United Kingdom

Places in this region

Skate 56 in The Belfry

Northern Ireland's church-turned-skate park

Nestled at the foot of the Mourne Mountains in Newcastle is a quaint chapel that is home to the first purpose built indoor skate park in Northern Ireland. After a number of sectarian attacks on... »

Commercial Curiosities | Edited by Kalia_K and Nicholas Jackson

Kielder Observatory

England's "pier at the end of the universe" unites astronomy and contemporary architecture

Sleek timber surfaces and clean right angles are hardly the qualities that come to mind when thinking of astronomical observatories, which are usually typified by industrial materials and domes.... »

Instruments of Science, Architectural Oddities | Edited by Trevor and Nicholas Jackson

Duke Humphrey's Library at the Old Bodleian Library

One of Europe's oldest libraries

Humphrey Plantagenet had the misfortune of being born too late. He was the youngest son of a King, and thus no king at all. However, thanks to his birth order, rather than fight alongside his... »

Repositories of Knowledge | Edited by M Rebekah Otto, Nicholas Jackson and others

Whispering Gallery at St. Paul’s Cathedral

Hear the quietest sound from across the dome

In the walkway that circles the inside of Christopher Wren’s great dome whispered words can be heard clearly directly across 137 feet. The trick of acoustics is an artifact of the perfection of... »

Instruments of Science, Curious Places of Worship | Edited by Annetta

Linley Sambourne House

Home of one of history's most famous cartoonists just as he left it

The Linley Sambourne house is situated on a quiet street in southwest London. From the outside, it looks like any of the other houses on the street. But the inside can transport visitors back in... »

Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nathan_Risinger and Nicholas Jackson

Fingal's Cave

Astonishing cave has inspired everything from ancient Celtic legends, to musical overtures, to modern art

Queen Victoria, Matthew Barney, Jules Verne, and Pink Floyd are not names you usually hear in the same sentence, but then the place that they all share in common is not particularly usual. Known... »

Natural Wonders, Watery Wonders, Curious Caves | Edited by Dylan and Nicholas Jackson

Hereford Cathedral Chained Library

Rare collection of medieval books under lock and key

In the Middle Ages a collection of 150 books constituted a major library. These hand-transcribed and -bound volumes on law and religion were irreplaceable assets, and thus exceedingly valuable. To... »

Curious Places of Worship, Repositories of Knowledge | Edited by Annetta and Nicholas Jackson

Severndroog Castle

A monolithic monument in Greater London

On the edge of London sits one of the more bizarre castles in all of Britain. It is not a castle in the truest sense of the term, more of a triangular tower, built to look like a castle. Named... »

Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nathan_Risinger, Dylan and 2 others

Carisbrooke Castle

The Last Home of an Executed King

Charles I of England is famous these days for really only one thing. He was the only English King to be executed by the English people. Executed at the end of the English Civil War, his death... »

Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nathan_Risinger

The Royal Pavilion

Regency Era Excess on the English Coast

In the quaint English seaside resort of Brighton rests one of the more unusual homes ever built. The Royal Pavilion is an interesting, albeit slightly odd, testament to the once mighty power of... »

Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nathan_Risinger

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