Jump to content

Reading, Berkshire

Coordinates: 51°27′15″N 0°58′23″W / 51.45417°N 0.97306°W / 51.45417; -0.97306
This is a good article. Click here for more information.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Reading, England)
"Reading, Berks" redirects here. For the city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, see Reading, Pennsylvania.

Reading
Borough of Reading
Town, borough and unitary authority
East Reading Skyline
Map of Reading
Official logo of Reading
Coat of arms of Reading Borough Council
Motto(s): 
A Deo et Regina
With God and Queen
Borough of Reading shown within Berkshire
Borough of Reading shown within Berkshire
Reading is located in England
Reading
Reading
Coordinates: 51°27′15″N 0°58′23″W / 51.45417°N 0.97306°W / 51.45417; -0.97306
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionSouth East England
Ceremonial countyBerkshire
Historic county
Admin HQReading
Settled871 or earlier
Town status1086 or earlier
Areas of the town
List
Government
 • TypeUnitary authority
 • BodyReading Borough Council
 • MPMatt Rodda (L)
Olivia Bailey (L)
Yuan Yang (L)
Elevation
200 ft (61 m)
Population
 (2022)
 • Borough
174,820
 • Rank120th (of 296) (borough)
 • Density11,210/sq mi (4,327/km2)
 • Urban
337,108
DemonymRedingensian
Ethnicity (2021)
[1]
 • Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
[1]
 • Religion
List
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
Postal code
RG
Area code0118
Grid Ref.SU713733
ONS code
  • 00MC (ONS)
  • E06000038 (GSS)
ISO 3166-2GB-RDG
NUTS 3UKJ11
Websitereading.gov.uk

Reading (/ˈrɛdɪŋ/ ⓘ RED-ing)[2] is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. Most of its built-up area lies within the Borough of Reading, although some outer suburbs are parts of neighbouring local authority areas. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers Thames and Kennet, Reading is 40 miles (64 km) east of Swindon, 28 miles (45 km) south of Oxford, 40 miles (64 km) west of London and 16 miles (26 km) north of Basingstoke.

Reading is a major commercial centre, especially for information technology and insurance.[3] It is also a regional retail centre, serving a large area of the Thames Valley with its shopping centres, including the Oracle, the Broad Street Mall, and the pedestrianised area around Broad Street. It is home to the University of Reading. Every year it hosts the Reading Festival, one of England's biggest music festivals. Reading has a professional association football team, Reading F.C., and participates in many other sports.

Reading dates from the 8th century. It was a trading and ecclesiastical centre in the Middle Ages, the site of Reading Abbey, one of the largest and richest monasteries of medieval England with royal connections, of which the 12th-century abbey gateway and significant ancient ruins remain. By 1525, Reading was the largest town in Berkshire, and tenth in England for taxable wealth. The town was seriously affected by the English Civil War, with a major siege and loss of trade, but played a pivotal role in the Glorious Revolution, whose only significant military action was fought on its streets. The 18th century saw the beginning of a major ironworks in the town and the growth of the brewing trade for which Reading was to become famous. The 19th century saw the coming of the Great Western Railway and the development of the town's brewing, baking and seed-growing businesses, and the town grew rapidly as a manufacturing centre.

History

[edit]
Main article: History of Reading, Berkshire
For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Reading, Berkshire.

Origins

[edit]
The earliest map of Reading, published in 1611 by John Speed
View of Reading from Caversham by Joseph Farington in 1793

Occupation at the site of Reading may date back to the Roman period, possibly in the form of a trading port for Calleva Atrebatum.[4] However, the first clear evidence for Reading as a settlement dates from the 8th century, when the town came to be known as Readingas. The name probably comes from the Readingas, an Anglo-Saxon tribe whose name means Reada's People in Old English[5] (the Anglo-Saxons often had the same name for a place and its inhabitants). In late 870, an army of Danes invaded the kingdom of Wessex and set up camp at Reading. On 4 January 871, in the first Battle of Reading, King Ethelred and his brother Alfred the Great attempted unsuccessfully to breach the Danes' defences. The battle is described in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and that account provides the earliest known written record of the existence of Reading. The Danes remained in Reading until late in 871, when they retreated to their winter quarters in London.[6][7]

After the Battle of Hastings and the Norman conquest of England, William the Conqueror gave land in and around Reading to his foundation of Battle Abbey. In its 1086 Domesday Book listing, the town was explicitly described as a borough. The presence of six mills is recorded: four on land belonging to the king and two on the land given to Battle Abbey.[7] Reading Abbey was founded in 1121 by Henry I, who is buried within the Abbey grounds. As part of his endowments, he gave the abbey his lands in Reading, along with land at Cholsey.[7][8]

The town grew around a crossing of the River Kennet, about 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream from its confluence with the River Thames. In 1312, King Edward II directed that its bridges should be kept in good order.[9] It is not known how badly Reading was affected by the Black Death that swept through England in the 14th century, but it is known that the abbot, Henry of Appleford, was one of its victims in 1361, and that nearby Henley lost 60% of its population.[10] The Abbey was largely destroyed in 1538 during Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries. The last abbot, Hugh Faringdon, was subsequently tried and convicted of high treason and hanged, drawn and quartered in front of the Abbey Church.[11][12]

By 1525, Reading was the largest town in Berkshire and the tenth largest town in England when measured by taxable wealth reported in tax returns. By 1611, it had a population of over 5,000 and had grown rich on its trade in cloth, as instanced by the fortune made by local merchant John Kendrick.[10][13] Reading played a role during the English Civil War. Despite its fortifications, it had a Royalist garrison imposed on it in 1642. The subsequent Siege of Reading by Parliamentary forces succeeded in April 1643.[14] The town's cloth trade was especially badly damaged, and the town's economy did not fully recover until the 20th century.[7][15] Reading played a significant role during the Glorious Revolution: the second Battle of Reading was the only substantial military action of the campaign.[7][16]

The 18th century saw the beginning of a major iron works in the town and the growth of the brewing trade for which Reading was to become famous.[17] Reading's trade benefited from better designed turnpike roads which helped it establish its location on the major coaching routes from London to Oxford and the West Country. In 1723, despite considerable local opposition, the Kennet Navigation opened the River Kennet to boats as far as Newbury. Opposition stopped when it became apparent that the new route benefited the town. After the opening of the Kennet and Avon Canal in 1810, one could go by barge from Reading to the Bristol Channel.[18] From 1714, and probably earlier, the role of county town of Berkshire was shared between Reading and Abingdon.[19][20] In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it was one of the southern termini of the Hatfield and Reading Turnpike that allowed travellers from the north to continue their journey to the west without going through the congestion of London.

During the 19th century, the town grew rapidly as a manufacturing centre. The Great Western Railway arrived in 1841,[21] followed by the South Eastern Railway in 1849 and the London and South Western Railway in 1856.[22][23] The Summer Assizes were moved from Abingdon to Reading in 1867, effectively making Reading the sole county town of Berkshire, a decision that was officially approved by the privy council in 1869.[19] The town became county borough under the Local Government Act 1888.[24][25] In the 19th and 20th centuries, the town's three largest industries were known as the Three Bs: beer (1785–2010, H & G Simonds),[26][27] bulbs (1837–1974, Suttons Seeds),[26][28] and biscuits (1822–1976, Huntley and Palmers).[26][29][30]

20th century

[edit]

The town continued to expand in the 20th century, annexing Caversham across the River Thames in Oxfordshire in 1911, as well as most of Tilehurst to the west at the same time. Compared to many other English towns and cities, Reading suffered little physical damage during either of the two world wars that afflicted the 20th century, although many citizens were killed or injured in the conflicts. One significant air raid occurred on 10 February 1943, when a single Luftwaffe plane machine-gunned and bombed the town centre, resulting in 41 deaths and over 100 injuries.[31]

The Lower Earley development, begun in 1977, was one of the largest private housing developments in Europe.[32][33] It extended the urban area of Reading as far as the M4 Motorway. Further housing developments have increased the number of modern houses and hypermarkets in the outskirts of Reading. A major town-centre shopping centre, The Oracle, opened in 1999, is named after the 17th-century Oracle workhouse, which once occupied a small part of the site. It provides three storeys of shopping space and boosted the local economy by providing 4,000 jobs.[34][35]

21st century

[edit]

As one of the largest urban areas in the United Kingdom without city status, Reading has unsuccessfully bid for city status four times – in 2000 to celebrate the new millennium; in 2002 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II; in 2012 for the Diamond Jubilee;[36][37][38][39] and in 2022 to mark the Platinum Jubilee.[40][41]

Governance

[edit]

Local government for the borough is provided by Reading Borough Council, which has been a unitary authority providing all local government functions since 1998. There are no civil parishes in the borough. Some of the built-up area's outer suburbs are outside the borough boundaries in West Berkshire and Wokingham. These outer suburbs belong to civil parishes, in some cases with their own town status.[42]

