Bricket Wood is a village in the county of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England, south of

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

and north-northeast of

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

History

The area of Bricket Wood was mostly occupied by farmers until Bricket Wood railway station was built in 1861. In 1889 brothers Henry Gray and William Gray bought up land in the area and built Woodside Retreat Fairground. The fairground attracted hordes of visitors to the area from London and nearby towns and a small village developed around the station. In 1923, a rival fairground named Joyland was built nearby by R.B Christmas. Both resorts were closed in 1929, Christmas used his leftover land for building bungalows. During the 1930s the area became popular with

naturists Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms a ...

after Charles Macaskie set up the naturist camp Spielplatz on the outskirts of the village. Naturists bought up plots of land on the edge of the village and built their own communities, which at first didn't have electricity or running water. The village also began to attract

Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

ns after

Gerald Gardner Gerald Brosseau Gardner (13 June 1884 – 12 February 1964), also known by the craft name Scire, was an English Wiccan, as well as an author and an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist. He was instrumental in bringing the Contemporary Pag ...

set up the

Bricket Wood coven The Bricket Wood coven, or Hertfordshire coven Page 289 is a coven of Gardnerian Wicca, Gardnerian witches founded in the 1940s by Gerald Gardner. It is notable for being the first coven in the Gardnerian line, though having its supposed origins ...

. During the 1950s housing estates were built for employees of aviation company

Handley Page Handley Page Limited was a British aerospace manufacturer. Founded by Frederick Handley Page (later Sir Frederick) in 1909, it was the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation a ...

, who had a plant at nearby

Radlett Radlett is a village in Hertfordshire, England, between Elstree and St Albans on Watling Street, with a population of 8,042. It is in the council district of Hertsmere in the south of the county, and is covered by two wards; Aldenham East and ...

. More estates then followed, aimed at commuters desiring housing near the

Green Belt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which hav ...

with convenient access to London.

Civil organisation and notable buildings

Bricket Wood is in the civil parish of

St. Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...

, part of the

district which shares provision of local government services with

Hertfordshire County Council Hertfordshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hertfordshire, in England, the United Kingdom. After the 2021 election, it consists of 78 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, ...

. St Luke's Church is the

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

place of worship. The local primary school is Mount Pleasant Lane, situated in grounds that include a small pond. Close to the village stands

Hanstead House Hanstead House or Hanstead Park is a country house estate in Hertfordshire, England. Hanstead is near Bricket Wood, about three miles from Radlett and five miles from St Albans, within the green belt around London. It forms part of the civil pa ...

, built by

Sir David Yule Sir David Yule, 1st Baronet (4 August 1858 – 3 July 1928) was a Scottish businessman based in British India. The ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' judged him "arguably the most important businessman in India" and quoted his obituary ...

in 1925, who is buried in the grounds. It formerly operated as the

Hanstead Stud The Hanstead Stud was a breeding farm in England for Arabian horses. It was active from 1928 to 1957, and its animals had a significant impact in many countries, "second only in importance to" Crabbet Arabian Stud. It was based at Hanstead Park, ...

, breeding Arab horses, as the UK campus of the

Worldwide Church of God Worldwide may refer to: * Pertaining to the entire world * Worldwide (rapper) (born 1986), American rapper * Pitbull (rapper) (born 1981), also known as Mr. Worldwide, American rapper * ''Worldwide'' (Audio Adrenaline album), 2003 * ''Worldwide' ...

Ambassador College Ambassador College (1947–1997) was a four-year liberal arts college run by the Worldwide Church of God. The college was established in 1947 in Pasadena, California, by radio evangelist Herbert W. Armstrong, leader of what was then the Radio Ch ...

, and as a corporate training centre. In 2022 it was converted into luxury apartments.

Transport

Bricket Wood railway station Bricket Wood railway station is in the village of Bricket Wood, Hertfordshire, England, on the Abbey Line 3 miles (5 km) east of Watford Junction. The station and all trains serving it are operated by London Northwestern Railway. ...

is served by a

West Midlands Trains West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trade names: West Midlands Railway (WMR) (within the ...

stopping service on the

Abbey Line The Abbey Line, also called the St Albans Abbey branch line, is a railway line from Watford Junction to St Albans Abbey. The route passes through town and countryside in the county of Hertfordshire, just outside the boundaries of the Oyster C ...

that runs between and ; both towns are three stops away with a frequent service. The station building was taken into private ownership in 2018, and is being developed into a sympathetic recreation of its original appearance. It will be a village hub and meeting room, as well as a station.

Morris Dancing

The village is home to the

Morris Dancing Morris dancing is a form of English folk dance. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers, usually wearing bell pads on their shins. Implements such as sticks, swords and handkerchiefs may ...

team, Wicket Brood Border Morris.

Common

Bricket Wood Common is a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

Notable residents

Frank Turner Francis Edward Turner (born 28 December 1981), is an English Punk rock, punk and Folk music, folk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Hampshire. He began his career as the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, then embarked upon a primar ...

(1922-2010), three-time

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

gymnast Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...

, died at his home in the village. *

Ralph Coates Ralph Coates (26 April 1946 – 17 December 2010) was an English footballer who played at both professional and international levels as a winger. Coates played for Burnley, Tottenham Hotspur and Orient, making 480 appearances in the Football Le ...

, footballer who played for England and Tottenham Hotspurs, lived in the village until his death in December 2010

References

External links

Bricket Wood Residents' Association

Bricket Wood Facebook Group
{{authority control Villages in Hertfordshire