Bromyard
Encyclopedia
Bromyard is a town in northeast Herefordshire
, England
with a population of approximately 4,000. It lies near to the county border with Worcestershire
on the A44
between Leominster
and Worcester. Bromyard has a number of traditional half-timbered pubs and some buildings dating back to Norman times
. Bromyard was once a market town
and centre for growing hops
and soft fruit.
During World War I
, Bromyard was the site of an internment camp, where the Irish nationalist future Lord Mayor of Cork
and hunger strike
r Terence MacSwiney
was both interned and married. In World War Two, Westminster School was temporarily relocated to Buckenhill, on the outskirts of the town.
each year in September, which particularly concentrates on English traditional music. It is one of the largest events of its kind in the country.
In 2011 Bromyard hosted its first jazz festival from August 19th to the 21st. The festival took place at the Falcon Hotel, and was organised by 'Sir' Alan Buckley and a decision has been made to run it again in 2012. http://www.siralandrums.co.uk.
Bromyard Gala, a large country show and traction engine and vintage rally, is held on its showground just off Hereford Road on the first weekend of July.
Bromyard is the home of Nozstock Festival of Performing Arts which attracts nearly 3,000 visitors at the end of July every year. This three-day event showcases 30 bands from around the country across three stages, alongside two dance arenas, a cinema, a theatre and comedy stage, circus, and a vintage tractor arena.
At Christmastime, volunteers (under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce) organise an extensive display of Christmas lights, which runs for the five weeks up to Christmas until after the New Year. The group established links with Blackpool Illuminations over 2009/10, and Blackpool's director Richard Ryan performed the switching-on ceremony in November 2010.
The Conquest Theatre offers a programme of plays, variety, musicals, operettas, ballet, pantomime and concerts, in a purpose-built centre constructed in 1991.
Bromyard also has its own wind band, Bromyard Wind Band,http://www.bromyardwindband.com/ which rehearses in the nearby village of Bredenbury on Friday evenings, except on the first Friday of every month, when it rehearses at the Falcon Hotel in central Bromyard.
Bromyard.info http://bromyard.info/ is the community website for Bromyard and District. Run as a Community Interest Company by volunteers, it is an 'online daily news site', has a full events calendar, features places of interest, accommodation, pubs, restaurants and shopping directory, together with a full local directory.
Regular acoustic music sessions also feature in Bromyard's pubs, mostly on Sunday and Tuesday evenings at the Rose & Lion and Falcon Hotel respectively, throughout the year. A calendar of regular and upcoming events is maintained at the Bromyard Sessions website http://bromyardsessions.co.uk/.
Rowden Paddocks Farm north of Bromyard is the site for the annual Nozstock
music and comedy festival. The 2011 event will be held on 29 to 31 July and features Adrian Edmondson
& The Bad Shepherds
.
to Leominster
, and was a common destination for 'hop-pickers' specials' from the Black Country
.The railway was dismantled in 1958.
A number of bus services run from Pump Street which runs down the side of the Falcon Hotel on Broad Street.
, with two keys, over the main (reset) Norman south doorway. Most of the exterior is early 14th century.
The town centre is bypassed by the main road, A44 that stretches from Aberystwyth in Wales to Oxford.
Bromyard is notable for its many old and historically interesting buildings, especially in High Street, Broad Street, Market Square, and Rowberry Street, including a number of half-timbered pubs and dwelling houses.
Lower Brockhampton, a moated farmhouse on an extensive National Trust
property, lies a short distance to the east, beyond Bromyard Downs. These are an area of common land lying to the northeast which offers many walks, with extensive views over the town, the Malvern Hills
, the Clee Hills
, and the Welsh
borders, with the Black Mountains
and other hills beyond.
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with a population of approximately 4,000. It lies near to the county border with Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
on the A44
A44 road
The A44 is a major road in the United Kingdom that runs from Oxford in southern England to Aberystwyth in west Wales.-History:The original route of the A44 was Chipping Norton to Aberystwyth. No changes were made to the route of the A44 in the early years...
between Leominster
Leominster
Leominster is a market town in Herefordshire, England, located approximately north of the city of Hereford and south of Ludlow, at...
and Worcester. Bromyard has a number of traditional half-timbered pubs and some buildings dating back to Norman times
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
. Bromyard was once a market town
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
and centre for growing hops
Hops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
and soft fruit.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Bromyard was the site of an internment camp, where the Irish nationalist future Lord Mayor of Cork
Lord Mayor of Cork
The Lord Mayor of Cork is the honorific title of the Chairman of Cork City Council which is the local government body for the city of Cork in Ireland. The incumbent is Terry Shannon of Fianna Fáil. The office holder is elected annually by the members of the Council.-History of office:In 1199 there...
and hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
r Terence MacSwiney
Terence MacSwiney
Terence Joseph MacSwiney was an Irish playwright, author and politician. He was elected as Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of Cork during the Irish War of Independence in 1920. He was arrested by the British on charges of sedition and imprisoned in Brixton prison in England...
was both interned and married. In World War Two, Westminster School was temporarily relocated to Buckenhill, on the outskirts of the town.