Reading has elected at least one Member of Parliament to every Parliament since 1295.[43] Since the 2024 general election, the borough of Reading has been divided between the parliamentary constituencies of Reading Central, Reading West and Mid Berkshire (which also covers part of West Berkshire), and Earley and Woodley (which also covers part of the borough of Wokingham).[42]

Reading is the site of venues for both the Crown Court,[44] administering criminal justice, and the County Court,[45] responsible for civil cases. Lesser matters are dealt with in a local magistrates' court.[46]

Administrative history

[edit]
The Abbey Gateway

Reading was an ancient borough, being described as a borough by the time of the Domesday Book in 1086. The borough was initially controlled by Reading Abbey as its manorial owner. The town gradually gained a degree of independence from the abbey from the 13th century onwards, particularly after the town's merchant guild was granted a royal charter in 1253. Following the dissolution of the abbey in 1538 the borough was granted a new charter in 1542.[7] The borough boundaries were then set out in a subsequent charter from Elizabeth I in 1560. The borough covered the whole of the parish of St Laurence and parts of the parishes of St Giles and St Mary. The part of St Giles' parish outside the borough was known as the hamlet of Whitley, and the part of St Mary's parish outside the borough was known as the tithing of Southcote.[47]

The borough was reformed in 1836 to become a municipal borough under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country.[48] The borough boundaries, which had not been changed since 1560, were enlarged in 1887 to take in Southcote, Whitley, the north-western parts of Earley, and the eastern end of the parish of Tilehurst.[49][50] When elected county councils were established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, Reading was considered large enough for its existing borough council to provide county-level services, and so Reading was made a county borough, independent from Berkshire County Council.[48]

The borough boundaries were enlarged again in 1911 to take in Caversham on the north bank of the Thames from Oxfordshire (except the Caversham Park area, which was transferred to the parish of Eye and Dunsden), and most of the parish of Tilehurst (including the main village at Tilehurst Triangle and the area around the parish church at Churchend) to the west.[51]

Local government was reformed in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, which saw Reading redesignated as a non-metropolitan district, with Berkshire County Council providing county-level services in the borough for the first time. Ahead of those reforms, the borough council campaigned to have Reading's boundaries enlarged to take in Earley, Woodley, Purley on Thames, the residual Tilehurst parish (covering the parts of Tilehurst which had not been transferred into the borough in 1911), and the eastern part of the parish of Theale.[52] The government decided to make no change to Reading's boundaries, leaving them as they had been since last reviewed in 1911.[53] Shortly after the 1974 reforms came into effect, a more limited review of the borough's boundaries north of the Thames was carried out, which saw the Caversham Park area and part of the parish of Mapledurham on the western side of Caversham transferred into the borough of Reading in 1977.[54]

The borough council became a unitary authority in 1998, when the county council was abolished under the Banham Review, which saw the borough council take over county-level functions, effectively restoring the council to the powers it had held when Reading was a county borough prior to 1974.[55] As part of those reforms, the Local Government Commission had initially recommended expanding Reading's boundaries to include Earley, Tilehurst parish, Purley on Thames and the parts of the parishes of Shinfield, Burghfield and Theale north of the M4 motorway, but it was ultimately decided to leave Reading's boundaries unchanged.[56]

Reading's boundaries south of the Thames therefore have not changed since 1911, despite the urban area having now expanded well beyond the borough boundaries. Cross-boundary working between the borough council and the neighbouring councils which cover the suburban and adjoining rural areas is sometimes criticised, particularly over matters such as transport and school catchment areas.[57][58][59]

The former hospitium
Reading Town Hall

Prior to the 16th century, civic administration for the town of Reading was situated in the Yield Hall, a guild hall situated by the River Kennet near today's Yield Hall Lane.[60] After a brief stay in what later became Greyfriars Church, the town council created a new town hall by inserting an upper floor into the refectory of the Hospitium of St John, the former hospitium of Reading Abbey.[60] For some 400 years up to the 1970s, this was to remain the site of Reading's civic administration through the successive rebuilds that eventually created today's Town Hall.[61] In 1976, Reading Borough Council moved to the new Civic Centre.[62] In 2014, they moved again to civic offices in a refurbished existing office building on Bridge Street, in order to facilitate the demolition and redevelopment of the previous site.[63]

Geography

[edit]
Broad Street

Reading is 42 miles (68 km) north of the English south coast. The centre of Reading is on a low ridge between the River Thames and River Kennet, close to their confluence, reflecting the town's history as a river port. Just above the confluence, the Kennet cuts through a narrow steep-sided gap in the hills forming the southern flank of the Thames flood plain. The Kennet, which naturally divided into multiple shallow streams through the centre of Reading, was embanked as part of the construction of the Kennet and Avon Canal in the 18th century, allowing the development of wharves. The floodplains adjoining Reading's two rivers are subject to occasional flooding.[64][65]

class=notpageimage|
Location of suburbs of Reading

As Reading has grown, its suburbs have spread: to the west between the two rivers into the foothills of the Berkshire Downs as far as Calcot, Tilehurst and Purley; to the south and south-east on the south side of the River Kennet as far as Whitley Wood and Lower Earley and as far north of the Thames into the Chiltern Hills as far as Caversham Heights, Emmer Green and Caversham Park Village. Outside the central area, the floors of the valleys containing the two rivers remain largely unimproved floodplain. Apart from the M4 curving to the south there is only one road across the Kennet flood plain. All other routes between the three built-up areas are in the central area.[66]

Climate

[edit]

Like the rest of the United Kingdom, Reading has a maritime climate, with limited seasonal temperature ranges and generally moderate rainfall throughout the year. The nearest official Met Office weather station is located at the Reading University Atmospheric Observatory on the Whiteknights Campus, which has recorded atmospheric measurements and meteorological observations since 1970.[67] The local absolute maximum temperature of 37.6 °C (99.7 °F) was recorded on 19 July 2022 and the local absolute minimum temperature of −14.5 °C (5.9 °F) was recorded in January 1982.

Climate data for Reading University, elevation: 62 m (203 ft), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1959–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 15.5
(59.9) 		19.6
(67.3) 		22.8
(73.0) 		26.9
(80.4) 		28.5
(83.3) 		34.0
(93.2) 		37.6
(99.7) 		36.4
(97.5) 		29.6
(85.3) 		27.8
(82.0) 		18.1
(64.6) 		15.8
(60.4) 		37.6
(99.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 8.0
(46.4) 		8.5
(47.3) 		11.2
(52.2) 		14.2
(57.6) 		17.4
(63.3) 		20.4
(68.7) 		22.7
(72.9) 		22.3
(72.1) 		19.3
(66.7) 		15.1
(59.2) 		11.0
(51.8) 		8.4
(47.1) 		14.9
(58.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) 5.1
(41.2) 		5.4
(41.7) 		7.4
(45.3) 		9.7
(49.5) 		12.7
(54.9) 		15.6
(60.1) 		17.8
(64.0) 		17.5
(63.5) 		14.8
(58.6) 		11.5
(52.7) 		7.8
(46.0) 		5.4
(41.7) 		10.9
(51.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.1
(35.8) 		2.2
(36.0) 		3.5
(38.3) 		5.1
(41.2) 		8.0
(46.4) 		10.8
(51.4) 		12.9
(55.2) 		12.7
(54.9) 		10.4
(50.7) 		7.9
(46.2) 		4.7
(40.5) 		2.5
(36.5) 		6.9
(44.4)
Record low °C (°F) −14.5
(5.9) 		−11.6
(11.1) 		−7.2
(19.0) 		−3.5
(25.7) 		−2.0
(28.4) 		1.5
(34.7) 		4.9
(40.8) 		3.4
(38.1) 		0.6
(33.1) 		−4.4
(24.1) 		−8.3
(17.1) 		−13.4
(7.9) 		−14.5
(5.9)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 65.2
(2.57) 		45.6
(1.80) 		40.3
(1.59) 		48.7
(1.92) 		43.5
(1.71) 		47.2
(1.86) 		48.9
(1.93) 		56.9
(2.24) 		49.7
(1.96) 		73.8
(2.91) 		73.1
(2.88) 		65.4
(2.57) 		658.2
(25.91)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 11.8 9.7 8.6 9.3 8.1 7.7 8.1 8.5 8.2 10.6 11.8 11.5 113.9
Mean monthly sunshine hours 55.6 76.5 119.7 170.2 199.9 199.0 205.5 190.5 145.3 106.6 60.2 48.5 1,577.5
Average ultraviolet index 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 4 4 3 2 2 3
Source 1: Met Office[68] WeatherAtlas[69]
Source 2: Starlings Roost[70][71]
Reading
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
61
 
 
8
2
 
 
41
 
 
8
2
 
 
45
 
 
11
3
 
 
48
 
 
14
5
 
 
46
 
 
17
8
 
 
45
 
 
20
11
 
 
46
 
 
22
13
 
 
52
 
 
22
13
 
 
50
 
 
19
10
 
 
72
 
 
15
8
 
 
66
 
 
11
4
 
 
63
 
 
8
2
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
█ Precipitation totals in mm
Imperial conversion
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
2.4
 
