Basingstoke Walk: Town Centre【4K】

Located in the county of Hampshire, and roughly halfway between Southampton and West London, is the town of Basingstoke.

Basingstoke is named after the Basingas - an Anglo-Saxon tribe who settled in the area around the 7th century. 'Stoke' is simply Old English for 'place'. Two miles to the east is the village of Old Basing, which was the site of a battle in 871 AD where the kingdom of Wessex was defeated by the Danes.

Since 1214 Basingstoke has held a regular weekly market. During the Middle Ages it was a small market town, achieving relative prosperity via the wool industry. Over the coming centuries Basingstoke suffered multiple fires owing to the flammable properties of the timber-framed buildings with thatched roofs.

The architecture of Basingstoke is a stark blend of old and new. St Michael's Church on Church Street was consecrated in 1510. Around a century later Deanes Almshouses were built between 1607 and 1608 to house the poor, seen right at the start of the video. For the most part, the rest of Basingstoke is distinctly 20th century. This is due to it being allocated an overspill town in 1961 as a means to accommodate those wishing to commute to London from the post-war period onward.

In 1971 the M3 motorway opened, creating a direct route by car from Basingstoke to London. Over the decades that followed, multiple shopping centres were constructed, including The Malls and Festival Place. By 1988 central Basingstoke had become completely pedestrianised, utilising footbridges to span Churchill Way East - the busy main road running straight through the town centre. Since 1961 the population has grown from around 16,000 to over 100,000 today.

A couple of statues feature in the walk. The first, in order of appearance, is the Blue Coat Boy Statue. It stands on Cross Street on the site of the former Basingstoke Blue Coat School, founded in the 17th century from funds pledged in the will of wealthy businessman Richard Aldworth to set up a school to educate, feed, clothe and apprentice 10 poor children a year. The school eventually closed in 1880. To the north, on Alencon Link is the 'L'Arc' statue. Featuring two figures on either side of the road, each holding a curved pole, it represents Basingstoke's close relationship with its European twin towns as the curved poles, if extended, would meet to form a circle, creating a gateway. The twin towns are Alençon in France (hence the street name 'Alencon Link'), Braine-l'Alleud in Belgium and Euskirchen in Germany.

Famous people from Basingstoke include Elizabeth Hurley and the late Tara Palmer-Tomkinson.

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Filmed: 9th June 2021

Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/CSXkwsD4LvSRF44X7

Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Deanes Almshouse (built 1607-08)
0:05 London Street
2:03 Market Place
2:27 Winchester Street
3:42 New Street
5:12 Cross Street
5:41 The Blue Coat Boy Statue
5:46 Cross Street
6:07 Church Street
7:32 St Michael's Church
7:43 Church Street
9:07 Footbridge crossing over Churchill Way East
11:02 Outside The Malls Shopping Centre
11:56 Alencon Link
13:22 'L'Arc' Statue (representing Basingstoke's close relationship with its European twin towns)
13:33 Alencon Link
14:08 Crown Heights
15:16 Churchill Way Bridge