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Biggleswade ( ) is a market town and
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
in
Central Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009. Formation Central Bedfordshire was created on 1 April 2009 as part of a structural reform of local government in Bedfor ...
in
Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...
, England. It lies on the
River Ivel The River Ivel is a north-flowing river in the western part of east of England. It is primarily in Bedfordshire; it is a tributary of the River Great Ouse and has sources including in the Barton Hills. Course The river Ivel has four headwater ...
, 11 miles (18 km) south-east of
Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
. Its population was 16,551 in the
2011 United Kingdom census A census of the population of the United Kingdom is taken every ten years. The 2011 census was held in all countries of the UK on 27 March 2011. It was the first UK census which could be completed online via the Internet. The Office for National ...
, and its estimated population in mid-2019 had increased to 21,700, its growth encouraged by good road and rail links to London. The King's Reach development, begun in 2010, will provide 2,000 new homes to the east of the town.


Highlights

Evidence of settlement in the area goes back to the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
period, but it is likely that the town as such was founded by
Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
. A gold Anglo-Saxon coin was found on a footpath beside the River Ivel in 2001. The British Museum bought the coin in February 2006 and at the time, it was the most expensive British coin purchased. A charter to hold a market was granted by King John in the 13th-century. In 1785 a great fire devastated the town. The Great North Road passed through until a bypass was completed in 1961. A railway station was opened in 1850. From the 1930s to the late 1990s, manufacturing provided a significant amount of employment. The town centre is designated as a
conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
.


Geography

Biggleswade lies about 40 miles (60 km) north of
Central London Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...
and 20 miles (30 km) west-south-west of
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
. Biggleswade civil parish includes the nearby
hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
of Holme. From Biggleswade station on the
East Coast Main Line The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a electrified railway between London and Edinburgh via Peterborough, Doncaster, York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle. The line is a key transport artery on the eastern side of Great Britain running broa ...
trains take about 45 minutes to reach London. The A1, Britain's Great North Road, bypasses the town; its old course is numbered A6001. The B1040 road leads north to
Potton Potton is a town and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about east of the county town Bedford. Its population in 2011 was 4,870. In 1783 the Great Fire of Potton destroyed a large part of the town. The ...
and St. Ives and the B659 south to Langford and
Henlow Henlow is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about south-east of the county town of Bedford. The name Henlow is believed to derive from the old English ''henna hlaw'', meaning ...
. Elevation The town centre is about 28 m (92 ft) above sea level. The land rises to 78 m (256 ft) at the parish's southern boundary near the water tower on Topler's Hill. Soil and geology The area's soil is mostly freely draining and slightly acid, but with a base-rich,
loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–sil ...
y texture of sand, silt and clay particles. Fertility is high. The underlying geology of the Ivel Valley is alluvial. The town centre stands largely on river gravel but with smaller areas of green and brown sands and sandstones, and glacial gravel. Boulder clay dominates the outlying southern and eastern parts. Landscape ''Biggleswade Common'' is an area of grassland that extends northwards along the eastern bank of the River Ivel from the Shortmead Street bridge. It continues clockwise, crossing Potton Road at the town's eastern boundary to a section known locally as ''the Pastures''. Its 300 acres (120 ha) make it the largest area of common land in Bedfordshire. It has loamy and sandy soils with naturally high groundwater and a peaty surface. It is run by an association of rights owners called the Fen Reeves of Biggleswade Common, as a working common grazed by horses and cattle. There is a
wind farm A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used Wind power, to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundre ...
of ten
turbines A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful Work (physics), work. The work produced by a turbine can be used ...
to the south of the town. A
solar power Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovoltaic e ...
farm is located to the north of Shortmead House. River Ivel The Environment Agency has a monitoring station at Biggleswade. The normal level of the River Ivel at Biggleswade is between and . The highest level recorded was reached on Wednesday 11 February 2009.


Governance

Biggleswade was a constituent part of and gave its name to one of the
Hundreds of Bedfordshire Between Anglo-Saxon times and the nineteenth century Bedfordshire was divided for administrative purposes into 9 hundreds, plus the borough of Bedford. Each hundred had a separate council that met each month to rule on local judicial and taxation ...
from Anglo-Saxon times until the 19th century. From 1892 the town was governed by a
Local Board Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...
, which became
Biggleswade Urban District The town of Biggleswade in Bedfordshire, England was administered as a Local Government District from 1892 to 1894 and an Urban District from 1894 to 1974. Formation Prior to 1892 the town had formed part of the Biggleswade Rural Sanitary Dis ...
under the
Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...
. This council met at Biggleswade Town Hall until 1926, then shared other premises in the town before acquiring Stratton House in 1952. The Urban District Council was abolished in 1974 when most of its functions were subsumed into Mid Bedfordshire District Council under the
Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
, the remainder passing to the newly formed Biggleswade Town Council. In 2009, the District and County Councils were replaced by the Central Bedfordshire Unitary Authority. Biggleswade Town Council's responsibilities include car parks, allotment gardens, cemeteries (
Drove Road A drovers' road, drove ''roador droveway is a route for droving livestock on foot from one place to another, such as to market or between summer and winter pasture (see transhumance). Many drovers' roads were ancient routes of unknown age; ot ...
and Stratton Way), play and recreation areas and the Orchard Community Centre. Planning applications referred from Central Bedfordshire Council are considered and objections can be raised. Biggleswade divides into three electoral wards: Ivel for the north, Holme for the south-west, and Stratton for the south-east. Voters elect five councillors per ward, for four-year terms. They in turn elect annually a Town Mayor. Town Council funds come from a precept agreed with Central Bedfordshire Council. Council meetings since 2006 have been held in a council chamber in the former magistrates' court in Saffron Road. Central Bedfordshire Council is responsible for Biggleswade's social care homes, public library (Chestnut Avenue), roads, refuse, Saxon Pool and Leisure Centre (managed on its behalf by SLL), non-academy schools, social services and planning. Two shire councillors are elected to serve a four-year term for each of the Biggleswade North and Biggleswade South wards.
Biggleswade Biggleswade ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Central Bedfordshire in Bedfordshire, England. It lies on the River Ivel, 11 miles (18 km) south-east of Bedford. Its population was 16,551 in the 2011 United Kingdom census, and its es ...
was a UK parliamentary constituency from 1885 to 1918. The town was then in Mid Bedfordshire until 1997. Now in North East Bedfordshire, the elected member is Richard Fuller of the
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
.