 
46
35
 
 
1.6
 
 
46
35
 
 
1.8
 
 
51
38
 
 
1.9
 
 
56
40
 
 
1.8
 
 
63
46
 
 
1.8
 
 
68
51
 
 
1.8
 
 
72
55
 
 
2.1
 
 
72
55
 
 
2
 
 
66
51
 
 
2.8
 
 
59
46
 
 
2.6
 
 
51
40
 
 
2.5
 
 
46
36
█ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
█ Precipitation totals in inches

Demography

[edit]
Population pyramid of Reading in 2021
Borough of Reading population growth rate from 1801 to 2011

In mid-2018, the area covered by the Borough of Reading had 174,820 inhabitants and a population density of 4,327 per square kilometre (11,207/sq mi).[72] Meanwhile, the wider urban area had a population of 318,014 in the 2011 census, ranking 23rd in the United Kingdom.[73] This grew to an estimated 337,108 by mid-2018.[74] According to the 2011 census, 74.8% of the borough's population were described as White (65.3% White British), 9.1% as South Asian, 6.7% as Black, 3.9% Mixed, 4.5% as Chinese and 0.9% as other ethnic group.[75] In 2010, it was reported that Reading had 150 different spoken languages within its population.[76][77] Reading has a large Polish community, which dates back over 30 years,[78] and in October 2006 the Reading Chronicle printed 5,000 copies of a Polish edition called the Kronika Reading.[79][80][81]

Ethnicity

[edit]
Ethnic Group Year
1971 estimations[82] 1981 estimations[83] 1991[84] 2001[85] 2011[86] 2021[87]
Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number %
White: Total 123,700 94.9% 119,084 92.3% 116,652 90.5% 124,240 86.8% 116,387 74.7% 116,886 67.2%
White: British – – – – – – 115,363 80.6% 101,725 65.3% 93,167 53.5%
White: Irish – – – – – – 2,866 2% 2,269 1.5% 2,040 1.2%
White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller – – – – – – – – 90 – 107 0.1%
White: Roma – – – – – – – – – – 573 0.3%
White: Other – – – – – – 6,011 4.2% 12,303 7.9% 20,999 12.1%
Asian or Asian British: Total – – – – 5,920 4.6% 8,478 5.9% 21,161 13.6% 30,841 17.7%
Asian or Asian British: Indian – – – – 1,748 1.4% 2,425 1.7% 6,514 4.2% 10,777 6.2%
Asian or Asian British: Pakistani – – – – 2,771 2.2% 3,828 2.7% 6,967 4.5% 8,279 4.8%
Asian or Asian British: Bangladeshi – – – – 214 0.2% 359 0.3% 695 0.4% 1,132 0.6%
Asian or Asian British: Chinese – – – – 497 0.4% 1,030 0.7% 1,603 1.0% 2,694 1.5%
Asian or Asian British: Other Asian – – – – 690 0.5% 836 0.6% 5,382 3.5% 7,959 4.6%
Black or Black British: Total – – – – 5,196 4% 5,931 4.1% 10,470 6.7% 12,532 7.2%
Black or Black British: African – – – – 764 0.6% 2,222 1.6% 6,087 3.9% 7,665 4.4%
Black or Black British: Caribbean – – – – 3416 2.7% 3,181 2.2% 3,279 2.1% 3,293 1.9%
Black or Black British: Other Black – – – – 1016 0.8% 528 0.4% 1,104 0.7% 1,574 0.9%
Mixed or British Mixed: Total – – – – – – 3,399 2.4% 6,180 4% 8,962 5.1%
Mixed: White and Black Caribbean – – – – – – 1,677 1.2% 2,718 1.7% 3,555 2.0%
Mixed: White and Black African – – – – – – 317 0.2% 802 0.5% 1,249 0.7%
Mixed: White and Asian – – – – – – 734 0.5% 1,428 0.9% 2,117 1.2%
Mixed: Other Mixed – – – – – – 671 0.5% 1,232 0.8% 2,041 1.2%
Other: Total – – – – 1,109 0.9% 1,048 0.7% 1,500 1% 5,002 2.8%
Other: Arab – – – – – – – – 680 0.4% 1,282 0.7%
Other: Any other ethnic group – – – – 1,109 0.9% 1,048 0.7% 820 0.6% 3,720 2.1%
Ethnic minority: Total 6,586 5.1% 9,980 7.7% 12,225 9.5% 18,856 13.2% 39,311 25.3% 57,337 32.8%
Total 130,286 100% 129,064 100% 128,877 100% 143,096 100% 155,698 100% 174,223 100%

Religion

[edit]
Religion 2001[88] 2011[89] 2021[90]
Number % Number % Number %
Christian 89,618 62.6 77,848 50.0 68,987 39.6
Buddhist 688 0.5 1,876 1.2 2,887 1.7
Hindu 1,417 1.0 5,661 3.6 8,757 5.0
Jewish 415 0.3 355 0.2 329 0.2
Muslim 5,730 4.0 11,007 7.1 15,481 8.9
Sikh 781 0.5 947 0.6 1,194 0.7
Other religion 518 0.4 701 0.5 1,241 0.7
No religion 31,486 22.0 45,931 29.5 63,287 36.3
Religion not stated 12,443 8.7 11,372 7.3 12,062 6.9
Total population 143,096 100.0 155,698 100.0 174,226 100.00

Economy

[edit]
Main article: Economy of Reading, Berkshire
Reading International Business Park. This crescent of offices beside the A33 is home to Verizon, a telecommunications company, and was formerly the European headquarters of WorldCom before its demise
The front of the store on Broad Street
The central lake makes a virtue of the necessity of flood alleviation measures
Green Park wind turbine viewed from Lime Square

Reading is a commercial centre in the Thames Valley and Southern England. The town hosts the headquarters of several British companies and the United Kingdom offices of foreign multinationals, as well as being a major retail centre.[91] Whilst located close enough to London to be sometimes regarded as part of the London commuter belt, Reading is a net inward destination for commuters. During the morning peak period, there are some 30,000 inward arrivals in the town, compared to 24,000 departures.[92] Major companies Microsoft, Oracle[93] and Hibu (formerly Yell Group)[94] have their headquarters in Reading. The insurance company Prudential has an administration centre in the town.[95] PepsiCo[96] and Wrigley[96] have offices.

Global pharmaceutical giant Bayer Life Sciences relocated to Reading's Green Park Business Park in 2016.[97] Reading has a significant historical involvement in the information technology industry, largely as a result of the early presence in the town of sites of International Computers Limited[98] and Digital Equipment Corporation.[99] Other technology companies with a significant presence in the town include Huawei Technologies, Pegasystems, Access IS, CGI Inc., Agilent Technologies,[100] Cisco,[101] Ericsson,[102] Symantec,[101] Verizon Business,[103] and Commvault.[104] These companies are distributed around Reading or just outside the borough boundary, some in business parks including Thames Valley Park in nearby Earley, Green Park Business Park and Arlington Business Park.

Reading town centre is a major shopping centre. In 2007, an independent poll placed Reading 16th in a league table of best performing retail centres in the United Kingdom.[105][106] The main shopping street is Broad Street, which runs between The Oracle in the east and Broad Street Mall in the west and was pedestrianised in 1995.[107] The smaller Friars Walk in Friar Street is closed and will be demolished if the proposed Station Hill redevelopment project goes ahead.[108] There are three major department stores in Reading: John Lewis & Partners (known as Heelas until 2001),[109] Debenhams (now closed down), and House of Fraser.[110] The Broad Street branch of bookseller Waterstone's is a conversion of a nonconformist chapel dating from 1707.[111] Besides the two major shopping malls, Reading has three smaller shopping arcades, the Bristol and West Arcade, Harris Arcade and The Walk, which contain smaller specialist stores. An older form of retail facility is represented by Union Street, popularly known as Smelly Alley.[112][113] Reading has no indoor market, but there is a street market in Hosier Street.[114] A farmers' market operates on two Saturdays a month.[115] The old Victorian Corn Exchange now provides an alternative access to a shopping centre.[116]

Culture

[edit]
Aerial view of Reading Festival 2007
The Abbey Gateway, where Jane Austen went to school
The Maiwand Lion in Forbury Gardens

Every year Reading hosts the Reading Festival, which has been running since 1971.[117][118] The festival takes place on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend and is the largest of its kind in the United Kingdom aside from the Glastonbury Festival. Reading Festival takes place at Little Johns Farm in Reading, Richfield Avenue.[119] For some twenty years until 2006, Reading was also known for its WOMAD Festival until it moved to Charlton Park in Malmesbury, Wiltshire.[120][121] The Reading Beer Festival was first held in 1994[122] and has now grown to one of the largest beer festivals in the United Kingdom. It is held at King's Meadow for the five days immediately preceding the May Day bank holiday every year.[123] Reading also holds Reading Pride, an annual LGBT festival in Kings Meadow.

