Peterborough’s vigorous cultural life features several successful writers, book publishers, a symphony orchestra, a theatre guild, the 4th Line Theatre and other professional companies, public and private art galleries, and several heritage and historical organizations, including the Hutchison House Museum and the Peterborough Centennial Museum and Archives.

Major community efforts have led to the city’s acquisition of a major collection of photographs (the 3-generation Roy Studio) and the restoration of the landmark Market Hall (1889). Long recognized as the home of the Canadian and Peterborough CANOE, the city is now home to the Canadian Canoe Museum. It has a winter carnival (Snofest) and its Festival of Lights is a summer-long music and water festival by Little Lake.

Peterborough’s amateur teams have won national titles in junior hockey, lacrosse and synchronized swimming. The city hosted the 1980 and 1986 Ontario Summer Games and the 1998 Ontario Winter Games. The Peterborough Sports Hall of Fame is situated at the recently renovated Memorial Centre, home to junior hockey’s Peterborough Petes since 1954. The city has developed several walking and cycling trails along its former rail connections and in historic and scenic Little Lake Cemetery (1851).

The city’s municipal history has been marked by fiscal restraint since the railway failures of the 1850s. For 80 years after 1861, a Town Trust Commission managed its finances.

Peterborough has usually favoured a ward system and has resisted provincial efforts to abandon the township/county system for regional government. Since 1905 provincially and 1911 federally, the constituency with rare exceptions has been Conservative. However, in swing elections the riding has generally swung with the winning part at both levels. With the shift to 3-year elections, the city’s council has nursed some long terms for politicians, notably Jack Doris (since 1967) and Sylvia Sutherland (since 1984).

Districts

Bretton
Dogsthorpe
Eastgate
Fengate
Fletton
Gunthorpe
Hampton
Longthorpe
Millfield
Netherton
New England
The Ortons
Paston
Ravensthorpe
Stanground
Walton
Werrington
West Town
Westwood
Woodston

Villages in the District
Barnack
Eye
Glinton
Marholm
Milking Nook
Northborough
Peakirk
Sutton
Thornhaugh
Thorney
Upton
Wansford

Peterborough United F.C. ‘The Posh’ is the local Football Club. The ground is situated at London Road and is located on the south bank of the River Nene. Perhaps the most media coverage that PUFC have experienced was in the early 2000s when the FA Cup pitched them against Premiership heavyweights Newcastle Unitedand later in 2005 they played Manchester United, for Barry Fry’s testimonial.

As well as football, Peterborough has teams represented in Rugby, Cricket, Hockey and Ice Hockey. Peterborough Town Cricket Club (PTCC) and Peterborough Town Hockey Club (PTHC) compete at the shared ground of Bretton Gate. Whereas the city’s oldest and most successful rugby team, Peterborough Rugby Union Football Club, play at ‘Fortress Fengate’, in eastern Peterborough.

Speedway motorcycle racing is also a popular sport in Peterborough with racing being held at the East of England Showground.

Today, Peterborough is a multi-cultural city, with significant Asian, Afro-Caribbean and Italian communities. As of 2005, the city had an estimated population of just under 165,000 with the estimated population of the entire Greater Peterborough area being well over half a million. The diversity of the City has increased in recent years. A recent wave of immigration from eastern Europe has seen over 10,000 mainly Poles, Czechs and Slovaks settle in Peterborough.

Peterborough is a major stop on the East Coast Main Line, and is 45-50 minutes journey time by rail from Central London with high-speed services from Kings Cross station operated by the Great North Eastern Railway company or slower services operated by WAGN. Bus services in the city are operated by the Stagecoach Group.

Peterborough has a business airfield with a paved runway at Conington and a recreational airfield hosting a well-known parachute school at Sibson. It is a major railway junction where a number of cross-country routes converge. Central Trains operate the Liverpool to Norwich, Birmingham to Stansted Airport routes. Trains to Lincoln, a commuter stopping service to London via Hitchin as well as the high speed London to Yorkshire, Edinburgh and Newcastle lines also run through the city. Despite its large-scale growth, Peterborough has the fastest peak and off-peak travel times for a city its size in the UK, thanks to the construction of the ‘Parkways’.

Peterborough Millennium Green Wheel is an 80km network of cycleways, footpaths and bridleways which provide safe, continuous routes around the city with radiating spokes connecting to the city centre. The project has also created a sculpture trail, which provides functional, landscape artworks along the Green Wheel route and a ‘Living Landmarks’ project involving the local community in the creation of local landscape features such as mini woodlands, ponds and hedgerows.

Early history

The Romans first established the fort of Durobrivae in the vicinity around 43 AD which later grew into the town. Peterborough (Burgh, Burgus sancti Petri) is proved by its original name Medeshampstede to have been a Saxon village before 655 when Saxulf, a monk, founded the monastery on land granted to him for that purpose by Penda, king of Mercia.

Its name was altered to Burgh between 992 and 1005 after Abbot Kenulf had made a wall round the minister, but the town does not appear to have been a borough until the 12th century. The burgesses received their first charter from “Abbot Robert” - probably Robert of Sutton (1262-1273).

