Bute Town ( cy, Drenewydd "New Town") is a village in the county borough of

Caerphilly Caerphilly (, ; cy, Caerffili, ) is a town and community in Wales. It is situated at the southern end of the Rhymney Valley. It is north of Cardiff and northwest of Newport. It is the largest town in Caerphilly County Borough, and lies wit ...

, near

Rhymney Rhymney (; cy, Rhymni ) is a town and a community in the county borough of Caerphilly, South Wales. It is within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. With the villages of Pontlottyn, Fochriw, Abertysswg, Deri and New Tredegar, Rhymney is ...

, in Wales. Locally, Bute Town is spoken and written as a single word, Butetown.

History

Throughout the 18th century, portions of land entered the estate of the Scottish Bute Estate, of which the area around Bute Town was one, and so the village was named after the Marquis of Bute. The area was developed into a "

model village A model village is a type of mostly self-contained community, built from the late 18th century onwards by landowners and business magnates to house their workers. Although the villages are located close to the workplace, they are generally phys ...

" to house local ironworkers in the 1830s and consisted of three rows of 16 houses each, for a total of 48 residences. The village's population fluctuated, and in the 19th century between 195 and 430 people lived there. The village reached a peak in population in 1871, when the Rhymney Valley transitioned from iron production to coal mining and when a growth in railroads in the area brought a spike in workers to the town. Bute Town has been 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 ...

since October 1972, and all of the buildings are on the statutory list of buildings of architectural or historic interest. The ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' episode " The Crimson Horror" filmed on location in Bute Town in July 2012, starring

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as the Eleventh Doctor, eleventh incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the BBC series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Daemon Targarye ...

at the

Eleventh Doctor The Eleventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. He is played by Matt Smith in three series as well as five specials. As with previous incarnations of the Docto ...

Jenna Coleman Jenna-Louise Coleman (born 27 April 1986), known professionally as Jenna Coleman, is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Jasmine Thomas in the soap opera ''Emmerdale'', Clara Oswald in the science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'', Qu ...

as companion

Clara Oswald Clara Oswald is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. She was created by series producer Steven Moffat and portrayed by Jenna Coleman. Clara was introduced in the seventh series as a new travelli ...

and also the late

Dame Diana Rigg Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg (20 July 193810 September 2020) was an English actress of stage and screen. Her roles include Emma Peel in the TV series ''The Avengers'' (1965–1968); Countess Teresa di Vicenzo, wife of James Bond, in ''On Her ...

and her daughter Rachael Stirling, in their first and only time acting together.

References

Villages in Caerphilly County Borough 1830s establishments in Wales {{Caerphilly-geo-stub