TheWallingford Experience

Places of Interestin Wallingford4Wallingford is a small country market town onthe banks of the River Thames about 50 milesto the west of London. It is well connected byroad and local bus services to Oxford, Readingand Henley, and the nearby main line railwaystation at Cholsey. Wallingford is an ideal placein which to enjoy a days visit or to take a shortbreak to explore the surrounding countryside.The town centre is dominated by the TownHall, a timber-framed building constructed nearto the site of the Guild Hall in 1670. It is herethat the Town’s silver-gilt mace (made in 1650at a cost of £46 18s 3d) is kept, together withthe Town Plate and paintings. The open areaunderneath was once used for market stalls. Itnow houses the Town Information Centrewhich provides information about all of thelocal centres of interest and places to stay. TheCharter Market is still held in the Market Placeevery Friday, and a Farmers’ Market takesplace on the third Tuesday of each month.On the east side of the Market Place is theformer Corn Exchange (built in 1856) the roofof which is supported inside by iron beamscast by Wilder’s, a local foundry. The SinodunPlayers now own the building and provide avaried programme of amateur productions,professional touring companies and up-to-datefilms. Agatha Christie, a former president ofthe Sinodun Players, lived on the outskirts ofWallingford for 40 years and is buried nearbyin Cholsey churchyard.Local history is the theme of WallingfordMuseum which is housed in the medieval, oakbeamedFlint House in the High Street oppositethe Kinecroft. The Wallingford Story is anexciting ’Sight & Sound’ experience whichenables you to walk through time from theRomans and Saxons to the Civil War.The Regal Centre, a converted cinema near theMarket Place, is now home to many eventsincluding an annual Blues and Beer Festival andthe weekly Country Market (W.I.). Regularsporting activities also held here include tabletennis, keep fit, short mat bowls andbadminton.Many of Wallingford’s narrow lanes, and someof the wider streets, follow the alignment ofthe original Saxon roads. Leaflets showingroutes for Walking Tours of the Town areavailable from the Town Information Centreand Wallingford Museum. The routes arecarefully chosen to ensure that visitors get themost interest from their time here.In 2001 Wallingford Castle Meadows werebought by the South Oxfordshire DistrictCouncil. The site is managed for informal