Great West Way® Travel Magazine | Issue 01

HERITAGE MEETS HIP
From London, the UK’s capital, to Bristol, one of the country’s
hippest cities, and with many more characterful villages and plenty of
lush, green landscapes between. Arts and creativity along the Great
West Way are diverse and fascinating at every turn
Words: Robyn Powell
CARVING A CREATIVE CORRIDOR across
Britain, the route encompasses sites of artistic
innovation, some old and some new, but all
steeped in Britain’s creative heritage.
London’s art scene has been well documented and, for
centuries, writers, painters and composers have gathered
here. At the other end of the Great West Way, Bristol
and Bath are home to some of the grandest neoclassical
architecture in Britain. The oldest continually-functioning
theatre in the English-speaking world is the Bristol Old
Vic and yet this is also the hometown of Banksy, the
anonymous graffiti artist whose internationally renowned
work grew out of the local underground scene.
The city now hosts Upfest, a festival of street art, and
some of Banksy’s best street art has been combined into a
self-guided walking tour of the city.
Between these two urban ‘poles’ are countless artistic
gems, waiting to be unearthed or rediscovered. We can
only offer a small selection to whet your appetite.
Before leaving London, a must-do for lovers of the
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