Diana Cooper 
Magic of Unicorns 

The Dorset town of Shaftesbury is beautifully sited on a hill overlooking the Blackmore Vale, on the edge of Cranborne Chase. The town grew up around its abbey, which was founded in c. 888 by King …

Blackpool was ‘created’ from sparsely populated farmland and villages for the purpose of visitors having fun and pleasure. The development of the town over the last 170 years or so has led to a …

The Lake District is one of Britain’s most popular tourist gems, nestled at the heart of the North West. The villages and mountains have been an inspiration for writers, artists and climbers over the …

From a modest street in Altrincham of not more than sixty-one houses, at least 158 men enlisted and fought in the First World War. The bravery and in some cases sacrifices of these men was recognised …

The North Devon town of Barnstaple has a claim to being the oldest borough in England. Its location on the River Taw, from which shipping could reach the Bristol Channel, enabled it to grow as a …

Stroud is a delightful Cotswold market town built on a hillside at the convergence of five valleys. Into its rich history are woven many strands: the story of the wool trade, the arrival of canals …

Hove, west of its immediate neighbour Brighton, was a small fishing village on the Sussex coast until its development in the early nineteenth century as a fashionable seaside resort for wealthy …

Warrington is a town with a long history and a future shaped by its designation as a New Town in 1968. Over the last half century, the landscape and lives of its inhabitants have changed …

The city of Portsmouth, on the Hampshire coast, has been an important naval base for centuries and is still home to much of the Royal Navy’s fleet today. The town has grown around its dockyards, …

Lying 7 miles south-east of Manchester, the town of Stockport can trace its history back to the foundation of a castle in the area in the late twelfth century and the granting of a borough charter …