Shrewsbury is home to 660 listed buildings and most famous for being the birthplace of Charles Darwin. His statue sits outside Shrewsbury Library, the building that was once his school.
Birthplace of Charles Darwin, Shrewsbury is set amidst the glorious Shropshire countryside near to the Welsh Borders and is one of England's finest medieval market towns. The town has over 600 listed buildings including the Castle and the Abbey (home of the fictional Brother Cadfael).
From traditional British pubs serving hearty meals to international cuisines and fine dining experiences, there's no shortage of gastronomic delights to satisfy your palate. Don't miss the chance to try the famous Shrewsbury biscuits, a local delicacy that's been enjoyed for centuries.
Charles Darwin is Shrewsbury's most famous son and recently voted as one of the greatest Britons. Born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire on the 12th February 1809 at Mount House, he was the son of Robert, a well respected doctor, and Susannah a member of the Wedgwood family.
Shrewsbury is often regarded as having reached its height in the late Middle Ages, in terms of its national and economic significance. This was largely down to its position as a centre of the woollen trade, being a centre for the finishing of Welsh cloth.
As a whole Shrewsbury is a very wealthy town, benefiting from being the trading capital of the county given its place on the river, and during the Industrial Revolution, its proximity to the 'birthplace of industry' in Coalbrookdale and its position as the 'gateway to Wales' via the railway network.
Shrewsbury is home to 660 listed buildings and most famous for being the birthplace of Charles Darwin. His statue sits outside Shrewsbury Library, the building that was once his school.
Time. One of the largest productions to be filmed at Shrewsbury Prison was the BBC's multi-BAFTA award-winning series Time. Starring Sean bean and Stephen Graham, the production ran for 8 weeks in the prison.
Shrewsbury is a thriving market town with an unspoilt Medieval streetplan, handsome housing, listed buildings, a great social calendar and excellent schools, offering beautiful walks in the Shropshire Hills and where people move to put down roots after visiting.
Named after the town where they were first baked, Shrewsbury Biscuits can trace their origins back to the 1500s. A simple basic recipe of sugar, flour, egg, butter and lemon zest, they can be served as small individual biscuits or large enough to be a main dessert dish.
The coat of arms of the former Shrewsbury Borough Council and now of the Town Council, depicts three loggerheads (leopards), with the motto Floreat Salopia, a Latin phrase that can be translated to "May Shrewsbury Flourish".
Shrewsbury began life as Scrobbesbyrig and Scrobbesburh in Old English, which has several meanings including "fort in the scrub-land region", "Scrobb's fort", "shrubstown" or "the town of the bushes". This then mutated to Schrosberie.
Shrewsbury is a great place for holiday shopping and has many hundreds of independently owned stores and high-street chains selling a vast range of goods.
According to LivingCost.org, Shrewsbury's cost of living is in the top 36% of the most expensive cities in the world. As of August 2021, the average value of a house in Shrewsbury is estimated to be £277,665, which has seen an increase of 10.48% since 2016.
Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury in 1809 and is certainly the town's most famous son. He was educated at Shrewsbury School, in the building that now houses Shrewsbury Library, where his statue sits proudly.
Annual crime rate in Shrewsbury postcode area is 30.3 crimes per annum per 1000 workday people as of December 2023. Compared to the national crime rate, Shrewsbury's crime rate is at 85%. Violent crime makes up 39.0% of all crimes reported in the postcode area.
She said: "It's lively and vibrant - there are lots of restaurants and the people are so friendly. "I love all the independent shops- there's a whole row of independents down Wyle Cop and in the Market Hall here, we're all independent. It's got a really lovely family feel."
Great Expectations Begins this Weekend on BBC One - Filmed in Shrewsbury! The much anticipated TV series Great Expectations starring Olivia Colman which was partly filmed in Shrewsbury last year, airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer this Sunday, March 26th at 9pm.
The Beatles' last ever concert in Shropshire, at the Music Hall in Shrewsbury on April 26, 1963, is now the stuff of local folklore. They had played in the county town twice before, at the Music Hall on December 14, 1962, and at the Granada on February 28, 1963, as a support act to Helen Shapiro.
Production. Most of the filming took place in the Liverpool City Region, with the wings and cells prison scenes filmed at HM Prison Shrewsbury, a former prison which was decommissioned in 2013.
On June 18, 1905, White City Amusement Park opened, according to Shrewsbury Historian Michael Perna. The park was called the White City because all the buildings and attractions were white. The park was built on the edge of the lake and one of the rides even brought participants out over the water.
Her Majesty made three visits to the region in the 1950s – to Stafford in 1955, and on a tour of the Dudley area in 1957. But her first visit was to Shrewsbury in October, 1952, just months after becoming Queen.