History

The area around Biggleswade is thought to have been inhabited from about
10,000 BC The 10th millennium BC spanned the years 10,000 BC to 9001 BC (c. 12 ka to c. 11 ka). It marks the beginning of the transition from the Palaeolithic to the Neolithic via the interim Mesolithic (Northern Europe and Western Europe) and Epipale ...
.
Arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...
s believed to be from this time have been found.
Sherd In archaeology, a sherd, or more precisely, potsherd, is commonly a historic or prehistoric fragment of pottery, although the term is occasionally used to refer to fragments of stone and glass vessels, as well. Occasionally, a piece of broken p ...
s of late
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
pottery from a single Peterborough ware Mortlake bowl were found in a pit excavated south of Biggleswade Hospital. A Neolithic
cursus 250px, Stonehenge Cursus, Wiltshire 250px, Dorset Cursus terminal on Thickthorn Down, Dorset Cursuses are monumental Neolithic structures resembling ditches or trenches in the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. Relics found within them in ...
and five associated ring ditches south of Furzenhall Farm show as crop markings on aerial images. Archaeological excavations in 2001 discovered a late
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
pit to the north of the water tower on Topler's Hill.
Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
pottery and a bead together with charred cereal grains of wheat and barley have been found in pits to the north of the town. In
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
times, a loop road known as the White Way passed through Biggleswade (possibly along the course of the present-day Drove Road), linking with Ermine Way at
Godmanchester Godmanchester ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. It is separated from Huntingdon, to the north, by the valley of the River Great Ouse. Being on the Roman road network, the town has a lo ...
. There is evidence for a probable Romano-Celtic temple and aligned enclosures straddling a tributary of the River Ivel at the north-east corner of Biggleswade Common.


Anglo-Saxons

(See also
Hundred of Biggleswade Biggleswade was a historic 'hundred' of English county of Bedfordshire. The hundred consisted of the town of Biggleswade and its surrounding area. The name Biggleswade comes from a concatenation of the Anglo Saxon words 'Biceil' (being a persona ...
) In the 5th century AD,
Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
invaders settled. The name Biggleswade may derive from Biceil, an
Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...
personal name, and Waed, the Saxon word for
ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
. Variant spellings include ''Bykeleswad'' in 1396, ''Bykleswade'' in 15th-century law records, and ''Bickleswade'' on a 17th-century ivory seal now in the British Museum. Wells and pits dating from the early 7th century and a quantity of later Maxey ware have been excavated at Stratton. Evidence of an Anglo-Saxon ringwork and bailey castle was discovered by aerial photography in 1954 between the A1 road and the River Ivel. In 2001 a gold coin bearing the name
Coenwulf Coenwulf (; also spelled Cenwulf, Kenulf, or Kenwulph; la, Coenulfus) was the King of Mercia from December 796 until his death in 821. He was a descendant of King Pybba, who ruled Mercia in the early 7th century. He succeeded Ecgfrith, the son ...
was found at Biggleswade on a footpath beside the
River Ivel The River Ivel is a north-flowing river in the western part of east of England. It is primarily in Bedfordshire; it is a tributary of the River Great Ouse and has sources including in the Barton Hills. Course The river Ivel has four headwater ...
. The 4.33 g (0.15 oz)
mancus Mancus (sometimes spelt ''mancosus'' or similar, from Arabic ''manqūsh'' منقوش) was a term used in early medieval Europe to denote either a gold coin, a weight of gold of 4.25g (equivalent to the Islamic gold dinar, and thus lighter than th ...
, worth about 30 silver pennies, is only the eighth known gold coin dating to the mid to late Anglo-Saxon period. Its inscription, "DE VICO LVNDONIAE", shows it was minted in London.EMC Number 2004.167, Early Medieval Corpus, Fitzwilliam Museum. Initially sold to American collector Allan Davisson for £230,000 at auction; the British Government subsequently put in place a temporary export ban in the hope of saving it for the nation. The
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
bought the coin in February 2006 for £357,832, with the help of funding from the
National Heritage Memorial Fund The National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) was set up in 1980 to save the most outstanding parts of the British national heritage, in memory of those who have given their lives for the UK. It replaced the National Land Fund which had fulfilled the ...
and
the British Museum Friends The British Museum Friends (BMF) is a registered charitable organisation in the UK with close links to the British Museum, and was set up in 1968. It provides funding in the form of grants to the British Museum in order to support the educati ...
. At the time, it was the most expensive British coin purchased.