The Frank Matcham-designed Royal County Theatre, built in 1895, was located on the south side of Friar Street. It burned down in 1937.[124] Within the town hall is a 700-seat concert hall that houses a Father Willis organ.[125] Reading theatre venues include The Hexagon and South Street Arts Centre.[126][127] Reading Repertory Theatre is based at Reading College: its Royal Patron is Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh.[128] Amateur theatre venues in Reading include Progress Theatre,[129] a self-governing, self-funding theatre group and registered charity founded in 1947 that operates and maintains its own 97-seat theatre.[130] Rabble Theatre[131] in Caversham and Reading Rep[132] on London Road offer classic and contemporary performances. Jelly[133] is an artist-led organisation that has been committed to improving access to the arts since 1993. The demonym for a person from Reading is Redingensian,[134] giving the name of the local rugby team Redingensians, based in Sonning, and of former members of Reading School.[135]

Cultural references

[edit]

Jane Austen attended Reading Ladies Boarding School, based in the Abbey Gateway, in 1784–1786.[136] Mary Russell Mitford lived in Reading for a number of years and then spent the rest of her life just outside the town at Three Mile Cross and Swallowfield.[137] The fictional Belford Regis of her eponymous novel,[138] first published in 1835, is largely based on Reading. Described with topographical accuracy, it is still possible to follow the steps of the novel's characters in present-day Reading. Reading also appears in the works of Thomas Hardy where it is called 'Aldbrickham'.[139] It features most heavily in his final novel, Jude the Obscure, as the temporary home of Jude Fawley and Sue Bridehead.

Oscar Wilde was imprisoned in Reading Gaol from 1895 to 1897. While there, he wrote his letter De Profundis. After his release, he lived in exile in France and wrote The Ballad of Reading Gaol, based on his experience of the execution of Charles Wooldridge, carried out in Reading Gaol whilst he was imprisoned there.[140][141] In March 2021, street artist Banksy claimed responsibility for a painting on the wall of the jail. It depicted an inmate escaping with bedsheets and a typewriter, said to resemble Oscar Wilde.[142]

Reading was the location of the world's first commercial studio for photograph printing, which was set up by William Henry Fox Talbot in 1844.[143]

Ricky Gervais, who is from Reading, made the film Cemetery Junction, which, although filmed elsewhere in the United Kingdom, is set in 1970s Reading and is named after a busy junction in East Reading.[144][145][146] Jasper Fforde's Nursery Crimes Division novels, The Big Over Easy and The Fourth Bear, are also placed in Reading. The BBC Two sitcom Beautiful People, based on the memoirs of Simon Doonan, is set in Reading in the late 1990s.

Further information: Heavenly Planet

Landmarks

[edit]

The Maiwand Lion in Forbury Gardens, an unofficial symbol of Reading, commemorates the 328 officers of the Royal Berkshire Regiment who died in the Battle of Maiwand in 1880.[50][147] There are a number of other works of public art in Reading. The Blade, a fourteen-storey building completed in 2009, is 86 m (282 ft) tall and can be seen from the surrounding area.[148] Jacksons Corner with its prominent sign, former home[149] of Jacksons department store, occupies the corner of Kings Road and High Street, just south of the Market Place. Reading has six Grade I listed buildings, 22 Grade II* and 853 Grade II buildings, in a wide variety of architectural styles that range from the medieval to the 21st century. The Grade I listed buildings are Reading Abbey, the Abbey Gateway, Greyfriars Church, St Laurence's Church, Reading Minster, and the barn at Chazey Farmhouse on the Warren.[150][151]

Media

[edit]

Reading has a local newspaper, the Reading Chronicle, published on Thursdays. The town's other local newspaper, the Reading Post, ceased publication on paper in December 2014, in order to transition to an online only format under the title getreading. As of 2018, getreading joined the InYourArea local news network.[152] A local publishing company, the Two Rivers Press, has published over 70 book titles, many on the topic of local history and art.[153][154] Three local radio stations broadcast from Reading: BBC Radio Berkshire, Heart South and Greatest Hits Radio Berkshire and North Hampshire. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC South and ITV Meridian, BBC London & ITV London can also be received. Reading has one local television station, That's Thames Valley, which broadcasts local news throughout the Greater Reading area.

Public services

[edit]
The Royal Berkshire Hospital original frontage, built in 1839 with bath stone[155]

Parks and open spaces

[edit]

Reading has over 100 parks and playgrounds, including 5 miles (8 km) of riverside paths. In the town centre is Forbury Gardens, a public park built on the site of the outer court of Reading Abbey. The largest public park in Reading is Prospect Park, an estate in west Reading previously owned by Frances Kendrick but acquired by Reading Corporation in 1901. This is complemented by Palmer Park, a purpose built public park in east Reading gifted to the town by the proprietors of Huntley & Palmers in 1889.[156][157][158]

A string of open spaces stretch along one or other side of the River Thames throughout its passage through Reading. From west to east these are Thameside Promenade, Caversham Court, Christchurch Meadows, Hills Meadow, View Island and King's Meadow. Reading also has five local nature reserves: Clayfield Copse in Caversham, with the other four McIlroy Park, Blundells Copse, Lousehill Copse and Round Copse all in Tilehurst[159][160][161]

Healthcare

[edit]

The principal National Health Service (NHS) hospital in Reading is the Royal Berkshire Hospital, founded in 1839 and much enlarged and rebuilt since.[162] A second major NHS general hospital, the Battle Hospital, closed in 2005.[163] Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust runs a NHS hospital, Prospect Park Hospital, which specialises in the provision of care for people with mental health and learning disabilities.[164] Reading has three private hospitals: the Berkshire Independent Hospital in Coley Park, the Dunedin Hospital situated on the main A4 Bath Road, and the Circle Hospital at Kennet Island.[165][166][167]

Utilities

[edit]

Mains water and sewerage services are provided by Thames Water Utilities Limited, a private sector water supply company, whilst water abstraction and disposal is regulated by the Environment Agency. Reading's water supply is largely derived from underground aquifers, and as a consequence the water is hard.[168][169][170]

The commercial energy supplier for electricity and gas is at the consumer's choice. SSEN runs the local electricity distribution network, while SGN runs the gas distribution network. A notable part of the local energy infrastructure is the presence of a 2 megawatt (peak) Enercon wind turbine at Green Park Business Park, with the potential to produce 2.7 million kWh of electricity a year, enough to power over a thousand homes.[171] Additionally, Reading Hydro runs a micro hydroelectric power station on the Thames. Reading had its own power station in Vastern Road from 1895 to the 1960s. The power station was initially owned and operated by the Reading Electric Supply Company Limited, then from 1933 by the Reading Corporation until the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948.[172]

The dialling code for fixed-line telephones in Reading is 0118. BT provides fixed-line telephone coverage throughout the town and ADSL broadband internet connection to most areas. Parts of Reading are cabled by Virgin Media, supplying cable television, telephone and broadband internet connections. Hyperoptic also has a presence in the town, supplying Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband internet connections at speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s.[173]

Education

[edit]
See also: List of schools in Reading
Part of the University of Reading's main Whiteknights Campus
The Museum of English Rural Life's rear garden, with the original East Thorpe House in the centre

Reading School (a state grammar school), founded in 1125,[135] is the 16th oldest school in England.[174] There are six other state secondary schools and 38 state primary schools within the borough, together with a number of private schools and nurseries.[175] Alfred Sutton Boys' School closed in the mid-1980s.[176] Reading College has provided further education in Reading since 1955, with over 8,500 local learners on over 900 courses.[177] English language schools in Reading include Gateway Languages, the English Language Centre, ELC London Street and Eurospeak Language School.

The University of Reading was established in 1892 as an affiliate of Oxford University.[178] It moved to its London Road Campus in 1904 and to its new Whiteknights Campus in 1947. It took over the Bulmershe College of Higher Education, a teacher training college, in 1989, becoming Bulmershe Court Campus. The Henley Management College, situated in Buckinghamshire and about 10 miles (16 km) from Reading, was taken over in 2008, becoming Greenlands Campus.[179] The University of West London maintains a presence in the town for its higher education students, principally in nursing, but has now divested itself of its previous ownership of Reading College and its further education students.[180]

Libraries and museums

[edit]

The Reading Borough Libraries service dates back to 1877.[50] Initially housed in Reading Town Hall, the central branch of the library was relocated to a new building on King's Road in 1985.[181]

The Reading Museum[182] opened in 1883 in the town's municipal buildings.[50] It contains galleries relating to the history of Reading and to the excavations of Calleva Atrebatum,[183] together with a full-size bowdlerised replica of the Bayeux Tapestry, an art collection, and galleries relating to Huntley and Palmers.[184] The Museum of English Rural Life, in East Reading, is a museum dedicated to recording the changing face of farming and the countryside in England. It houses designated collections of national importance. It is owned and run by the University of Reading, as are the Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology, the Cole Museum of Zoology and the Harris Botanic Gardens, all of which can be found on the university's Whiteknights Campus.[185][186][187] The small Riverside Museum at Blake's Lock tells the story of Reading's two rivers. The Museum of Berkshire Aviation has a collection of aircraft and other artefacts relating to the aircraft industry in the town.[188][189]

Transport

[edit]
Main article: Transport in Reading, Berkshire
The River Thames from Caversham Bridge looking eastwards
Aerial view of Reading station in October 2023
A Great Western Railway Class 800 with a service to London

Reading's location in the Thames Valley to the west of London has made the town a significant element in the nation's transport system.

