Portal:Berkshire
Welcome to the Berkshire portal
The Royal County of Berkshire, commonly known as simply Berkshire (/ˈbɑːrkʃɪər, -ʃər/ ⓘ BARK-sheer, -shər; abbreviated Berks.), is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London to the east, Surrey to the south-east, Hampshire to the south, and Wiltshire to the west. Reading is the largest settlement and the county town.
The county has an area of 1,263 km2 (488 sq mi) and a population of 911,403. The latter is concentrated in the east, the area closest to Greater London, and includes the county's largest towns: Reading (174,224) Slough (164,793), Bracknell (113,205), and Maidenhead (70,374). The west is rural, and its largest town is Newbury (33,841). For local government purposes Berkshire comprises six unitary authority areas: Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, and Wokingham. The historic county included the parts of Oxfordshire south of the River Thames, which formed its northern border, but excluded Caversham and Slough.
The Berkshire Downs, a chalk downland and area of outstanding natural beauty, occupy the west of the county. They are the source of the River Kennet, which flows east through Newbury before meeting the Thames at Reading. The Thames then forms Berkshire's northern border, flowing past Maidenhead, before entering the county and flowing past Slough and Windsor. The south-east of the county contains Swinley Forest, a remnant of Windsor Forest now used as a forestry plantation.
There is evidence of prehistoric settlement on the Berkshire Downs, including the Iron Age Uffington White Horse, now in Oxfordshire. In the Anglo-Saxon period the region was contested by Mercia and Wessex, and Alfred the Great was born in Wantage, also now in Oxfordshire. Windsor Castle, which would become the official country residence of the British monarch, was built after the Norman Conquest. The county has been the site of several battles, particularly during the First English Civil War, when Reading and Wallingford were besieged two battles took place at Newbury, in 1643 and 1644. The proximity of the east of the county to London led to development from the nineteenth century, when Slough became an industrial centre and Bracknell was designated a new town. Software development and high-tech industry dominate the economy in the east, but the west remains an agricultural region. (Full article...)
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Local nature reserves (LNRs) in England are designated by local authorities under Section 21 of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. LNRs are sites which have a special local interest either biologically or geologically. Local authorities have a duty to care for them, and must control the sites by owning or leasing them, or by having an agreement with the owners. The local authorities can apply local byelaws to manage and protect LNRs.
As of January 2020, there are forty-one LNRs in Berkshire. Five are also Sites of Special Scientific Interest, two are Special Areas of Conservation and four are managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Berkshire is a county in South East England. It is bordered by Hampshire and Surrey to the south, Greater London to the east, Wiltshire to the west and Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire to the north. Berkshire lies in the valleys of the Thames and its tributary, the River Kennet, and in the west it is crossed by chalk hills. It has a population of more than 860,000. It is no longer an administrative county following the abolition of Berkshire County Council in 1998. It is governed by six unitary authorities: Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham. (Full article...)
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Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV reality series Popstars: The Rivals, during which Harding won a place in the girl group Girls Aloud. The group achieved twenty consecutive top ten singles (including four number ones) in the UK, six albums that were certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), two of which went to number one in the UK, and accumulated a total of five BRIT Award nominations. In 2009, Girls Aloud won "Best Single" with their song "The Promise".
During the group's break, Harding began acting, appearing in Bad Day, the BBC television film Freefall, Run for Your Wife and St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold. Harding contributed three solo songs to the soundtrack of St. Trinian's 2. She also modelled for Ultimo lingerie. In late 2012, she reunited with Girls Aloud to celebrate their tenth anniversary. In early 2013, they announced that they had split up. In 2015, Harding briefly appeared in the soap opera Coronation Street and released her first extended play record Threads. She then won Celebrity Big Brother 20 in 2017.
In August 2020, Harding announced that she had been diagnosed with advanced breast cancer; she revealed in March 2021 that her condition was terminal. She died on 5 September 2021, at the age of 39. (Full article...)
Topics
History: Battle of Reading (871) • Battle of Reading (1688) • First Battle of Newbury • Second Battle of Newbury • Siege of Reading
Geography: River Thames • Swinley Forest • The Ridgeway • Walbury Hill • Windsor Great Park
Towns: Ascot • Bracknell • Crowthorne • Earley • Eton • Hungerford • Maidenhead • Newbury • Reading • Sandhurst • Slough • Thatcham • Windsor • Wokingham • Woodley
Politics: Parliamentary constituencies • Parliamentary representation
Culture: Henley Royal Regatta • Museum of English Rural Life • Reading festival • Windsor Castle
Selected pictures
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Virginia Water Lake on the southern edge of Windsor Great Park (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Reading Festival in 2007 (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
The grandstand at Ascot Racecourse (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Slough Trading Estate plays a major part in making Slough an important business centre in South East England (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
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Large red damselfly in Swinley Forest, Berkshire (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
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Donnington Castle in Berkshire (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Windsor Castle, viewed from the Long Walk (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Windsor Castle Upper Ward Quadrangle (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
A view of Newbury, Berkshire and its surroundings (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures)
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Did you know
- ... that Herbert James Gunn used a paper cut-out of Princess Elizabeth's corgi dog to help him paint his Conversation Piece at the Royal Lodge, Windsor?
- ... that three gasholders at the Windsor Street Gasworks were painted in the claret and blue colours of local football team Aston Villa?
- ... that comic book artist Barry Windsor-Smith wrote, drew, inked, and lettered every page of his graphic novel Monsters by himself?
- ... that today's funeral procession of Elizabeth II to Windsor Castle started at the gate to Shaw Farm?
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