Medieval times

Biggleswade parish consisted of three settlements: Biggleswade, Holme and Stratton. Biggleswade is mentioned in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
as ''Bichelesuuade/Pichelsuuade: Ralph de l'Isle. 2 mills''. Domesday records 27 heads of household in Stratton
vill Vill is a term used in English history to describe the basic rural land unit, roughly comparable to that of a parish, manor, village or tithing. Medieval developments The vill was the smallest territorial and administrative unit—a geographical ...
, but only 20 in Biggleswade. However, Biggleswade had overtaken Stratton by 1309. In 1132,
Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the ...
granted the manor of Biggleswade to Bishop Alexander the Magnificent of
Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...
, to help endow
Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln Minster, or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln and sometimes St Mary's Cathedral, in Lincoln, England, is a Grade I listed cathedral and is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. Constructio ...
. A
prebendal stall A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...
of Biggleswade is in the cathedral. King John (1196–1216) granted a charter to hold a market. The medieval parish Church of St Andrew contains a
monumental brass of John Rudying The monumental brass of John Rudying is a brass of 1481 to Archdeacon John Rudying in the Church of St Andrew, Biggleswade, Church of St Andrew in Biggleswade in Bedfordshire noted for the surviving Death (personification), Figure of Death. The m ...
featuring a figure of Death.
Stratton Park Moated Enclosure Stratton Park Moated Enclosure (locally known as and sometimes informally referred to as Stratton Moat, also sometimes referred to as Stratton Park Moated Enclosure and Associated Manorial Earthworks or Stratton Manor Moat) is a scheduled ancient ...
lies to the south of the town off Dunton Lane.


The Great Fire

On 16 June 1785 a fire started at the ''Crown Inn'' and spread rapidly through neighbouring streets, destroying nearly one-third of the town. A national appeal raised funds for 332 people who lost their homes and others who lost their livelihoods. The Great Fire is among the historical scenes shown in a Millennium stained-glass window in St Andrew's Church.


Transport

A medieval bridge carrying the Great North Road over the River Ivel at Biggleswade is first documented in the early 13th century. In 1302 Bishop Dalderby of Lincoln gave
indulgences In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The '' Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God o ...
to all those contributing to the repair of the bridge, and from 1372 tolls were authorised under the
pontage Pontage was a term for a toll levied for the building or repair of bridges dating to the medieval era in England, Wales and Ireland. Pontage was similar in nature to murage (a toll for the building of town walls) and pavage (a toll for pavin ...
system. The Great North Road became a
turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powers ...
road in 1725 (from Biggleswade to
Alconbury Alconbury is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. Alconbury is situated within Huntingdonshire which is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire as well as being an historic county of England. Alconbury lies approximately ...
Hill) and in 1730 (from
Stevenage Stevenage ( ) is a large town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevena ...
to Biggleswade). In 1796 the medieval bridge in Shortmead Street was rebuilt with sandstone from Sandy. It had three rounded arches. A metal "
Meccano Meccano is a brand of scale model, model construction system created in 1898 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England. The system consists of reusable metal strips, plates, Structural steel#Common structural shapes, angle girders, wheels, axles and ...
"-type bridge was erected alongside in 1939. In 1948 the stone bridge was demolished and replaced with a second "Meccano" or
Callender-Hamilton bridge The Callender-Hamilton bridge is a modular portable pre-fabricated truss bridge. It is primarily designed for use as permanent civil bridging as well as for emergency bridge replacement and for construction by military engineering units. Assemblin ...
as it was formally known. The town was bypassed by the A1 trunk road in 1961. The current bridge dates from 1999. The River Ivel was made navigable to Biggleswade Mill in 1758 from its confluence with the River Ouse at
Tempsford Tempsford is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about east north-east of the county town of Bedford. The village is split by the A1 Great North Road and is located just befo ...
; and extended to Shefford in 1823. Timber and coal were transported. In 1876 the canal was abandoned by Act of Parliament. Through the 19th century Biggleswade was a staging post for coaches. Destinations included
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
,
York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
and
Boston, Lincolnshire Boston is a market town and inland port in the borough of the same name in the county of Lincolnshire, England. Boston is north of London, north-east of Peterborough, east of Nottingham, south-east of Lincoln, south-southeast of Hull ...
. The Great Northern Railway opened a station in 1850.
Eastern National Eastern National (also known as EN) is a nonprofit Cooperating Association based in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, that partners with the National Park Service in the United States. It was created by charter in 1948 to "provide quality education ...
operated local bus services until 1952, followed by
United Counties The Province of Ontario has 51 first-level administrative divisions, which collectively cover the whole province. With two exceptions, their areas match the 49 census divisions Statistics Canada has for Ontario. The Province has four types of ...
. A bus depot in Shortmead Street until 1989 was replaced by Millers Court retirement apartments.
Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
took over in November 1987 and relocated its depot in Hitchin Street. Private bus operators based in Biggleswade included Charles Cook Travel (1947–1997) and Fairway Coaches (1973–1997).


Workhouses

From about 1780, Brigham House, 93 High Street, (now George Hay, Chartered Accountants) housed the parish workhouse. The premises were closed following the completion of The Union Workhouse at London Road in 1836. The Biggleswade Poor Law Union was officially formed on 14 April 1835 and covered 25 parishes. The Union workhouse ceased operation in 1930. The London Road building was renamed The Limes and provided accommodation for the aged, infirm and vagrants. It was used as an old people's home until its closure in 1969 and demolished in 1972.