Historically the Dean and Chapter, who succeeded the Abbot as lords of the manor, appointed a high bailiff, and the constables and other borough officers were elected at their court leet, but the borough was incorporated in 1874 under the government of a Mayor, 6 aldermen and 18 councillors.

Among the privileges claimed by the abbot as early as the 13th century was that of having a prison for felons taken in the soke and borough. In 1576 Bishop Scamble sold the lordship of the hundred of Nassaburgh, which is coextensive with the soke, to Queen Elizabeth I, who gave it to Lord Burghley, and from that time until the 19th century he and his descendants, marquesses of Exeter, had a separate gaol in Peterborough for prisoners arrested in the soke.

Weaving

he trades of weaving and woolcombing were carried on in Peterborough in the 14th century. The abbot formerly held four fairs, of which two, one called St Peter’s fair, granted in 1189 and later held on the second Tuesday and Wednesday in July, and the other called the Bridge fair, granted in 1439 and held on the first Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in October, still survive and were purchased by the corporation from the ecclesiastical commissioners in 1876.

Industrial revolution

One of the key points on the development of Peterborough was the decison to route the main east coast railway line through the city. As a result, Peterborough developed into an important railway hub. The railway, coupled with vast local clay deposits, enabled large scale brick making and distribution to take place. The Greater Peterborough area was the UK’s leading producer of bricks for much of the 20th century.

Modern history

Designated a “New Town” in 1968, Peterborough Development Corporation was formed in partnership with the City Council to house London’s ‘overspill’ population in new townships sited around the existing built-up area. There were to be four townships; at Bretton, Orton, Paston/Werrington and Castor. (more…)

Peterborough is a cathedral city and Unitary Authority in the East of England. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Peterborough Town Hall is located 73.7 miles (118.6 km) north from the centre of London at Charing Cross. The city is situated on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea approximately 30 miles to the north-east. The local topography is notoriously flat and low-lying, and in some places lies below sea-level. The area known as the Fens falls to the east of Peterborough.

The City of Peterborough includes the outlying settlements of Wittering and Thorney and borders Huntingdonshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, and Cambridgeshire. In 2005 the City of Peterborough had an estimated population of 165,000.The nearby suburb of Old Fletton is noted for brickmaking.

The Benedictine abbey was founded c.655. In 870 it was destroyed by the Danes, in the 10th cent. it was restored, in the 11th plundered, and in 1116 burned. The impressive cathedral, formerly the abbey church, has three large arches in the west front. It was damaged by Oliver Cromwell’s men in 1643. Noteworthy are the bishop’s palace and the remains of the ancient abbey buildings and gates. Queen Katharine of Aragon is buried there. The original name of the town was Medeshamstede.

Norwich is a buzzing creative centre with a vibrant cultural life and this is reflected at its very best at the Norfolk and Norwich festival, which takes place over 11 days every May.

Established in 1772, this festival is one of the region’s leading cultural events. It features classical music, jazz, folk, theatre, comedy, street entertainment, poetry and educational projects.

Visit the festival and discover both local and international artists delivering an eclectic mix of contemporary and traditional elements.

The 2004 Festival included performances from some of the world’s most talented and renowned artists, including Astor Piazolla’s tango masterpiece Maria de Buenos Aires.

Among the Festival’s exhibition of local talent is the Burning Shed Showcase. Based in Norwich, Burning Shed is an artist led record label that produces unique, non-mainstream music. This showcase presents festival audiences the cream of their artist roster.

The more traditional elements of the festival include exhibitions, history talks and walks, comedy and literature.

By car from London take the M11/A11; just outside Norwich take the A47 (Southern Bypass) in the direction of Swaffham; the University is signposted off at the next exit. If you are driving from the North or the Midlands, you can use the A47 via King’s Lynn, or the new A14 as far as Newmarket and then take the A11 to Norwich. UEA is situated on the outskirts of Norwich, around two annd a half miles west of the city centre, just off the Earlham Road (B1108) which is one of the main roads out of the city.

By air Norwich Airport has regular flights to and from Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Manchester and Paris and international connections to 200 cities worldwide through regular direct flights to and from Schipol Airport in Amsterdam. The easiest way to reach UEA from the airport is by taxi.

By bus and coach National Express coaches run from all major cities in Great Britain to the Surrey Street Bus Station in the city centre. Buses 25, 26 and 27 run regularly from the bus station to the university campus.

By train Norwich is less than two hours from London by train and there is an InterCity link with the Midlands, the North of England and Scotland via Peterborough. Trains run from London Liverpool Street approximately every half hour. The easiest way to reach UEA from the station is by taxi, which costs about £6.50 and takes approximately 15 minutes. There are regular buses direct to the University from the station forecourt (number 25).

The main site for UEA’s School of Nursing and Midwifery is at Hellesdon Hospital, approximately three miles away from the University campus. The Norwich Research Park, which includes the John Innes Centre; the Sainsbury Laboratory; the Institute of Food Research; and the British Sugar Technical Centre, is situated off the Watton Road, adjacent to the UEA campus.