Chapter Seven from a Travel Guide

   

   CENTRAL ENGLAND

   Central England is the most diffuse region of the country, bracketed to the west by the Welsh
   border and to the east by the North Sea, but otherwise difficult to define geographically. At
   least there can be do doubt about the location of its economic and demographic focus -
   Birmingham, Britain's second city and once the world's greatest industrial metropolis. Long
   saddled with a reputation as a culture-hating, car-loving backwater, Birmingham has redefined
   its image in recent years with some bold artistic and redevelopment projects, most notably the
   construction of the complex that houses the country's best concert hall. Although it may still
   be few people' s idea of a good-looking town, it's certainly one of the liveliest spots in the
   region, with nightlife encompassing everything from Royal Ballet productions to all-night
   raves, and a great spread of restaurants and pubs.

   The urban sprawl clinging to the western side of Birmingham, known as the Black Country, more
   amply fulfils the negative stereotypes, although even here you'll find a few pleasant
   surprises, in the shape of several excellent museums and galleries. In the region to the south
   of this giant West Midlands conurbation lie the wide and fertile vales of the rivers Severn
   and Avon. These hold central England's biggest tourist draws - Stratford-upon-Avon, a place
   now perhaps over-burdened with Shakespeare-related paraphernalia, and the castle of nearby
   Warwick. However, the crowds and commercialism of these two towns fade away in neighbouring
   Worcestershire, a predominantly pastoral county typified by the handsome hills around the spa
   town of Great Malvern and by the low-key old cathedral city of Worcester itself.

   Further west still is Herefordshire, a large and sparsely populated county that's home to
   several charming Market towns, most notably the cathedral city of Hereford, pocket-sized
   Ross-on-Wye and Hay-on-Wye, where there's the largest concentration of second-hand bookshops
   in the world. Next door, rural Shropshire weighs in with Ludlow, one of the region's prettiest
   towns, awash with antique half timbered buildings, and the amiable county town of Shrewsbury.
   Shropshire has a fascinating industrial history too, for it was here in the Ironbridge Gorge
   that British industrialists built the first iron bridge and pioneered the use of coal as a
   smelting fuel - two key events of the Industrial Revolution. To the north lies Staffordshire,
   where the halcyon days when the potteries of Stoke-on-Trent dominated the world market are
   recalled by an outstanding museum or two, and Derbyshire, whose northern reaches incorporate
   the region's finest scenery in the rough landscapes of the Peak District. Most tourists bypass
   the counties of the East Midlands - Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and
   Lincolnshire - on their way to more obvious destinations. It's true they miss little of
   overriding interest, though Nottingham and Leicester are boisterous cities and the rural
   charms of much of Northamptonshire hold some appeal. Lincolnshire is and agricultural
   backwater in comparison to its neighbours, but its sights - as distinct from the mostly dreary
   landscape - are far more diverting, most remarkably the cathedral at Lincoln, the alluring
   stone-built town of Stamford and the superb parish churches that are spread out across the
   county.

   Travel in this region is simple. Birmingham sits at the heart of central England's rail and
   coach networks, with most 'of the region's main towns and cities enjoying easy links from
   there, as well as from London, Bristol, Manchester and points farther north. It is only really
   when you get into the outbacks of Shropshire, Herefordshire or Lincolnshire that public
   transport can be problematic.