SILVERSTONE

Entertainment:

Parks:

Northampton is noted for its many parks, which include Abington Park, The Racecourse (home to the annual Balloon Festival), Delapre Park, Bradlaugh Fields, Becket's Park (named after Thomas Becket, who also lends his name to the nearby Becket's Well) and Iron Age hill fort Hunsbury Hill. Leisure park Billing Aquadrome is situated on the town's outskirts, which incorporates a caravan site, marina and funfair.

Shopping:

As well as three modern indoor shopping centres, the town also claims to have Britain's largest market square, which dates back to 1235. The square and surrounding shopping streets host the annual St Crispin Street Fair, held during the October half-term school holiday since 1993.

Nearby Milton Keynes has a comprehensive array of shops, boutiques and spas and sporting facilities.

Xscape is the ultimate entertainment destination, combining Europes's largest indoor 'real snow' ski slope, indoor rock climbing wall, 16 screen cinema multiplex, family entertainment centre which includes ten pin bowling, health and fitness centre, bars, restaurants, cafes and lifestyle and fashion retail outlets - under one roof.

Northampton Museum & Art Gallery:

The museum houses the largest collection of footwear in the world, other collections include decorative arts, Italian 15th – 18th century paintings and British art, Northampton’s history from Stone Age to the present date. Admission is free.

A brand new gallery which focuses on the industrial, commercial and health aspects of footwear with displays on the history of shoemaking, footwear retailing, specialist shoes, foot health and the shoe purchase process. Visitors to the new gallery will have the opportunity to enjoy an audio-visual display, try out various interactive exhibits and walk through a recreation of an old Northampton shoe factory.

For Followers of fashion their second new shoe gallery celebrates shoe fashions and those who wear them. Work by some of the most influential shoe designers of the last 100 years, including Salvatore Ferragomo, Manolo Blahnik and Vivienne Westwood.

Culture:

The Derngate and Royal theatres are situated next door to each other in Guildhall Road, opposite Northampton Museum and Art Gallery. There is also a smaller museum in a former mansion within Abington Park.

Roadmender is a leading venue for art and music in the region. Three cinemas are also located in the town: Vue at Sol Central, UGC at Sixfields and the Forum Cinema at Lings Forum.

Northampton has long since been home to a thriving music scene and has been hosts to many world famous bands such as the Beatles, Stone Roses and Blur. These days the town is more at home with the alternative music scene and many up-and-coming bands will play in the back room at the Racehorse Inn, Abington Square to follow in the footsteps of groups like Deep Purple, Madness and My Cat Dillion.

Buildings:

Northampton's oldest standing building, the Church of The Holy Sepulchre is one of the largest and best preserved round churches in England. It was built in 1100 on the orders of the first Earl of Northampton, Simon de Senlis, who'd just returned from the first crusade. It is based on a plan of the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

The current All Saints church was constructed mostly in the early 18th century, after the original was burnt down in 1675.

The guildhall in Northampton was constructed mostly in the 1860s in Victorian Gothic architecture, and extended in the 1890s. It is built on the site of the old town hall. Terry Wogan conducted a phone in during the 1980s to come up for a name for the 127.45 metre tall Express Lift Tower, a dominant feature in the area. "Northampton Lighthouse" was suggested as Northampton is one of the furthest places from the sea. It is also known as Cobblers Needle. It was built to facilitate the testing of new lifts at the Express Lifts factory. It is visible from most of the town, but is now redundant. The tower has however been listed as being of architectural importance in the town.

Northampton Castle (now only remaining in the hill on which it stood) was for many years one of the country's most important castles. The country's parliament sat here many times and Thomas à Becket was imprisoned here until he escaped.