Agriculture and industry

In 1868, ''The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland's'' entry for Biggleswade describes the surrounding district as "fertile, and the inhabitants... chiefly engaged in agricultural pursuits, and in market gardening" while "many of the female inhabitants are employed in lace-making and the manufacture of straw-plait." Though much of the vegetable trade has ended, Bedfordshire Growers on Potton Road still supplies supermarkets with UK-grown potatoes and onions. Samuel Wells established a brewery in 1764. Wells and Winch built a new brewery in 1901 in Church Street.
Greene King Greene King is a large pub retailer and brewer. It is based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. The company owns pubs, restaurants and hotels. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by CK Assets in October 2019. ...
owned it from 1961 until October 1997. The site is now taken by an Asda supermarket. The Morton and Kinman owned Vulcan Foundry off Foundry Lane and Saffron Road made the iron work for the Ivel Navigation bridges at
Blunham Blunham is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about east of Bedford. At the 2011 census date its population was 946. The River Ivel forms the parish's eastern boundary in places and the Riv ...
, Mill Lane and Holme in 1823. From 1862,
coachbuilder A coachbuilder or body-maker is someone who manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles.Construction has always been a skilled trade requiring a relatively lightweight product with sufficient strength. The manufacture of necessarily ...
Maythorn had a factory on Market Square/Station Road. New premises were built in 1925. After the firm's demise in 1931, the factory and offices were utilised by NURO to make photographic film from 1935 to 1938; the
NAAFI The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI ) is a company created by the British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families. It runs ...
as a warehouse from 1940 to 1958 and Delaney Gallay and Gloster Saro, to make heat-insulation materials for aircraft, including
Concorde The Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde () is a retired Franco-British supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation (later Aérospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). Studies started in 1954, and France an ...
. The building was demolished in 1987 to make way for shops and a car park. The Ivel Cycle Works in Shortmead Street, founded by
Dan Albone Daniel Albone (12 September 1860 – 30 October 1906) was an English inventor, manufacturer and cyclist. He invented the first successful light farm tractor, and the Ivel Safety bicycle. Childhood Born 12 September 1860 at Biggleswade, Bedfordsh ...
in 1881, made bicycles, motorbikes and light tractors until 1922. Holme Mills, listed in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
has been the home of Jordans Cereals since 1893. The company also has a unit on Stratton Business Park. Franklin's Mill in Mill Lane closed in 1945 following a fire. The mill building was restored and used as a warehouse before being converted into flats in 1982. Bedfordshire's tallest windmill, at 70 ft (21m), stood in Hitchin Street from 1858 until 1967. Books, diaries, binders and sketch pads were made by Adams & Harrison which moved from Clerkenwell, London to Havelock Road in 1933. The factory closed in 1987 and gave way to housing in Reynolds Close. Another major employer was Cincinnati Milacron, on a site between Dells Lane and the railway. The company, then named Weatherley Oilgear Ltd, came to Biggleswade in 1939. It made broaching machines. The factory was demolished in the mid-1980s and the site is now home to the "Poets" estate (Tennyson Avenue, Chaucer Drive, Dickens Court and Bunyan Drive). Lingerie and nightdresses were made in the town by Kayser Bondor from 1938 to 1991.
Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...
made caravans and sports cars from 1947 to 1960. Both were situated off Hitchin Street, where there are now roads named ''Berkeley Close'' and ''Kayser Court''. Smart and Brown made precision lathes in London Road from 1946 until 1980.
Felix Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, ...
established a Potton Road factory in 1949. It closed in the 1970s and its place is now taken by housing in Mountbatten Drive. Ribbon cables and printed circuit board connectors for computers were made in the converted Empire Cinema on Hitchin Street by Electro Methods from 1959; ownership changes saw the firm renamed Ether, then Pye Connectors and finally Flexicon, until closure in 1990.


Cinema

The Empire (originally The Cinema Palace) in Hitchin Street operated from 1913 to 1958. The building was converted into a factory making electrical connectors but was demolished in 1994 and the site is now occupied by housing in Empire Way. The 700-seat Regal Cinema in Station Road opened in 1936. After closure in 1976, it was converted into a bingo hall.


Demography

At the 2011 census date the population of Biggleswade was 16,551, of which 93.4% were born in the United Kingdom. 91.8% of residents were white British compared to 79.8% for England. As to religious affiliation; 59.9% put Christianity and 1.9% other religions, while 38.2% had no religion or did not say.


Economy

In 2011 the five largest employment sectors for Biggleswade residents were: wholesale, retail and vehicle repairs at 18%, manufacturing at 13%, construction at 10%, human health and social work at 10% and education at 9%. The unemployment rate was 3.5% compared to 4.4% for England. A Co-op Food Group regional distribution facility opened in May 2022 at Symmetry Park to the south of the town.


