Toddington, Bedfordshire

Geography

Toddington is situated on a hill formed of glacial sand and gravel above a layer of glacial till on top of the Cretaceous Gault Clay (see the 1:50,000 Sheet 220 Leighton Buzzard Solid and Drift Geology by the British Geological Survey). The hill has a maximum height of 154 m and the village is about 30 m above the other Mid-Bedfordshire villages and towns (e.g. Westoning, Harlington, Flitwick).

Amenities

Toddington has four churches: Church of England (St George), Methodist, Baptist, and a Christian Fellowship.

The nearest mainline railway station is Harlington, which is located in the nearby village of Harlington and is served by Thameslink. From Harlington there are trains north to Flitwick and Bedford, and south to Luton, Luton Airport Parkway, St Albans, St Pancras International, Gatwick Airport and Brighton. The Fancott Arms hosts the rideable miniature railway at Fancott.

Dropshort Marsh and Fancott Woods and Meadows, both close to the village, are managed as nature reserves by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire, and each is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

There are several public rights of way within the parish and there are many walks and rides around the village. The Icknield Way Path runs through the village on its 110-mile journey from Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire to Knettishall Heath in Suffolk. The Icknield Way Trail, a multi-user route for walkers, horse riders and off-road cyclists, passes through the village.[[File:Toddington , Parish Church of St. George of England - geograph.org.uk - 579992.jpg|thumb|St George's Church]] The village has several halls for use by the community. The largest hall is on Leighton Road and managed by the Toddington Village Hall Association. It was opened in July 1993 on behalf of the community.

Toddington has a brass band, the Toddington Town Band (TTB); it has existed in one form or another since 1856 and performs regularly at village events.

It used to be claimed that Toddington had the most pubs per head of population of any village in the United Kingdom, although recently one has closed indefinitely and another was converted into a restaurant. The remaining pubs are: the Oddfellows Arms, the Griffin, the Bell, and the Fancott Arms (which lies about a mile outside the village centre).

Toddington has one theatre - Tads Theatre, on Conger Lane. It is owned and run by the charity group Tads Theatre, formerly known as the Toddington Amateur Dramatics Society. The group mounts 4–6 in-house productions each year, including an annual family pantomime.

Toddington used to have a historical society, the Toddington Historical Society, who met at the Village Hall on Leighton Road.

Education

The village is served by two schools, Toddington St George Church of England School (opened in 1967) and Parkfields Middle School (opened in 1963), which provide education for children aged between 4 and 13 years of age. After year 8, children transfer to Harlington Upper School located in nearby Harlington.

Historic buildings

Toddington Castle was a timber motte-and-bailey castle built before the 13th century in Toddington. Today only earthworks remain of the castle, known as Conger Hill. Chalgrave Castle was built to the south of the village during the 11th century, however no visible remains of the structure exist today.

Toddington Manor

Toddington Manor is a Tudor Manor house located on the North edge of the village with an extremely long history going back to well before the Norman invasion in 1066. Elizabeth I came to Toddington Manor in 1563 and knighted the owner Henry Cheney. In July 1608 King James and Anne of Denmark stayed at the manor, guests of Jane, Lady Cheney, the queen wore a gown of ash-coloured satin bias cut. Arbella Stuart came in August 1609.

Notable people

Henry Cheyne, 1st Baron Cheyne (1540–1587) is buried at St Georges Church.

Thomas Cleaver, breeder of Sampson, the tallest and heaviest horse ever recorded, lived at Toddington Mills.

Kevin McCloud, presenter of TV show Grand Designs was born and raised in Toddington.

Celebrity Emily Atack, of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! fame, attended Parkfields Middle School in the early 2000s.

Jack Wild of Oliver Fame playing the Artful Dodger is buried at Toddington cemetery - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Wild

References

References

1. ONS, [https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2021_pp Census 2021 Parish Profiles]
2. "Improvements and major road projects {{!}} A5 to M1 link (Dunstable northern bypass)".
3. "Dropshort Marsh". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.
4. "Fancott Woods and Meadows". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.
5. "Dropshort Marsh citation". Natural England.
6. "Map of Dropshort Marsh". Natural England.
7. "Fancott Woods and Meadows citation". Natural England.
8. "Toddington.Info".
9. "The Icknield Way Trail".
10. "Toddington Village Hall".
11. [http://www.toddingtonstgeorge.co.uk/ St George School]
12. [http://www.parkfieldsschool.co.uk Parkfields School]
13. [https://bedsarchives.bedford.gov.uk/CommunityArchives/Toddington/ToddingtonManor.aspx Toddington Manor, Bedford Archives]
14. [[Jemma Field]], 'The Wardrobe Goods of Anna of Denmark', ''Costume'', vol. 51 no. 1 (March, 2017), on-line supplement, p. 28 no. 272, citing Cambridge University Library MS Dd.I.26.
15. [[Emily Tennyson Bradley]], [https://archive.org/details/lifeofladyarabel02smituoft/page/228/mode/2up ''Life of the Lady Arabella'', vol. 2 (London, 1889), pp. 228-9]
16. "Guinness World Records 2015". Guinness World Records.
17. (18 September 2005). "Kevin McCloud: Critical Angle". Independent Digital News & Media Ltd.