River

[edit]

The town grew up as a river port at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Kennet. Both of these rivers are navigable, and Caversham Lock, Blake's Lock, County Lock, Fobney Lock and Southcote Lock are all within the borough. Today, navigation is predominantly for purposes of leisure: private and hire boats dominate traffic, while scheduled boat services operate on the Thames from wharves on the Reading side of the river near Caversham Bridge.[190][191]

Road

[edit]

Reading was a major staging point on the old Bath Road (A4) from London to Avonmouth near Bristol. This road still carries local traffic, but has now been replaced for long-distance traffic by the M4 motorway, which closely skirts the borough and serves it with three junctions, J10-J12. Other main roads serving Reading include the A33, A327, A329, A4074 and A4155. Within Reading there is the Inner Distribution Road (IDR), a ring road for local traffic. The IDR is linked with the M4 by the A33 relief road. The Thames is crossed by both Reading and Caversham road bridges, while several road bridges cross the Kennet, the oldest surviving one of which is High Bridge.[192]

Reading has two operational park and ride sites. Mereoak, a short distance south of Junction 11 of the M4, is also a stop for National Express Coaches between London and the West.[193] A site outside the Winnersh Triangle railway station opened in 2015 and is easily accessed from the junction where the A329(M) becomes the A3290.[194]

Rail

[edit]

Reading is a major junction point of the National Rail system, and hence Reading station is a transfer point and terminus. In a project that finished in 2015, Reading station was redeveloped at a cost of £850m, with grade separation of some conflicting traffic flows, and extra platforms, to relieve severe congestion at this station.[195][196] Railway lines link Reading to both Paddington and Waterloo stations in London. Other stations in the Reading area are Reading West, Reading Green Park, Tilehurst and Earley.

Reading is a western terminus of the Elizabeth line, which provides stopping services to London Paddington, and means Reading is featured on the London Tube map. Cross-London connections are possible from Reading to Abbey Wood and Shenfield in the east.[197]

Air

[edit]

There have been two airfields in or near Reading, one at Coley Park[198] and one at Woodley,[199] but they have both closed. The nearest international airport is London Heathrow, 20 miles (32 km) away. An express bus service named RailAir links Reading with Heathrow,[200] or the airport can be accessed by rail by taking the Elizabeth line to Hayes & Harlington and changing for a connecting service to Heathrow. This journey takes around 45 minutes by rail.[201] London City Airport can be reached via a direct train to Custom House on the Elizabeth line followed by a short bus connection. Gatwick Airport can be accessed accessed via a direct local train operating via Guildford, and Luton and Stansted airports can be accessed with one change in Central London. Further afield, Southampton Airport can be accessed directly by rail in around 50-70 minutes depending on the service, or reached by road in approximately the same timeframe.

Public transport

[edit]

Today local public transport is largely by road, which is often affected by peak hour congestion in the borough. A frequent local bus network within the borough, and a less frequent network in the surrounding area, are provided by Reading Buses - one of the few remaining municipal bus companies in the country - and its subsidiaries Newbury & District and Thames Valley Buses. Other bus operators serving Reading include Carousel Buses, Thames Travel and RedRose.[202] ReadiBus provides an on-demand transport service for people with restricted mobility in the area.[203]


Bike sharing

[edit]

In March 2011, Reading Borough Council approved a bike sharing scheme similar to London Cycle Hire Scheme, with 1,000 bicycles available at up to 150 docking stations across Reading. However this scheme came to an end in March 2019, with the operator unable to cover the operational costs or find a sponsor to do so.[204][205][206]

Religion

[edit]
St Mary's Church tower, chequered with flint and ashlar[207]
The interior of the ruined chapter house

Reading Minster (the Minster Church of St Mary the Virgin) is Reading's oldest ecclesiastical foundation, known to have been founded by the 9th century and possibly earlier.[208] Although eclipsed in importance by the later abbey, Reading Minster has regained its importance since the destruction of the abbey. Reading Abbey was founded by Henry I in 1121. He was buried there, as were parts of his daughter Empress Matilda, William of Poitiers, Constance of York, and Princess Isabella of Cornwall, among others.[7][8] The abbey was one of the pilgrimage centres of medieval England; it held over 230 relics including the hand of St. James. Today all that remains of the abbey are the inner rubble cores of the walls of many of the major buildings of the abbey, together with a much restored inner gateway and the intact hospitium.[209][210]

The medieval borough of Reading was served by three parish churches: Reading Minster, St Giles' Church, and St Laurence's Church. All are still in use by the Church of England.[211] The Franciscan friars built a friary in the town in 1311. After the friars were expelled in 1538, the building was used as a hospital, a poorhouse, and a jail, before being restored as the Church of England parish church of Greyfriars Church in 1863.[212][213] The Bishop of Reading is a suffragan bishop within the Church of England's Diocese of Oxford. The bishop is based in Reading, and is responsible for the archdeaconry of Berkshire. There are a total of 18 Church of England parish churches in Reading.[214][215]

St James's Church was built on a portion of the site of the abbey between 1837 and 1840, and marked the return of the Roman Catholic faith to Reading. Reading was also the site of the death of Blessed Dominic Barberi, the Catholic missionary to England in the 19th century who received John Henry Newman into the Catholic faith. There are now eight Roman Catholic parish churches in Reading.[216][217][218] Kings Road Baptist Church was founded in Reading in 1640 or 1641.[219] In addition to Catholicism and the Church of England, the Seventh-Day Adventist denomination is also represented in the town, particularly by Reading West SDA Church on Loverock Road, Reading Central SDA Church on Tilehurst Road, and various other churches around Reading.[220][221]

Reading has had an organised Jewish community since 1886. At least one Jewish family living in the area has been traced back as far as 1842. The group grew to 13 families, who in 1886 declared themselves a community and commenced building a synagogue. On 31 October 1900, Reading Hebrew Congregation[222] officially opened in a solemn public ceremony, packed to capacity with dignitaries, led by the Chief Rabbi Hermann Adler. Reading Hebrew Congregation, which still stands on its original site at the junction of Goldsmid Road and Clifton Street near the town centre, is a Grade II-listed building, built to a traditional design in the Moorish style. The community is affiliated with the Orthodox United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth.[222] Reading also has a Liberal Jewish community which convenes in the Reading Quaker Meeting House,[223] a Modern Orthodox Judaism community, an active Jewish Society for students at the university, as well as being served by a Reform Jewish community which convenes in nearby Maidenhead Synagogue.[224]

There are presently three mosques in Reading, initially just having the Central Reading Mosque on Waylen Street.[225] The £3–4m Abu Bakr Islamic Centre, on Oxford Road in West Reading, was granted planning permission in 2002. The community-funded project began construction in 2007,[226] and opened its doors in July 2013 - the holy month of Ramadan for this year.[227] A second Islamic centre in eastern Reading has also been granted planning permission.[228] This £4m project has garnered some controversy.[229] Reading also has places of worship of other religions: the Shantideva Mahayana Buddhist centre,[230] a Hindu temple,[231] a Sikh gurdwara,[232] a Salvation Army citadel,[233] a Quaker meeting house,[234] and a Christadelphian Hall.[235]

Sport

[edit]
Main article: Sport in Reading, Berkshire
The Select Car Leasing Stadium, home of Reading Football Club
The Voco Reading Hotel, pictured when still known as the Millennium Madejski
The Reading Half Marathon 2004 climbing Russell Street in West Reading

Reading is the home of Reading Football Club, an association football club nicknamed The Royals, formed in 1871.[236] Formerly nicknamed 'The Biscuitmen'[237] and based at Elm Park, the club plays at the 24,161 capacity[238] Select Car Leasing Stadium, first named after chairman Sir John Madejski which opened in 1998, and later renamed "Select Car Leasing Stadium"[239] in 2021, after a sponsor. After winning the 2005–06 Football League Championship with a record of 106 points, Reading spent two seasons in the Premier League before being relegated to The Championship.[240] For the 2012–2013 season, the club again competed in the Premier League, after securing first place in the Championship in the 2011–2012 season, but were relegated back down to the Championship at season's end.[241] Reading Town Football Club, formed in 1966,[242] played at Scours Lane and were playing in the Hellenic League Premier Division but were dissolved in 2016, while fellow non-league football club Reading City Football Club now play at Scours Lane after moving from Palmer Park Stadium at the end of the 2015–16 season. Scours Lane was also renamed to Rivermoor Stadium in 2016.