Culture
Bromyard hosts a three-day folk festivalFolk festival
A Folk festival celebrates traditional folk crafts and folk music.-Canada:Alberta*Calgary Folk Music Festival*Canmore Folk Music Festival*Edmonton Folk Music Festival*Jasper Folk Festival*Wild Mountain Music FestOntario*Barriefolk...
each year in September, which particularly concentrates on English traditional music. It is one of the largest events of its kind in the country.
In 2011 Bromyard hosted its first jazz festival from August 19th to the 21st. The festival took place at the Falcon Hotel, and was organised by 'Sir' Alan Buckley and a decision has been made to run it again in 2012. http://www.siralandrums.co.uk.
Bromyard Gala, a large country show and traction engine and vintage rally, is held on its showground just off Hereford Road on the first weekend of July.
Bromyard is the home of Nozstock Festival of Performing Arts which attracts nearly 3,000 visitors at the end of July every year. This three-day event showcases 30 bands from around the country across three stages, alongside two dance arenas, a cinema, a theatre and comedy stage, circus, and a vintage tractor arena.
At Christmastime, volunteers (under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce) organise an extensive display of Christmas lights, which runs for the five weeks up to Christmas until after the New Year. The group established links with Blackpool Illuminations over 2009/10, and Blackpool's director Richard Ryan performed the switching-on ceremony in November 2010.
The Conquest Theatre offers a programme of plays, variety, musicals, operettas, ballet, pantomime and concerts, in a purpose-built centre constructed in 1991.
Bromyard also has its own wind band, Bromyard Wind Band,http://www.bromyardwindband.com/ which rehearses in the nearby village of Bredenbury on Friday evenings, except on the first Friday of every month, when it rehearses at the Falcon Hotel in central Bromyard.
Bromyard.info http://bromyard.info/ is the community website for Bromyard and District. Run as a Community Interest Company by volunteers, it is an 'online daily news site', has a full events calendar, features places of interest, accommodation, pubs, restaurants and shopping directory, together with a full local directory.
Regular acoustic music sessions also feature in Bromyard's pubs, mostly on Sunday and Tuesday evenings at the Rose & Lion and Falcon Hotel respectively, throughout the year. A calendar of regular and upcoming events is maintained at the Bromyard Sessions website http://bromyardsessions.co.uk/.
Rowden Paddocks Farm north of Bromyard is the site for the annual Nozstock
Nozstock: The Hidden Valley
Nozstock: The Hidden Valley is an annual independent arts and music festival in England. It is hosted at Rowden Paddocks Farm near Bromyard, Herefordshire, and usually takes place towards the end of July....
music and comedy festival. The 2011 event will be held on 29 to 31 July and features Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Charles "Ade" Edmondson is an English comedian. He is probably best known for his comedic roles in the television series The Young Ones and Bottom , for which he also wrote together with his long-time collaboration partner Rik Mayall.-Early life:Edmondson, the second of four children, was...
& The Bad Shepherds
The Bad Shepherds
The Bad Shepherds are a British folk band formed by the comedian Adrian Edmondson in 2008. They play punk songs with traditional folk instruments...
.
Transport
The Worcester Bromyard and Leominster Railway, now dismantled, ran from WorcesterWorcester railway station
Worcester railway station can refer to several different stations:In the United Kingdom*Worcester Foregate Street railway station in the centre of Worcester*Worcester Shrub Hill railway station to the east of Worcester city centre...
to Leominster
Leominster railway station
Leominster railway station lies on the Welsh Marches Line serving the Herefordshire town of Leominster in England.Leominster has 2 Platforms for North and South bound trains respectively.-History:...
, and was a common destination for 'hop-pickers' specials' from the Black Country
Black Country
The Black Country is a loosely defined area of the English West Midlands conurbation, to the north and west of Birmingham, and to the south and east of Wolverhampton. During the industrial revolution in the 19th century this area had become one of the most intensely industrialised in the nation...
.The railway was dismantled in 1958.
A number of bus services run from Pump Street which runs down the side of the Falcon Hotel on Broad Street.
Landmarks
St Peter's Church is a large building with parts dating back to Norman times, including an effigy of St. PeterSaint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
, with two keys, over the main (reset) Norman south doorway. Most of the exterior is early 14th century.
The town centre is bypassed by the main road, A44 that stretches from Aberystwyth in Wales to Oxford.
Bromyard is notable for its many old and historically interesting buildings, especially in High Street, Broad Street, Market Square, and Rowberry Street, including a number of half-timbered pubs and dwelling houses.
Lower Brockhampton, a moated farmhouse on an extensive National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
property, lies a short distance to the east, beyond Bromyard Downs. These are an area of common land lying to the northeast which offers many walks, with extensive views over the town, the Malvern Hills
Malvern Hills
The Malvern Hills are a range of hills in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern...
, the Clee Hills
Clee Hills
The Clee Hills are a range of hills in Shropshire, England near Ludlow, consisting of Brown Clee Hill , the highest peak in Shropshire, and Titterstone Clee Hill...
, and the Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
borders, with the Black Mountains
Black Mountains
There are several mountain ranges named the Black Mountains:* Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains * Black Mountains...
and other hills beyond.