Education

Biggleswade has a
three-tier education Three-tier education refers to those structures of schooling, which exist in some parts of England, where pupils are taught in three distinct school types as they progress through the education system. Terminology In a three-tier local educa ...
system with
lower school Three-tier education refers to those structures of schooling, which exist in some parts of England, where pupils are taught in three distinct school types as they progress through the education system. Terminology In a three-tier local educ ...
s catering for ages 5–9,
middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...
s for 9–13, and Stratton Upper School for 13–16 year olds and a
sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...
. Stratton Upper School and Community College (formerly Stratton Grammar Technical School) opened in 1950 and converted to
Academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...
status in February 2012. There are over 600 pupils aged 13–16 and just under 400 in the sixth form. Biggleswade Academy, established in 2012, is a merger of Holmemead Middle, Southlands Lower, and Brigham Pre-School. Holmemead opened in 1964 as a County Secondary Modern for pupils aged 11–16 but now caters for 9–13 year olds. Southlands County Primary School opened for 5–9 year olds in 1973. There are two Church of England (C of E)
Voluntary controlled school A voluntary controlled school (VC school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a Christian denomination) has some formal influence in the running of the school. Such schools have less autonomy than ...
s (VC). Edward Peake C of E (VC) Middle School opened in 1974 and is named after a 16th-century local philanthropist who left money for the education of five children in the parish of Holme. St Andrew's C of E (VC) Lower School was built on the playing field of the Victorian, Rose Lane school in 1988. A second site on the King's Reach development opened in September 2015. Lawnside Academy is for pupils aged from 4–9 years and is a member of the Bedfordshire Schools Trust (BEST). From 1979 to December 2018 it was known as Lawnside Lower School. It opened in 1959 as Lawnside County Primary Infants School.
Ivel Valley School Ivel Valley School is a coeducational special school, located in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England. The school accepts pupils from all over the Central Bedfordshire area, and was opened in September 2010 on the site of Sunnyside School. Histor ...
caters for children with moderate to severe learning difficulties and resulted from the 2010 amalgamation of Hitchmead and Sunnyside schools; which opened in 1970 and 1971 respectively. OneSchool Global, Biggleswade Campus, opened in September 2014 just outside the town on the B1040. It is associated with the
Plymouth Brethren The Plymouth Brethren or Assemblies of Brethren are a low church and non-conformist Christian movement whose history can be traced back to Dublin, Ireland, in the mid to late 1820s, where they originated from Anglicanism. The group emphasizes ...
.


Hotels, inns and public houses

Biggleswade once had numerous inns and public houses due to its location on the Great North Road. All of 52 were trading in 1876. By July 2019, just nine remained, plus an additional new-build. ''The Crown Hotel'', rebuilt in 1793 after the Great Fire of 1785, was reopened by
J D Wetherspoon J D Wetherspoon plc (branded variously as Wetherspoon or Wetherspoons, and colloquially known as Spoons) is a pub company operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company was founded in 1979 by Tim Martin and is based in Watford. It o ...
in August 2017 after standing empty for four years. The 17th-century, Grade II listed ''White Hart'' is thought to be the town's second oldest building after St Andrew's Church. ''The King's Reach'' was opened in December 2018 by the McMullen Brewery of Hertford. It is currently their most northerly and first pub in Bedfordshire.


Newspapers and radio

The ''Biggleswade Chronicle'' newspaper is published each Friday. It was founded in 1891 as the ''Biggleswade Chronicle – Sandy, Potton and Shefford Times''. In 1892 Charles Elphick took over as owner, editor and printer and ran it for nearly 50 years. The family is commemorated in Elphick Court, off Shortmead Street. The paper is now owned by
JPIMedia National World is a British multimedia company. The company was founded as JPIMedia Publishing Ltd in November 2018 following the acquisition of Johnston Press assets by its creditors. JPIMedia was purchased by National World PLC for £10.2 mill ...
.
BigglesFM BigglesFM is a local radio station based in Potton. It started broadcasting a full-time service on 22 April 2011. The station plays both modern and older songs. It broadcasts on 104.8 FM to Biggleswade, Potton, Sandy and surrounding villages ...
is a licensed community radio station transmitting from nearby Potton on 104.8 FM and online. Full-time broadcasting began in April 2011. The ''Biggleswade Herald'' was published by Larkinson brothers each Friday and is listed in the 1910 edition of ''Kelly's Directory'', but ceased to be published long ago.


Public services

The water supplied by
Anglian Water Anglian Water is a water company that operates in the East of England. It was formed in 1989 under the partial Water privatisation in England and Wales, privatisation of the water industry. It provides water supply, sewerage and sewage treatment ...
for the Biggleswade Public Water Supply Zone (MW36) is chloraminated and classed as
hard Hard may refer to: * Hardness, resistance of physical materials to deformation or fracture * Hard water, water with high mineral content Arts and entertainment * ''Hard'' (TV series), a French TV series * Hard (band), a Hungarian hard rock supe ...
. The supply comes from surface river and reservoirs and from groundwater
borehole A borehole is a narrow shaft bored in the ground, either vertically or horizontally. A borehole may be constructed for many different purposes, including the extraction of water ( drilled water well and tube well), other liquids (such as petrol ...
s. There is a
waste water treatment Wastewater treatment is a process used to remove contaminants from wastewater and convert it into an effluent that can be returned to the water cycle. Once returned to the water cycle, the effluent creates an acceptable impact on the environme ...
works at Furzenhall. The Eastern Power Area of
UK Power Networks UK Power Networks is a distribution network operator for electricity covering South East England, the East of England and London. It manages three licensed distribution networks (Eastern Power Networks, South Eastern Power Networks and London Pow ...
is the
distribution network operator A distribution network operator (DNO), also known as a distribution system operator (DSO), is the operator of the electric power distribution system which delivers electricity to most end users. Each country may have many local distribution networ ...
for electricity.
Cadent Gas Cadent Gas is a British regional gas distribution company that owns, operates and maintains the largest natural gas distribution network in the United Kingdom, transporting gas to 11 million homes and businesses across North West England, West ...
owns and operates the area's gas distribution network. The two nearest general hospitals are
Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
(Bedford Hospital NHS Trust) and
Lister Hospital, Stevenage The Lister Hospital is an NHS hospital based on the outskirts of Stevenage in Hertfordshire. It is operated by the East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust along with the New QEII Hospital in Welwyn Garden City. History Prior to 1972 there was ...
(East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust). Mental and community health-care services are provided by
East London NHS Foundation Trust East London NHS Foundation Trust is an NHS foundation trust which provides health services in East London and specialist services to a wider region. History The trust was established as the East London and The City Mental Health NHS Trust on 3 ...
based at Biggleswade Hospital, which was originally built in 1878 as an isolation facility but converted to a long-stay hospital in 1948. The Saffron Health Partnership in Saffron Road and the Ivel Medical Centre in Chestnut Avenue provide general practitioner services. Ambulance services are provided by the
East of England Ambulance Service The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) is an NHS trust responsible for providing National Health Service (NHS) ambulance services in the counties of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk, in the ...
NHS Trust, which has an ambulance station in Chestnut Avenue. Alongside is a Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service station staffed by retained firefighters. In nearby Lawrence Road is a unit of the
St John Ambulance St John Ambulance is the name of a number of affiliated organisations in different countries which teach and provide first aid and emergency medical services, and are primarily staffed by volunteers. The associations are overseen by the internat ...
. Bedfordshire Police has a station in Station Road open to the public by appointment only. The building dates from 1939 and replaced the old police station opposite. Biggleswade has a purpose-built public library in Chestnut Avenue that opened in 1968 and replaced the one housed in the old police station. There is a main post office in Bonds Lane and a sub-post office in Stratton Way. Royal Mail has a delivery office in Station Road.


