Escape the Everyday in Corsham this Summer

Quintessentially English - historic buildings and glorious countryside on the doorstep. Slightly exotic - flamboyant, and loud, peacocks regally wander the streets. And a starring role in film and TV – Captain Poldark brooded his way around here... The Wiltshire market town of Corsham is something of a hidden treasure.

Just 20 minutes from Bath, and 15 minutes from J17 of the M4, Corsham sits on the edge of the Cotswolds, on the Great West Way. Its history is linked to wool and stone: the wool from the Flemish weavers who based themselves in the town; the stone from the famous Bath Stone, quarried beneath the parish and used in many of the town’s buildings. In fact, architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner wrote, “Corsham has no match in Wiltshire for wealth of good houses”. 

Chief among the good houses is Corsham Court – a Saxon royal manor house and home to the Methuen family, as well as a collection of celebrated Old Masters, including works by Van Dyck, Lippi and Reynolds. These are displayed in a 72-foot long picture gallery designed by Capability Brown, proving that his skills extended past designing Corsham Court’s extensive gardens. And it’s all surrounded by beautiful parkland that is free to everyone who wants to walk the fields or picnic by the lake.

A short, tree-lined walk from Corsham Court takes you towards more contemporary art at The Pound, Corsham’s gallery, theatre, cinema and cafe bar – and the organisation behind the town’s joyous, warm and ever so slightly quirky Blue Sky Festival, which takes place in July this year. 

If more active festivals are your thing, then June is the time for Corsham’s Walking Festival, featuring 20+ themed walks covering everything from the town’s history and heritage to railways, canals and nature walks, all making the most of the glorious surrounding countryside. And if you miss the Festival then you can still get walking with the eight Heritage Trails that take you across fields and through woodlands as well as highlighting Corsham’s industrial history. 

Alternatively, if you prefer your walking linked to some retail therapy, then Corsham offers a range of wonderful independent shops. You’ll find everything from collectible comics and toys to vintage wares, antiques (TV’s Paul Martin, of Flog It fame, has a shop here), arts and crafts and gloriously different gifts. You’ll also find great places to stop for a drink and something to eat, including the award-winning pub/restaurant/boutique hotel that is the Methuen Arms, the quirky Flemish Weaver and a whole range of cafes, bars and eating places. The town also offers two hours’ free parking in all the public car parks meaning there’s plenty of time to shop and eat.

And if all that weren’t enough, you’ll probably see a peacock admiring itself in a shop window or holding up the traffic as it wanders across the road. Corsham’s brightest, loudest, free-roaming inhabitants are part of the magic of this beautiful Wiltshire town. Why not discover it for yourself?

https://www.corsham.gov.uk/visit/