011 it ranked 94th in Interbrand's top 100 brands. Zurich is a global insurance company which is organized into three core business segments: General Insurance, Global Life and Farmers. Zurich employs 55,000 people, with customers in 215 countries and territories. The company is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. As of 2012, it had shareholders' equity of $34.494 billion.ZIG profile , zurich.com; accessed 27 April 2014. Company history Zurich Insurance Company (1872–1998) The company was founded in 1 ...[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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WHSmith
WHSmith (also written WH Smith, and known colloquially as Smith's and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son) is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of high street, railway station, airport, port, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, entertainment products and confectionery. The company was formed by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna in 1792 as a news vendor in London. It remained under the ownership of the Smith family for many years and saw large-scale expansion during the 1970s as the company began to diversify into other markets. Following a rejected private equity takeover in 2004, the company began to focus on its core retail business. It was responsible for the creation of the ISBN book identifier. WHSmith is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Formation In 1792, Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna established the business ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |