Leicester
My story
Leicester is a pleasant place to live and has a very long history extending over three thousand years or so. Prior to moving there to live in 1998, I had visited Leicester just twice - once in the seventies for an unsuccessful job interview (it didn't matter) and once earlier in the nineties for a race meeting. So my knowledge of Leicester is based on what I've seen or read about in the years since 1998. Actually, I didn't study Leicester while I was working in Narborough or for some time afterwards.
As a start, here are a few links that might be of interest. I haven't visited most of these places so their inclusion here does not imply any endorsement by me. Note that I briefly discuss Leicester's rail transport heritage in My story (trains).
General interest
| Leicester Wikipedia |
| Leicestershire Wikipedia |
| Leicestershire tourism |
| Leicester leisure and culture |
| Leicester |
Leicestershire celebrities
I used to be a huge fan of racehorse trainer Jenny Pitman but that all changed as a result of the 1992 Cheltenham Gold Cup, especially as that scandal came while her altercation with Jamie Osborne at Ayr was still fresh in the memory. Jenny Pitman has more recently switched to writing crime novels, following the example set by Dick Francis. I'll stick with the original and best racing crime author.
David Attenborough first achieved fame as a presenter of the TV series Life on Earth in the seventies. I loved that series and the sequal The living planet but I haven't followed his career closely in recent years, although I'm pleased to see that he remains active even in his eighties.
Thomas Cook is famous as an international package tour operator these days but I don't think it's what the Rev. Thomas Cook had in mind when he organized a local excursion from Leicester to Loughborough in 1841.
Sue Townsend is famous as the author of the Adrian Mole books but has written other novels too including Queen Camilla, a novel based on (you guessed it) Britain's royal family.
Gary Linkeker is famous as a football (soccer) player.
In music, seventies rock 'n' roll revivalists Showaddywaddy hail from Leicestershire as do the contemporary band Kasabian. Leicestershire also claims Engelbert Humperdinck who was actually born in India although raised in Leicestershire. But I'll stop here and direct you to Leicester bands where you can find everything you wanted (or didn't want) to know about pop and rock music in the Leicester area.
Crime
Crime happens everywhere but I think Leicestershire is a fairly safe area compared to most.
Spectator sports
I haven't been to a rugby match but I've seen football (soccer), cricket and horse racing in Leicester. I got into the cricket for free by selling programs and lottery tickets before the match. It wasn't very remunerative, the free entry having a greater value than the commission.
| Sport | Venue | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Rugby union | Welford Road | Leicester Tigers |
| Football (soccer) | Walker Stadium | Leicester City |
| Cricket | Grace Road |
Leicestershire county
cricket club |
| Horse racing | Oadby | Leicester racecourse |
| Motor racing | Castle Donington | Donington Park |
Entertainment
I haven't visited any of these entertainments although I'd like to visit the National Space Centre one day. It's not exactly Houston but it's the nearest you'll get in Britain.
| Cinemas |
| DeMontfort Hall (concerts |
| Leicester Haymarket Theatre |
| The Little Theatre |
| Phoenix Arts Centre |
| Leicester museums |
| National Space Centre |
Environment
I've spent plenty of time walking around Leicester, visiting some of the parks (Abbey Park is the main one) and walking along the banks of the canal and river as well as along the Great Central Way (part of a once busy train route). Some day I may visit Gorse Hill city farm. Both of my grandfathers worked on farms but I haven't had much contact with farms in my adult life.
| University of Leicester Botanic Garden |
| Gorse Hill City Farm |
| Leicester's main parks |
| Twycross Zoo |