Reading is home to three senior semi-professional rugby clubs: Reading Abbey RFC, Rams RFC and Reading RFC. The Reading Rockets are the town's semi-professional basketball team. They compete in the second tier English Basketball League Division 1, though they have tried several times in recent years to move up to the top tier British Basketball League. They play home games at the Rivermead Leisure Complex, and are coached by Manuel Peña Garces. In 2016–17 the club embarked on an 18-game winning streak. The town hosts Australian Rules football team Reading Kangaroos and American football team Berkshire Renegades. Palmer Park Stadium has a velodrome and athletics track. It is used by Reading Athletic Club[243] and the Berkshire Renegades for training.[244] Reading Hockey Club enter teams in both the Men's and Women's England Hockey Leagues.

Rowing is pursued by the Reading Rowing Club and the Reading University Boat Club,[245] both next to Caversham Bridge, whilst Reading Blue Coat School trains at Sonning adjacent to the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake in Caversham, which provides training facilities for the Great Britain National Squad.[246] However, almost all club rowing is done on the River Thames. The annual Reading Town Regatta takes place near Thames Valley Park,[247] with the Reading Amateur Regatta taking place in June, usually two weeks before the Henley Royal Regatta. The town was home to a motorcycle speedway team, Reading Racers. Speedway came to Reading in 1968 at Tilehurst Stadium, until the team moved to Smallmead Stadium in Whitley,[248] which was demolished at the end of 2008. The team is inactive pending the building of a new stadium, which was once hoped to be completed in 2012.[249] The Reading Racers reformed in 2016 and joined the new Southern Developmental League upon its formation in 2017 winning its inaugural season undefeated. The team started back up in Eastbourne and currently races in Swindon awaiting return to a track in Reading.

The Reading Half Marathon is held on the streets of Reading in March of each year, with 16,000 competitors from elite to fun runners.[250] It was first run in 1983 and has taken place in every subsequent year except 2001, when it was cancelled because of concerns over that year's outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, 2018, when it was cancelled on the morning of the race due to heavy overnight snowfall, and 2020, when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[251][252][253] The British Triathlon Association was formed at the town's former Mall health club on 11 December 1982.[254] Britain's first ever triathlon took place just outside Reading at Kirtons's Farm in Pingewood in 1983 and was revived 10 years' later by Banana Leisure with one of the original organisers as Event Director.[255] Thames Valley Triathletes, based in the town, is Britain's oldest triathlon club, having its origins in the 1984 event at nearby Heckfield, when a relay team raced under the name Reading Triathlon Club.[256] The Hexagon was home to snooker's Grand Prix tournament, one of the sport's "Big Four", from 1984 to 1994.[257][258]

Notable people

[edit]
Main article: List of people from Reading, Berkshire
See also: Category:People from Reading, Berkshire

Twin towns

[edit]
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in England

Reading is twinned with:[259]

Though not twinned with Reading, two suburbs of the New Zealand city of Dunedin — Caversham and Forbury — were named after places in and around Reading by early New Zealand settler and Reading native William Henry Valpy.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Reading Local Authority (E06000038)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  2. ^ "Reading". Collins Dictionary. n.d. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  3. ^ "Government & public sector". PwC. Archived from the original on 24 April 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  4. ^ Lawes Long 1836, p. 11–13.
  5. ^ Cameron 1961, p. 64.
  6. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 14–15.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Ditchfield & Page 1923, pp. 342–364.
  8. ^ a b Slade 2001, p. 1–16.
  9. ^ Maxwell Lyte, H.C. "Close Rolls, Edward II: November 1312 Pages 556-559 Calendar of Close Rolls, Edward II: Volume 1, 1307-1313. Originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1892". British History Online. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  10. ^ a b Hylton 2007, p. 34–38.
  11. ^ Slade 2001, p. 17–25.
  12. ^ Fasham & Hawkes 1983.
  13. ^ Hylton 2007, p. 51–52.
  14. ^ Barrès-Baker, Malcolm: The Siege of Reading: The Failure of the Earl of Essex's 1643 Spring Offensive. Ottawa, EbooksLib, 2004 ISBN 1-55449-999-2
  15. ^ Ford, David Nash. "The Siege of Reading". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 7 March 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2009.
  16. ^ Ford, David Nash. "The Battle of Broad Street". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 26 September 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2009.
  17. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 84–89.
  18. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 75–80.
  19. ^ a b "Berkshire Quarter Sessions". Jackson's Oxford Journal. 4 July 1868.
  20. ^ Hunter 1995, p. 103.
  21. ^ "Building the Great Western Railway". Reading History Trail. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  22. ^ Kidner 1982, p. 6.
  23. ^ Waters 1990, p. 20.
  24. ^ "Lords Hansard text for 16 Jul 1996 (160716-11)". UK Parliament. 16 July 1996. Archived from the original on 19 September 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  25. ^ "English Counties, The Real Counties". BBC News. London. 7 April 2004. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  26. ^ a b c "The Nineteenth Century". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 29 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  27. ^ Dellor, Amanda (24 March 2010). "Reading's Courage Brewery closing". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 18 January 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  28. ^ "The History of Suttons". Sutton Seeds. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  29. ^ "Huntley & Palmers Collection". Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council. 7 January 2011. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  30. ^ "Huntley & Palmers Timeline" (PDF). Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council. 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  31. ^ "Air Raid, February 1943". Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 3 October 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
  32. ^ "Reading, Berkshire, UK". BBC News. London. 5 September 2008. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  33. ^ "Reading". Garabys Letting Agent. Archived from the original on 28 May 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  34. ^ "The founding of the Oracle". Reading History Trail. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
  35. ^ "John Kendrick (1573–1624)". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
  36. ^ "Largest Towns without City Status". LoveMyTown.co.uk. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  37. ^ "Population overview". LoveMyTown.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 July 2006. Retrieved 6 July 2006.
  38. ^ "Towns that have recently applied for City Status". LoveMyTown.co.uk. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  39. ^ "Reading submits 2012 city status bid". BBC News. London. 27 May 2011. Archived from the original on 30 May 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  40. ^ "Reading Submits City Bid Today". Reading Borough Council News. 7 December 2021. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  41. ^ "Platinum Jubilee: Eight towns to be made cities for Platinum Jubilee". BBC News. 20 May 2022. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  42. ^ a b "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  43. ^ Henley, Peter (6 April 2010). "Berkshire prepares for election". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  44. ^ "Reading Crown Court". Ministry of Justice. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  45. ^ "Reading County Court". Ministry of Justice. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  46. ^ "Reading Magistrates' Court". Ministry of Justice. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  47. ^ First Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the Municipal Corporations in England and Wales: Part 1. 1835. p. 111. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  48. ^ a b "Reading Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  49. ^ Reading Corporation Act 1887. 1887. p. 56. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  50. ^ a b c d Phillips 1980, p. 135.
  51. ^ "Local Government Board's Provisional Order Confirmation (No. 11) Act 1911". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  52. ^ "Boundaries: Reading plea". Reading Evening Post. 6 June 1972. p. 4. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  53. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 9 November 2024
  54. ^ "The Berkshire and Oxfordshire (Areas) Order 1977", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1977/218, retrieved 7 November 2024
  55. ^ "The Berkshire (Structural Change) Order 1996". legislation.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 29 March 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  56. ^ "The Future Local Government of Berkshire". Bracknell Times. 11 August 1994. p. 11. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  57. ^ "South Oxfordshire District Local Development Framework - Core Strategy Examination - Written Statement of Wokingham BC for the Exploratory Meeting on: Tuesday 17 May 2011" (PDF). South Oxfordshire District Council. 17 May 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  58. ^ "Third Bridge". CADRA. August 2006. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
  59. ^ "Transport (Greater Reading)". Hansard. 11 January 2006. Archived from the original on 14 September 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2006.
  60. ^ a b Phillips 1980, p. 42.
  61. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 88.
  62. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 168–9.
  63. ^ "Reading Borough Council moves to new building in Bridge Street". BBC. 15 December 2014. Archived from the original on 2 January 2016. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  64. ^ "2007 Floods photos". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  65. ^ "July 2007 Flooding" (PDF). Reading Borough Council. 29 October 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  66. ^ Map of Reading, Wokingham & Pangbourne (Map). 1:25000. Ordnance Survey. 12 May 2011. ISBN 9780319237304.
  67. ^ "Reading University Atmospheric Observatory". University of Reading. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  68. ^ "Reading 1981–2010 averages". Met Office. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  69. ^ "Monthly weather forecast and Climate – Reading, United Kingdom". Weather Atlas. Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  70. ^ "Monthly Extreme Maximum Temperature". Starlings Roost Weather. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  71. ^ "Monthly Extreme Minimum Temperature". Starlings Roost Weather. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  72. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  73. ^ "2011 Census – Built-up areas". ONS. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  74. ^ "United Kingdom's largest town by population". Get Reading. 27 November 2020. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  75. ^ "Resident Population Estimates by Ethnic Group (Percentages)" (XLS). Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
  76. ^ Natalie, Slater (8 February 2010). "150 different languages spoken in Reading schools". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  77. ^ Blake, Heidi (8 February 2010). "The town where schoolchildren speak 150 languages". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  78. ^ "Grant to repair Polish church". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. 15 June 2010. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  79. ^ Cacciottolo, Mario (13 October 2006). "Reading paper gets Polish edition". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 25 October 2007. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  80. ^ Brook, Stephen (9 November 2006). "Reading paper to offer Polish edition". guardian.co.uk. London: Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 26 September 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  81. ^ "Polish editions of regional press in Great Britain: Kronika Reading, Gazeta z Highland, Polski Herald". Krakow Post. London: Lifeboat. 22 July 2007. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  82. ^ Jones, P. N. (1978). "The Distribution and Diffusion of the Coloured Population in England and Wales, 1961-71". Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers. 3 (4): 515–532. Bibcode:1978TrIBG...3..515J. doi:10.2307/622127. ISSN 0020-2754. JSTOR 622127. PMID 12157820.
  83. ^ Equality, Commission for Racial (1985). "Ethnic minorities in Britain: statistical information on the pattern of settlement". Commission for Racial Equality: Table 2.2.
  84. ^ Data is taken from United Kingdom Casweb Data services Archived 15 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine of the United Kingdom 1991 Census on Ethnic Data for England, Scotland and Wales Archived 5 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine (Table 6)
  85. ^ "Office of National Statistics; 2001 Census Key Statistics". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  86. ^ "2011 Census: Ethnic Group, local authorities in England and Wales". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  87. ^ "Ethnic group - Office for National Statistics". www.ons.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  88. ^ "KS007 - Religion - Nomis - 2001". www.nomisweb.co.uk. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  89. ^ "KS209EW (Religion) - Nomis - 2011". www.nomisweb.co.uk. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  90. ^ "Custom report - Nomis - Official Census and Labour Market Statistics".
  91. ^ "Vision for Reading Chamber of Commerce". Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on 24 March 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  92. ^ "A Sustainable Community Strategy for Reading" (PDF). Reading Borough Council. p. 17. Retrieved 13 July 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  93. ^ "Companies". Thames Valley Park. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  94. ^ "Reading's Application for City Status" (PDF). Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  95. ^ "Prudential could quit UK". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. 5 May 2010. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
  96. ^ a b "Occupiers in Reading". Arlington Business Park. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  97. ^ "Bayer Life Sciences Relocated in 2016". Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  98. ^ "ICL Pensioners' Newsletter" (PDF). Fujitsu. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  99. ^ New Scientist, 17 Jul 1986. Reed Business Information. 17 July 1986. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  100. ^ "Agilent Technologies agrees letting in Reading". Cushman & Wakefield. 25 January 2006. Archived from the original on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  101. ^ a b "Occupiers". Green Park. Archived from the original on 17 August 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  102. ^ "So many fantastic memories of Adam". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. 14 August 2007. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  103. ^ "Occupiers". Reading International Business Park. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  104. ^ "Hicks Baker client acquires last suite at Apex Plaza". Hicks Baker. 5 August 2014. Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 12 March 2016. Fast growing data management software company CommVault has signed a new 7-year lease on Block B at Apex Plaza in Reading.
  105. ^ "Retail & Leisure Study of Reading – Volume 1 – Chapters 1 to 3" (PDF). Reading Borough Council. 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2008.
  106. ^ "Battle to stay top of shops". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. 28 September 2007. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  107. ^ "Regional Focus on Reading". Career Planner. BCL Legal. Archived from the original on 10 April 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  108. ^ Millward, David (8 September 2010). "New 'partner' for Station Hill project". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  109. ^ "The history of John Lewis Reading". John Lewis. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  110. ^ "Mall Guide" (PDF). Oracle. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  111. ^ Historic England. "Congregational Church, Broad Street, Reading (1321954)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
  112. ^ Sowan 2004.
  113. ^ "Holland & Barrett Smelly Alley – Reading". Thames Valley Vegans And Vegetarians. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 1 May 2009.
  114. ^ "Reading Market". Town & Country Markets. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  115. ^ "Calendar". Thames Valley Farmers' Market Co-operative. Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  116. ^ Historic England. "Corn Exchange Arcade Entrance (1113539)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  117. ^ "Festival History". Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 31 May 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  118. ^ Minard, Jenny (29 March 2010). "Reading Festival: A history as 2010 line up announced". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 8 February 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  119. ^ "Reading Festival Location". Archived from the original on 7 February 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  120. ^ Schofield, Deborah (5 August 2002). "WOMAD in Reading". guardian.co.uk. London: Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 22 November 2007. Retrieved 6 July 2006.
  121. ^ "Womad venue change after 17 years". BBC News. London. 3 October 2006. Archived from the original on 7 October 2006. Retrieved 20 October 2006.
  122. ^ Fordham, Jonny (30 April 2009). "Reading Beer Festival: family friendly fun". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009. Retrieved 13 June 2009.
  123. ^ "18th Reading CAMRA Beer and Cider Festival". Reading Beer Festival. Archived from the original on 26 June 2009. Retrieved 13 June 2009.
  124. ^ "Reading Theatre". Reading History Trail. Archived from the original on 5 August 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  125. ^ "Concert Hall". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
  126. ^ "The Hexagon Reading Arts". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  127. ^ "21 South Street". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 3 April 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  128. ^ "HRH Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, Announced as Royal Patron". Reading Rep. Archived from the original on 31 October 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  129. ^ "Progress Theatre homepage". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 11 April 2007. Retrieved 15 March 2007.
  130. ^ "Progress Theatre". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 27 March 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  131. ^ "RABBLE Theatre". 27 September 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  132. ^ "Reading Rep Theatre | Multi-Award-Winning theatre | Berkshire". Reading Rep Theatre. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  133. ^ "Jelly is an arts charity based in Reading, UK". Jelly. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  134. ^ Wykes 1970, p. 13.
  135. ^ a b "History of Reading School". Old Redingensians Association. Archived from the original on 5 May 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  136. ^ Ford, David Nash (2001). "Biographies: Jane Austen (1775–1817)". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