Public transport


Bus

An hourly, daytime circular town bus service (route nos. 85 and 85A) is provided by Herberts Travel. The same operator runs services to Sandy via Dunton,
Eyeworth Eyeworth (also Eyworth) is a small, rural village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England; about east south-east of the county town of Bedford. Eyeworth had a population of 86 in 2001. Geog ...
,
Wrestlingworth Wrestlingworth is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Wrestlingworth and Cockayne Hatley, in the Central Bedfordshire district of the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England about east of the county town of Bedford. Wrestl ...
,
Cockayne Hatley Cockayne Hatley is a small, rural village in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England east of the county town of Bedford. The population in 2007 was approximately 75 with 33 houses. It is in the civil parish of ...
,
Potton Potton is a town and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about east of the county town Bedford. Its population in 2011 was 4,870. In 1783 the Great Fire of Potton destroyed a large part of the town. The ...
and Everton (services 188/189) or
Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...
, Potton,
Gamlingay Gamlingay is a village and civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England about west southwest of the county town of Cambridge. The 2011 census gives the village's population as 3,247 and the civil parish's as 3,5 ...
and Everton (service 190).
Stagecoach East Stagecoach East is the divisional name for the bus operations of the Stagecoach Group in eastern England. History Under the control of the National Bus Company, ''Cambus Ltd.'' was set up when the Eastern Counties Omnibus Company was split in ...
runs services 72 and 73 to Sandy and
Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
. Frequency is normally half-hourly and the journey time to Bedford bus station ranges from 50 to 70 minutes. Grant Palmer operates route 74, Bedford to
Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...
, which stops at Biggleswade bus station and route 200 a two-hourly daytime service to Shefford and
Flitwick Flitwick () is a town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "a hamlet on the River Flitt". The spelling ''Flytwyk'' appears in 1381. The nearby River Flit runs through Flitwick Moor, a natur ...
. There are no bus services on Sundays and public holidays. A limited community, non-profit service is provided by Whitbread Wanderbus. Its W3 and W3S (weekly, Monday) services run into the town from Campton and Clifton Park respectively. Ivel Sprinter run weekly services to
St Neots St NeotsPronunciation of the town name: Most commonly, but variations that ''saint'' is said as in most English non-georeferencing speech, the ''t'' is by a small minority of the British pronounced and higher traces of in the final syllable ...
and
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
.


Train

Thameslink Thameslink is a 24-hour main-line route in the British railway system, running from , , , and via central London to Sutton, , , Rainham, , , , and . The network opened as a through service in 1988, with severe overcrowding by 1998, carrying m ...
operates a half-hourly Monday to Friday service through to
Horsham Horsham is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
via London, St Pancras,
London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It r ...
and
Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...
. Journey times are 30 minutes on the quickest trains to London and 2 hours 45 minutes to Horsham.
Great Northern Great Northern may refer to: Transport * One of a number of railways; see Great Northern Railway (disambiguation). * Great Northern Railway (U.S.), a defunct American transcontinental railroad and major predecessor of the BNSF Railway. * Great ...
run additional trains to and from Kings Cross for morning and evening commuters. At weekends all services terminate at Kings Cross. The service on Sunday is hourly. Northbound trains have a similar frequency of service. They terminate at
Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...
and have a journey time of 40 minutes.


Religious sites

Six churches – St Andrew's (
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 ...
), Trinity (
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
), St Peter's (
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
), Biggleswade
Baptists Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
, Healing Hour, Newlife Church, and
Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement
Church – are represented locally by the umbrella organisation Churches Together.
Biggleswade Cemetery Biggleswade Cemetery (also known as Drove Road Cemetery) was the main burial ground for the town of Biggleswade in Bedfordshire. Opening in 1869, the cemetery is located on Drove Road and since 1986 has been closed for burials except for intermen ...
has a chapel. The
Plymouth Brethren The Plymouth Brethren or Assemblies of Brethren are a low church and non-conformist Christian movement whose history can be traced back to Dublin, Ireland, in the mid to late 1820s, where they originated from Anglicanism. The group emphasizes ...
have moved from Rose Lane to a Gospel Hall in Saxon Drive. The Kingdom Hall of
Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...
in Shortmead Street was built in 2014 on the site of St Andrew's Memorial Hall. The Church of St John the Baptist (Church of England) in St John's Street opened in 1883 but was demolished in 1975. A Primitive Methodist Chapel opened in 1873 in Shortmead Street and still stands, but the last meeting for worship was in April 1939.


