U.K.? Northampton?
 

Folks on Coronation Street recently are taking holidays in Northampton. Now I know and have been to Southampton and other hamptons but never to Northhampton. What kind of place is Northampton and why would folks from Corrie be going there so much?

Thanks - if it sounds nice I'll put it into my next English advaneture.

am sure they are being ironic

"It may not be as obviously crappy as the above places, but Northampton will destroy your soul and crush your spirit as fast as anywhere..."
Quote from someone in a forum debate elsewhere on crap british towns...the others refered to seeme to be Coventry, Telford, Wolverhampton and Slough. It's definately a Corrie in-joke

no way that Coventry can be compared with Northampton or the other places on that list. it is infinitely superior with a wonderful Cathedral, historic buildings dating back many centuries, fantastic industrial history, and of course, it gave us the legend of Lady Godiva.

ok I'm biased, as I was born there, but if they were going there on holiday, there might be some point to it!

Fuggedaboutit

There must be loads of unglamorous but interesting places you've not been to. Mini-Liverpools, like Hull, Swansea or Glasgow, that've been knocked about a bit but still have bags of character and lots to see and do. Dead or morphed seaside resorts, from Aberystwyth to Wemyss Bay. Nice little towns, like Southwell or Richmond (the one in Yorkshire).

Northampton absolutely isn't one of them.

Lots of attractive countryside (great for foxhunting), some really nice small towns like Rushden and Oundle, and oodles of pretty villages. Almost the highest density of surviving medieval wall paintings in the country. But in any rating of crap towns, Northampton itself is a lot more like Slough (our copy of Novosibirsk and Minsk) than Coventry.

By a strange coincidence, the latest postings on a blog I follow have been about Northampton:
http://diamondgeezer.blogspot.com/20...-derngate.html

I would assume the characters in Corrie (PQ, you do realise they're <i>not real people</i>?) have relatives there or something. Characters in soaps never have the kind of uncles and cousins who just drop in and out every now and again, but long-lost siblings and biological parents who turn out to be nutters - except when the actor's on holiday or in panto, when suddenly there's an aunt who's begging them to stay somewhere else. In EastEnders it's Leigh-on-Sea, for some reason. In Neighbours, the dog never came back from his holiday in Queensland. In Corrie, it used to be Southport (apart of course from Tracy Barlow, who simply went upstairs to play her tapes for fifteen years).

Northampton? Good Rugby team. Lovely countryside, interesting villages, Silverstone, canals. But the town? Nah forget it.
My ex SIL comes from there and she moved back to a village nearby after the divorce, lovely village, great people, but even she say the town is pretty grim.

I used to go to Silverstone several times a year and even then didn't bother w/ Northampton - it would be perfect for you PQ.

We really only went into town when my ex had his (car) racing shoes and Nomex suit fitted/made.

I look back in fondness on the day I spent for work in Slough - there's 8 hours of my life I will never get back. Can you say urban wasteland? I couldnt even find a pub or sit down restaurant for lunch, it was all kebab shops and fried chicken takeaways...

Try Orpington for urban wasteland - a kebab shop would have been a step up

I have walked all around Slough - not on purpose but trekking to the nearest train station I knew of when coming by foot from Runnymede - and yes it is an urban wasteland par excellence IMO.

I look back in fondness on the days I lived near Northampton - in a tiny village, no, not even a village because there was no church or shop, but a hamlet, called Hanging Houghton (pronounced ho-ton). This was 1976-77.

I lived in a tiny cottage there and worked for the farmer (the lord of the manor!) as his secretary and helped exercise and take care of his horses - at the time he was Master of the Pytchley Hunt. No lectures about foxhunting please.

I saw a lot of the countryside and it really is quite lovely. (And this is coming from someone who grew up in the Cotswolds and has lived in the glorious South Shropshire hills.)

I well remember riding across one Nothhamptonshire field to be told it was the site of a major battle during the Civil War - it was 'only' The Battle of Naseby which happened on 14 June 1645. Another time we were at Ashby St Ledgers where the Gunpowder Plot was hatched.

I also spent a lot of time in local pubs and just hanging around with Young Farmers (well, I was still in my teens!) Goodness, we used to go to the pub on the tractor because the boss's son hadn't passed his driving test but was allowed to drive a tractor on the main roads (and be served alcohol in the pub!). How times have changed, but we did have fun.

So while I remember the county of Northampton with fondness, the city itself was just a place to buy clothes and shoes on payday. And it was bloody cold - the wind comes straight across from the Russian Steppes.

But the Northampton countryside is worth a visit, particularly that to the north and west of the county. The east side is pretty flat and bland.

I lived and taught there for four years after leaving University over twenty years ago. I enjoyed the town and the surrounding area but although we still visit friends nearby we do not bother going into the centre of Northampton.

Northampton, like most of the towns that get slated, was designated a "New Town". This meant lots of poor quality modern development and a sudden influx of people from all over the country with the resulting loss of local character.
The new towns are often fine places to live but seldom places to visit as a tourist.