  137. ^ Ford, David Nash (2003). "Biographies: Mary Russell Mitford (1787–1865)". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
  138. ^ Mary Russell Mitford, Belford Regis; or Sketches of a Country Town, 3 vols., London 1835
  139. ^ Thomas Hardy (7 July 1999). Jude the Obscure. Broadview Press. p. 498. ISBN 978-1-55111-171-1. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  140. ^ "A Walk on the Wilde Side of Reading". The Automobile Association. Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  141. ^ "Oscar Wilde: Prisoner C33". BBC Berkshire. London: BBC. Archived from the original on 18 October 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  142. ^ "Banksy confirms escaping prisoner artwork at Reading Prison". BBC News. 4 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  143. ^ Andrews, Martin J. (2014). Fox Talbot & the Reading Establishment. Reading: Two Rivers Press. ISBN 978-1-901677-98-0.
  144. ^ "Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant on Cemetery Junction". BBC Berkshire. London: BBC. 14 April 2010. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  145. ^ Fort, Linda (14 April 2010). "Cemetery Junction starring the Reading Post". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 1 August 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  146. ^ Roberts, Anna (16 April 2009). "Ricky Gervais is going Up the Junction". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  147. ^ Serck, Linda (27 July 2009). "The Maiwand Lion". BBC News. London. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  148. ^ "Introduction". The Blade Reading. Archived from the original on 13 October 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  149. ^ "Jacksons Corner department store has closed after 138 years". bbc.co.uk. BBC. 24 December 2014. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
  150. ^ "Listed Buildings in Reading, Berkshire, England". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 28 May 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  151. ^ "Guide to Listed Buildings". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  152. ^ "getreading - InYourArea". InYourArea. Archived from the original on 6 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  153. ^ "15 years of Two Rivers Press". University of Reading. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  154. ^ "About". Two Rivers Press. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  155. ^ "Main Block and Flanking Wings at Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 30 January 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  156. ^ "Parks and Open Spaces". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 24 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  157. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 141.
  158. ^ "Prospect Park". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  159. ^ "Parks, Outdoor Facilities & Open Spaces". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  160. ^ "Magic Map Application". Magic.defra.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 11 April 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  161. ^ "Aspects of Suburban Landscapes". Historic England. Archived from the original on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  162. ^ "Royal Berkshire Hospital". NHS. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  163. ^ "Book Launch: Battle Hospital History". Royal Berkshire Hospital. NHS. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 25 April 2007.
  164. ^ "Welcome to Berkshire Healthcare NHS Trust". Royal Berkshire Hospital. NHS. Archived from the original on 17 April 2007. Retrieved 25 April 2007.
  165. ^ "Capio Reading Private Hospital". Capio Healthcare UK. Archived from the original on 15 March 2007. Retrieved 25 April 2007.
  166. ^ "How to find Spire Dunedin Hospital". Spire Healthcare. Archived from the original on 16 May 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  167. ^ "MRI Milestone in CircleReading construction". Circle Holdings plc. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  168. ^ "Water and sewerage operators". Water UK. Archived from the original on 23 June 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  169. ^ "Water Resources". Environment Agency. Archived from the original on 9 June 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  170. ^ "Water Quality". Environment Agency. Archived from the original on 28 July 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  171. ^ "Green Park, Reading". Ecotricity. Archived from the original on 30 January 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  172. ^ Garrett, Frederick (1959). Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56. London: Electrical Press. pp. A-87.
  173. ^ "UK's fastest broadband now live in Reading". Hyperoptic. Archived from the original on 25 March 2020. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
  174. ^ "History". Reading School. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  175. ^ "List of Schools". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 11 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  176. ^ Record Office, Berkshire. "Records of Alfred Sutton Secondary Boys' School, Reading". Archived from the original on 25 February 2019. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  177. ^ "About Reading College". Reading College. Archived from the original on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
  178. ^ "The University of Reading is 85 years old". University of Reading. 16 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  179. ^ "History of the University's Estates". University of Reading. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  180. ^ "Thames Valley University to become the 'University of West London'". Thames Valley University. 3 August 2010. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
  181. ^ "About Reading Central Library". Reading Borough Libraries. Archived from the original on 9 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  182. ^ "Reading Museum". Reading Museum. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  183. ^ Phillips 1980, p. 177.
  184. ^ "Collections". Reading Museum. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  185. ^ "Doors set to open on rural museum". BBC News. London: BBC. 30 June 2005. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  186. ^ "About the Museum of English Rural Life". University of Reading. Archived from the original on 20 June 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2009.
  187. ^ "Museums and Special Collections". University of Reading. Archived from the original on 13 February 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  188. ^ "Riverside Museum". Reading Library Service. Archived from the original on 24 August 2006. Retrieved 17 September 2006.
  189. ^ "Home". Museum of Berkshire Aviation. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  190. ^ "Reading to Henley Service". Salters Steamers. Archived from the original on 2 August 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2007.
  191. ^ "Boat service from Reading to Mapledurham". Thames River Cruises. Archived from the original on 30 April 2007. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
  192. ^ "11 High Bridge". Reading History Trail. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
  193. ^ "Destinations". National Express. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  194. ^ "New park and ride for Reading in operation". BBC News. BBC. 26 October 2015. Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
  195. ^ "Reading station area redevelopment". Network Rail. Archived from the original on 28 December 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  196. ^ "Reading rail station's £850m upgrade to finish early". BBC News. London. 18 May 2011. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  197. ^ Phased Opening Archived 28 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine Crossrail
  198. ^ "The Coley Park Aerodrome and CWS Jam Works". Coley Park & Beyond (Kevin Rosier). Archived from the original on 23 February 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2008.
  199. ^ "Home". Museum of Berkshire Aviation. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
  200. ^ "RailAir | First Bus". www.firstbus.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  201. ^ "Reading to Heathrow Airport". Heathrow Express Train. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  202. ^ "travel Reading - Travel By Bus". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  203. ^ "ReadiBus The Dial-a-Ride, door-to-door assisted bus service". ReadiBus. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  204. ^ "Bike Hire Plans for Reading". Reading Borough Council. 10 March 2011. Archived from the original on 4 September 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  205. ^ Fort, Linda (15 March 2011). "Green light for Reading bike hire scheme". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  206. ^ "ReadyBike Cycle Hire Comes To An End In Reading". Reading.co.uk. 18 March 2019. Archived from the original on 13 September 2021. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  207. ^ "Church of St Mary, Reading". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  208. ^ "Detailed history". Reading Minster of St. Mary the Virgin. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  209. ^ Ford, David Nash (2001). "Relics from Reading Abbey". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  210. ^ Ford, David Nash. "Ruins of Reading Abbey". Royal Berkshire History. Nash Ford Publishing. Archived from the original on 4 October 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  211. ^ "Reading in 1841". Old Towns Books and Maps. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  212. ^ Historic England. "Greyfriars Church, Friar Street, Reading (1321952)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
  213. ^ "Greyfriars Church – History". Greyfriars Church PCC. Archived from the original on 19 February 2008. Retrieved 28 November 2007.
  214. ^ Crockford's Clerical Directory 2008/2009 (100th ed.). Church House Publishing. December 2007. ISBN 978-0-7151-1030-0.
  215. ^ "Parish Finder – Reading". A Church Near You. Church of England. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  216. ^ "Church of St James', Reading". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 19 January 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  217. ^ "Blessed Dominic Barberi". The Passionists of Holy Cross Province. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  218. ^ "The UK Catholic Parish Directory – Diocese of Portsmouth". Benet Services. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  219. ^ Ernest A. Payne, The Baptists of Berkshire through Three Centuries (London: Carey Kingsgate Press, 1951), p.19
  220. ^ "Reading Central Seventh-day Adventist Church". Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
  221. ^ "Southern England – Counties". Adventist Church in UK and Ireland. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
  222. ^ a b "Reading Hebrew Congregation". Reading Jewish Community. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  223. ^ "Reading Liberal Jewish Community". Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  224. ^ "Maidenhead Synagogue". Maidenhead Reform Synagogue. Archived from the original on 29 July 2013. Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  225. ^ "Central Jamme Mosque, Reading". Bangladesh Association Greater Reading. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 29 October 2009.
  226. ^ "Construction Beginning Date". Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  227. ^ "Opening Date". Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  228. ^ Hewitt, Adam (19 May 2009). "Green Road mosque deal signed". Reading Chronicle. Berkshire Media Group. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  229. ^ "Green Road Mosque Controversy". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 3 March 2011. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  230. ^ "About Shantideva Buddhist centre". Shantideva Buddhist centre. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  231. ^ "Reading Hindu Temple". Reading Hindu Temple. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  232. ^ "Siri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara". Reading Voluntary Action. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  233. ^ "The Salvation Army – Reading Central". The Salvation Army United Kingdom with the Republic of Ireland. Archived from the original on 23 June 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  234. ^ "Reading – Mid-Thames Quakers". SugarCat Publishing. Archived from the original on 19 February 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  235. ^ "Reading Christadelphians". Reading Christadelphians. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  236. ^ "The History of Reading Football Club". Reading Football Club. 2 May 2010. Archived from the original on 4 February 2010. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  237. ^ "Biscuitmen Nickname". Archived from the original on 22 January 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  238. ^ "Madejski Stadium information". Reading Football Club. 4 August 2010. Archived from the original on 7 May 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  239. ^ "Reading's Madejski Stadium renamed Select Car Leasing Stadium". BBC News. 16 July 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  240. ^ Fordham, Jonny (8 July 2009). "Nicky Shorey doubts Reading FC's '106' record will be beaten". Reading Post. Surrey & Berkshire Media. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  241. ^ "Reading promotion meant to be, says Brian McDermott". BBC Sport. London: BBC. 17 April 2012. Archived from the original on 20 April 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  242. ^ "Reading Town News Season 2010/11". Uhlsport Hellenic Football League. 14 January 2011. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
  243. ^ "How to Join". Reading Athletic Club. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
  244. ^ "About us". Berkshire Renegades American Football Club. Archived from the original on 15 May 2009. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  245. ^ "Home". Reading University Boat Club. Archived from the original on 29 December 2010. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  246. ^ "Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake". BBC News. Archived from the original on 28 December 2009. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  247. ^ "find". Reading Town Regatta. Archived from the original on 30 April 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  248. ^ "Tears and Glory". Reading Speedway. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  249. ^ "Work extension to start new Reading stadium". BBC News. London. 16 July 2010. Archived from the original on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  250. ^ "Reading Half Marathon 2010 Race Info". Reading Half Marathon. Archived from the original on 10 September 2011. Retrieved 22 March 2010.
  251. ^ "Reading half marathon 2011 'will be biggest yet'". BBC News. London. 18 March 2011. Archived from the original on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  252. ^ Taboada, Khadija (18 March 2018). "Reading Half Marathon 2018 cancelled due to heavy snowfall". InYourArea. Archived from the original on 25 March 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
  253. ^ "Reading half marathon 2020 cancelled". Reading Chronicle. Reading: Reading Chronicle. 3 September 2020. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  254. ^ "British Triathlon Celebrates 25th Anniversary". Triathlon. 11 December 2007. Archived from the original on 6 July 2010. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  255. ^ "History of triathlon". British Triathlon. Archived from the original on 11 September 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  256. ^ "Triathlon's coming home... to Reading". Reading Chronicle. Berkshire Media Group. 13 January 2010. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  257. ^ "Snooker Legends". Reading Arts. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 25 November 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  258. ^ "Snooker: A vacuum at the Hexagon before Taylor stages a clean sweep". The Independent. UK. 13 October 1992. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  259. ^ "Town twinning". reading.gov.uk. Reading Borough Council. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020.

Bibliography

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Reading, Berkshire.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Reading (Berkshire).
Wikinews has related news:

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Reading,_Berkshire&oldid=1265001704"