Shopping

The Market Place, High Street and Hitchin Street are the principal shopping streets. A Charter Market is held Saturdays from 8 am to 4 pm. A smaller market takes place on Tuesdays. Biggleswade's oldest shop is reported to be the J. R. Goldthorpe & Son hardware store at 38 High Street. The original ironmongery started here in 1869. A
Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company wa ...
supermarket opened in 1994 at Bells Brook, off the A1 Biggleswade north roundabout. It is actually in Northill civil parish, as the boundary with Biggleswade runs along the River Ivel.
ASDA Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of York ...
has a store in Church Street, which opened in November 2005 on the site of a Greene King brewery. There is an
Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when t ...
in Bonds Lane and an
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
in the Market Place. Construction of the 20-unit A1 Retail Park at the south end of London Road began in 2013. The main phase completed by 2016. The five largest units house
Homebase Homebase is a British home improvement retailer and garden centre with stores across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Founded by Sainsbury's and GB-Inno-BM in 1979, the company was owned by Home Retail Group from October 2006, unti ...
, Marks and Spencer,
Matalan Matalan is a British fashion and homeware retailer based in Knowsley, Merseyside. It was established by John Hargreaves in 1985, and is still owned by the Hargreaves family. , the company employed over 13,000, and had 230 stores in the United K ...
,
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Boot or Boots may also refer to: Businesses * Boot Inn, Chester, Cheshire, England * Boots (company), a high-street pharmacy chain and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom * The Boot, Cromer St ...
and Wilko.


Sport and recreation

The town has three association football clubs –
Biggleswade Town Biggleswade Town Football Club is a football club based in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England. The club are currently members of the and play at Langford Road. History The club were established in 1874 as Biggleswade, later becoming known as ...
and Biggleswade FC both of the Southern League Division 1 Central, and Biggleswade United of the Spartan South Midlands Premier Division. The chairman of Biggleswade United is Sky Sports pundit
Guillem Balague Guillem () is a Catalan first name, equivalent to William in the English language, which occasionally can appear as a surname. Its origin and pronunciation are the same as its Occitan variant ''Guilhèm'', with a different spelling. People with th ...
. Biggleswade cricket club is based at Fairfield and the 1st XI plays in Division 3 of the Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire Premier League. Biggleswade Rugby Club's home is off Langford Road and the 1st team plays in the
Midlands 4 East (South) Midlands 4 East (South) is a level 9 English Rugby Union league and level 4 of the Midlands League, made up of teams from the southern part of the East Midlands region including clubs from Bedfordshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Linc ...
league. Drove Road Recreation Ground is home to Biggleswade Town Bowls Club and also has three macadam play-for-free tennis courts. Two-and-a-half miles north-east of the town on the B1040 at
Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...
is the
John O'Gaunt Golf Club John O'Gaunt Golf Club is a golf club, located two-and-a-half miles to the north-east of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England, just north of the village of Sutton. It was established in 1948. The Club has two 18-hole courses; the original John O'Ga ...
, with two 18-hole courses. In Hill Lane across from the A1 north roundabout is the Biggleswade Golf Centre driving range. Swimming and gym facilities are at Saxon Pool and leisure centre. A sports hall was added in 2015 and there is a skate park. The Franklin Recreation Ground by the River Ivel is off Mill Lane. The Biggleswade Green Wheel circular walking and cycling route and the 21-mile Kingfisher Way walk pass close by.


Culture and community


Town carnival

The carnival has been held each June since 1957. It was launched to raise funds to build a public swimming pool. An outdoor heated pool in Playfield Close was opened in May 1968. Further funds raised through sponsors and donations have since been distributed to local community groups, sports clubs, schools, public services and charities. A competition is held early each year to select a Carnival Court comprising a Queen, Princess and Prince. The main event is a Saturday afternoon parade of themed floats through the town. Carnival week features a funfair in the Market Square.


Cultural references

The town is mentioned twice in the diaries of
Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...
. On 22 July 1661, Pepys stopped off at "Bigglesworth" to buy a pair of warm woollen stockings. On 5 August 1664, Pepys's wife, on a visit to relations in Huntingdonshire, sent him a message saying she had arrived in "Bigglesworth" on the coach from York and would be home next day. The diarist
John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington (18 February 1743 – 8 January 1813), styled for most of his lifetime ''The Hon. John Byng'' (before 1812), was a notable English diarist. His fifteen extant diaries, covering the years 1781–1794, describe ...
often refers to the town and its ''Sun Inn''. Biggleswade is mentioned on the TV Series ''
Monty Python's Flying Circus ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' (also known as simply ''Monty Python'') is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, who became known ...
'' during a Piranha Brothers Sketch. The Biggleswade high street can be seen in the opening credits of the 1971
Get Carter ''Get Carter'' is a 1971 British crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detecti ...
film. In the
Doonesbury ''Doonesbury'' is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States The president ...
comic strip, the character
Zonker Harris Zonker Harris (his full name is revealed in '' Doonesbury: A Musical Comedy'' to be Edgar Zonker Harris) is the stereotypical unfocused confused hippie character in Garry Trudeau's comic strip ''Doonesbury''. He made his first appearance as a p ...
buys a British peerage which grants him the title "His Lordship the Viscount St. Austell-in-the-Moor Biggleswade-Brixham".


