Marlow

Comprehensive transport networks provide a variety of connections to major destinations: London, Oxford and the Midlands are accessible via the M40, while to the south of the town, the M4 provides links to Heathrow Airport - situated 25 miles from Marlow - and the West Country . Local facilities for landing light aircraft and helicopters are available at nearby Booker Airfield. A mainline rail service departs hourly for nearby Maidenhead, where connections are available to London Paddington and the West Country. In addition, a network of buses provides links to surrounding areas and destinations further afield such as High Wycombe, Henley and Reading.

Unsurprisingly, the River Thames plays a central role in many of Marlow's entertainment and leisure options. An undoubted highlight is the famous Marlow Regatta, a one-day event held on the third Saturday in June. Involving the participation of rowing crews from all over the world, the regatta is accompanied by traditional festivities. In mid-July, the curious spectacle of 'swan Upping' takes place, a historic ceremony in which swans along the river are counted, identified and marked.

For those wishing to explore the river further, pleasure boat trips are available from May until September, departing from Marlow's Higginson Park and cruising to a variety of destinations such as Henley and Windsor. Small boats can also be hired at hourly rates. Alternatively, the Thames Path, a national trail which follows the river's entire course, passes through Marlow and is popular with seasoned and inexperienced walkers alike.

Shopping:
Good local shopping facilities consist of a variety of popular high street names together with an interesting range of traditional retailers. A small market offering goods from fresh produce to household items is held in Dean Street on Wednesdays and Saturdays. For those who enjoy eating out, numerous cafes and restaurants provide a wide selection of international cuisine, while historic pubs located throughout the town and surrounding countryside offer the opportunity to relax in an authentic English country atmosphere.

Entertainment:
Music is on offer in July at the two-day Marlow Jazz Groove Festival, which features a variety of top-name acts together with a funfair, market stalls and extensive bar facilities. The Marlow Music Festival, held later in the year in November, provides the opportunity to enjoy a wide range of music in venues throughout the town. Opera productions are regularly staged by the Marlow Amateur Operatic Society, while for lovers of the performing arts, The Shelley Theatre hosts dance and drama events as well as several annual productions by the town's own Marlow Players . Other popular events in the cultural calender include a themed carnival in September and Christmas festivities held in the High Street.

Cinema buffs can catch up with the latest releases at the 6-screen Wycombe Cinema, located a short distance from Marlow on the M40 .

Sport:
Sports enthusiasts are equally well catered for with a wide range of facilities on offer at the Court Garden Leisure Complex in Higginson Park. Located in an 18th Century residence, amenities include an indoor swimming pool, multi-sports hall, squash and tennis courts, dance studio and fitness suite. A variety of river-based sports such as angling and rowing are available in Marlow itself, while waterskiing and windsurfing are on offer within easy reach of the town at Westhorpe Park. The Summit Ski Centre - again located a short distance from the town at High Wycombe - boasts Britain's longest dry-ski run. Throughout Marlow, additional facilities are available for cricket, tennis and outdoor bowling, together with several playground areas for children. An 18-hole golf course is located close to the town at Wycombe Heights Golf Centre.

For those in search of more leisurely pursuits, Marlow's Higginson Park provides a perfect setting for relaxing beside the Thames. A chance to get even closer to nature is provided by the Marlow Wildlife Centre, a rescue/environmental education centre that allows access to animals normally viewed from a distance. Here, the public are given the opportunity to cuddle a fox, play with a squirrel and come into close contact with many other rescued animals that cannot be returned to the wild.

Beyond the town itself, an abundance of protected countryside - including the famed Chiltern Hills - provides an ideal setting for horseriding, walks and quiet recreation.

Marlow is twinned with the French town of Marly-le-Roi, which is situated on the banks of the Seine.

HISTORY: Marlow is described in considerable detail in the Doomsday Book 0f 1086 where it is recorded that, among other resources, the village boasted 'one mill worth twenty shillings 1000 hogs and a fishery which yields 1000 eels'. At the time, Marlow was at the geographical centre of a ring of ecclesiastical foundations including a Cistercian abbey, a nunnery and various houses belonging to the Knight Templars and Knight Hospitallers. Marlow's own parish church had been in existence from at least 1070, as records of the time show that St. Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, visited the village and insisted on celebrating mass.

The present church of All Saints, beautifully situated in a riverside setting, was constructed in 1835. Nearby, the Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter was designed by the elder Pugin in 1846, and preserves an ancient relic said to be the mummified hand of St. James the Apostle.

Throughout the centuries, Marlow found prosperity as a small, mainly agricultural town, although some industry took place in the form of milling. It was also famous for its fine needlework and lacemaking, and in the 19th Century, local craftswomen were asked to prepare part of the wedding trousseau for Queen Victoria's eldest daughter.

Today, Marlow is well known for its striking suspension bridge, which was constructed in 1832. At its foot, the Compleat Angler Hotel remains largely unchanged since its celebration in 'Three Men in a Boat', Jerome K. Jerome's classic tale of life on the Thames. The town enjoys a wealth of additional literary associations focused around historic West Street, where Percy Bysshe Shelley and his wife Mary lived from 1817 to 1818. The street was also home to the author Thomas Love Peacock, while T.S. Eliot, the celebrated 20th Century poet, resided in Marlow to escape London bombing during World War I.

Marlow's picturesque High Street is lined with fine buildings from the 16 th , 17th and 18th Centuries, several of which formerly served as coaching inns for travellers on ' The Marlow Flier', a twice-daily service to London's Piccadilly. The infamous highwayman Dick Turpin is said to have been a frequent customer at the 'Crown and Broad Arrow' , once located at the top of the High Street. The coach service fell into disuse when the Great Marlow Railway opened in 1873, bringing with it fast, efficient connections to London and a subsequent rise in the town's population. The most notable growth, however, has occurred in the last fifty years, with a steady influx of new residents and businesses boosting Marlow's population to three times its pre-war size.

LINKS:
www.marlowtown.co.uk