The average commuter town with links to the Camino de Santiago and Jane Austen ...Middle East

Think of Reading and you may picture an average commuter hub, but this big Berkshire market town – which has made four unsuccessful bids for city status, most recently for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 – has some surprises up its sleeve.

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A wave of new residents has been attracted by good public transport connections – property asking prices have more than doubled over the past decade in and around Reading. The Elizabeth Line has added capacity, but Great Western Railway trains take as little as 23 minutes from Paddington.

The Thames and Kennett rivers run through the town and it’s also on the Great West Way, a touring route based on ancient roadways and canal networks. Running from London to Bristol, it connects Stonehenge, Avebury, Bath and Blenheim Palace, Churchill’s birthplace. GWR’s Great West Way passes offer unlimited travel along the route by train and bus over one or seven days, starting at £30.50.

There’s been a settlement in Reading since the 6th century when Saxons sailed up the Thames Valley, so there’s plenty more to see than the post-war architecture that Reading is now commonly associated with.

There are ruins of a 12th century abbey where the St James’ Way (Camino de Santiago) pilgrimage officially starts and illustrious literary connections, too.

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen. While much of the attention is focused on Bath, where she lived for five years, the writer spent some of her formative years in Reading.

Jane Austen spent much of her childhood in Reading (Photo: Stewart Turkington)

In the mid-1780s, aged nine, she was a pupil at the Reading Ladies Boarding School for nine months, with her elder sister Cassandra and a cousin, also called Jane. Her experiences are said to have served as inspiration for Mrs Goddard’s School in Emma.

For the anniversary, Reading Museum is opening the doors of Austen’s school room to the public for the first time, housed within the gateway of the medieval Abbey.

Tours of the school room also dive into the history of Reading’s Abbey Quarter. It includes the Hospitium, a guest house where medieval pilgrims of St James stayed, and the Reading Abbey ruins, where King Henry I is buried.

At the eastern end of the Abbey Quarter, Reading Gaol – which closed in 2014 – was where Oscar Wilde was incarcerated for “gross indecency” from 1895-7. Its new owner has suggested it will be converted into a hotel, museum and art gallery and that Wilde’s cell, where he wrote the poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol, will be opened to the public.

Afternoon tea and a brewery tour

Meanwhile, The Roseate is Reading’s only five-star hotel. Formerly the Shire Hall for Berkshire County Council, it is a listed building filled with period details such as vaulted ceilings. There’s also a spa and a 30-seat cinema.

To celebrate Austen’s anniversary, the hotel is hosting a themed afternoon tea from 1 May (£38pp). The menu features delicacies reminiscent of those enjoyed in the writer’s household, including Victoria sponge cake and plum mousse, and sandwiches inspired by the flavours of the early 19th century, such as caraway, lemon and spices.

Among the other accommodation options in town is the four-star Pentahotel. Its bedrooms feature retro art and dark fixtures, and the communal Pentalounge has games machines such as pinball and Nintendo.

Reading is known as the town of three Bs: biscuits (the now defunct Huntley & Palmers was once the largest biscuit manufacturer in the world), bulbs (Suttons Seeds was founded here) and beer. Simonds Brewery has been replaced by the Oracle shopping centre, but Phantom Brewing Co is a modern craft brewery that opened near the river in 2019. Tours are £10pp and its taproom serves burgers from American diner inspired 7bone.

Picnic, a café in the town centre, specialises in ethical coffee and locally produced food, including picnic boxes.

Beyond the urban sprawl

Reading might be one of south-east England’s most densely populated areas, but there are some havens of greenery.

Caversham Court Garden on the banks of the Thames is Grade II-listed for its walled gardens, terraced lawns, specimen trees and flower borders and is a tranquil spot from which to watch boats pass by.

The Thames Path National Trail is just five minutes’ walk from the station and Reading has the longest Thames frontage of any local authority along the path. A three-mile stroll from Caversham Lock past Fry’s Island and through the Thames Valley Park Nature Reserve takes you to the picturesque village of Sonning, home of Theresa May, Jimmy Page and George Clooney.

Austen fans might consider making the seven-mile trip in the other direction (about 45 minutes on the 93 bus or 25 by car) to Basildon Park. This National Trust property served as Mr Bingley’s home of Netherfield in the 2005 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. The 18th-century Palladian mansion has formal gardens and 400 acres of parkland.

The town has a way to see the Bayeux Tapestry without going to France – sort of. Reading Museum is home to a full-size Victorian replica of the artwork, which was embroidered by 35 women in 1885.

Admission to the Museum, which also houses a collection of Huntley and Palmers biscuit tins and Roman and medieval archaeological finds, is free of charge.

Another free diversion is found on the University of Reading campus – the Museum of English Rural Life examines everything from hop-picking holidays to what it’s like to farm in the Lake District.

The university’s Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology contains one of the most important collections of Greek antiquities in the country.

A dip by the Thames

The Thames Lido is a highlight. A Ladies Swimming Bath opened on King’s Meadow by the river in 1902, when it was fed by the Thames. It was later switched to mains supply, but closed in 1974.

It reopened after a major renovation in 2017, with its central 25-metre pool heated to around 25°C.   There’s also a jacuzzi, steam room and saunas, as well as massage rooms. Two hours from £20.

There’s also a restaurant serving Mediterranean-inspired dishes, such as plaice with caper butter sauce (£25) and cavolo nero risotto (£14).

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