Twin town

*
Erlensee Erlensee is a town in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated on the river Kinzig, 5 km northeast of Hanau. It was formed in 1970 by the merger, in 1970, of the towns of Langendiebach and Rückingen. The name deduces fro ...
, Germany since 2000. In recognition of the twinning there is Erlensee Way on the King's Reach development and Biggleswade Strasse in Erlensee.


Plans

In February 2019, Central Bedfordshire Unitary Authority gave outline planning permission for a village of 1,500 new homes east of the King's Reach development.


Notable residents

Notable people born in Biggleswade include John Manton,
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
minister and founder of
Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...
in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia and Henry Ryland, the
Pre-Raphaelite The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (later known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossetti, James ...
painter.
Dan Albone Daniel Albone (12 September 1860 – 30 October 1906) was an English inventor, manufacturer and cyclist. He invented the first successful light farm tractor, and the Ivel Safety bicycle. Childhood Born 12 September 1860 at Biggleswade, Bedfordsh ...
, inventor and cyclist, credited with making the first practical farm tractor, the Ivel Agricultural Motor also lived and worked in the town. Charles Penrose, radio comedian and singer of "The Laughing Policeman"; the children's author
Christine Chaundler Christine Chaundler (5 September 1887 – 15 December 1972) was a prolific English children's author, who also wrote stories for boys as Peter Martin. Some of her hundreds of short stories were broadcast by the BBC. Life Born in Biggleswade, B ...
; and science fiction writer Philip E. High were all born here. Others include Ian Mantle, vehicle engineer and rally driver who grew up in the town; the stage and TV music director of ''The Muppet Show'', Derek Scott; and British Olympic rower
William Windham William Windham (4 June 1810) of Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk, was a British Whig statesman. Elected to Parliament in 1784, Windham was attached to the remnants of the Rockinghamite faction of Whigs, whose members included his friends Charles J ...
.
Richard Walker Richard Walker, Rick, Ricky, or Dick Walker may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Richard Walker (baritone) (1897–1989), English singer and actor Law and politics * Richard Walker (MP) (1784–1855), British Member of Parliament for Bury, 1832 ...
, angling journalist, author and photographer, lived by the River Ivel in Biggleswade from 1978 until his death. Pam Rhodes, novelist and BBC ''
Songs of Praise ''Songs of Praise'' is a BBC Television religious programme that presents Christian hymns sung in churches of varying denominations from around the UK. The series was first broadcast in October 1961. On that occasion, the venue was the Ta ...
'' presenter, runs a boarding cattery in the town. Peter Kendall, Chairman of the National Farmers' Union in 2006–2014, farms land in Biggleswade. The "Lady Farmer" Louisa Mary Cresswell was born here in 1830 and
Mary Tealby Mary Tealby (; 30 December 1801 – 3 October 1865) was an English animal welfare campaigner. She is noted for founding the Battersea Dogs' Home. It was founded in Holloway, London in 1860 and moved to Battersea in 1871. Life Tealby was born ...
(1801–1865), founder of the Temporary Home for Lost and Starving Dogs – Battersea Dogs' Home from 1871 – is buried in St Andrew's churchyard. Janet Millett, author of ''An Australia Parsonage or, the Settler and the Savage in Western Australia'', a significant historical work about life in Western Australia in the 1860s, (published by Edward Stanford, London, in January 1872), lived in The Baulk from 1886 until her passing in October 1904 and is buried in Drove Road Cemetery. * Wally Odell, former footballer, was born in the town. *Stevie Vincent of dance act
The Adventures of Stevie V The Adventures of Stevie V was a British dance music act from Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, it scored several hits on the UK Singles Chart and the US Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, most notably with the s ...
is from Biggleswade. Their biggest success was the UK 1989 number 2 hit "
Dirty Cash (Money Talks) "Dirty Cash (Money Talks)" is a song by British dance music act the Adventures of Stevie V. It was first released in December 1989 on the Mercury record label, then again in 1990 both on 7-inch vinyl. The 1990 release peaked at number two on th ...
". *
Reginald Ward Reginald Valentine Ward (14 February 1902 – 1 May 1968) was an English cricketer. Ward was a right-handed batsman. He was born at Biggleswade, Bedfordshire. Ward made his debut in county cricket for Bedfordshire against Oxfordshire at ...
, cricketer was born at Biggleswade.


Nearby attractions

*Jordans Mill, from which the cereal Jordans originates *
Old Warden Aerodrome Old Warden Aerodrome is located east southeast of Bedford, in Bedfordshire, England. The privately owned aerodrome serves The Shuttleworth Collection The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located ...
, home to the
Shuttleworth Collection The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aeronautical and automotive collection located at the Old Warden Aerodrome, Old Warden in Bedfordshire, England. It is the oldest in the world and one of the most prestigious, due to the variety of old a ...
of historic airplanes *The Swiss Garden in Old Warden Park *
The Lodge RSPB reserve RSPB The Lodge is a nature reserve run by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), named after the building there, The Lodge, which is their headquarters. It is located south-east of the town of Sandy, Bedfordshire, in England. Res ...
, a nature reserve


See also

*
Shortmead House Shortmead House in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, is a two-storey Georgian manor house, first mentioned in 1543. The listed building, Grade II listed building is lived in by the present owners as well as being used as business premises which are lic ...


References


Further reading

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External links


Biggleswade History SocietyBiggleswade Town CouncilBiggleswade Community WebA photographic album of Biggleswade

{{authority control Market towns in Bedfordshire Towns in Bedfordshire Civil parishes in Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire District