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Dunstable
Dunstable shown within the United Kingdom
Population	33,805[1]
OS grid reference	TL0121
District	South Bedfordshire
Shire county	Bedfordshire
Region	East
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	DUNSTABLE
Postcode district	LU5, LU6
Dialling code	01582
Police	Bedfordshire
Fire	Bedfordshire and Luton
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	South West Bedfordshire
European Parliament	East of England
List of places: UK • England • Bedfordshire

Coordinates: 51°53′10″N 0°31′16″W / 51.88603, -0.52102

Dunstable is a historic market town in the county of Bedfordshire. It lies on the eastward tail spurs of the Chiltern Hills. These form several steep chalk escarpments most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the north.

Before the Local Government Act 1972 coming into force in 1974 Dunstable was a municipal borough. It is now a civil parish in the South Bedfordshire district.

Contents 1 History 2 Transport 3 Amenities 3.1 Culture 3.2 Leisure 3.3 Places of interest 4 Areas and housing estates 5 Famous people who have lived in Dunstable 6 Twin towns 7 See also 8 Notes and references 9 Further reading 10 External links

Dunstable lies on a crossroads of the ancient Roman road of Watling Street, which is the modern A5 trunk road, and the even older Icknield Way. In Roman times its name was Durocobrivis.^[2] There are two theories concerning its modern name. Firstly there was a famous robber, Dunn. Wishing to capture Dunn, the king stapled a ring to a post daring the robber to steal it. It was, and he was subsequently caught^{[citation needed]}. Hence the name, Dunn staple. The Second is that it comes from Anglo-Saxon Dunstaple, meaning "Hill Market".

The Dunstable Priory Church of Saint Peter was founded in 1132 by Henry I and was later the setting for the divorce between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, which led to the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church.

In 1290 Dunstable was one of twelve sites to erect an Eleanor cross in recognition of Eleanor of Castile, wife of Edward I. Whose coffin was laid close to the crossroads for the local people to mourn the dead Queen. The coffin was then guarded inside the Priory by the Canons overnight before continuing on to St Albans.^[3]. The original wooden cross has long perished but a modern memorial remiains.

The first battles or skirmishes of the English Civil War occurred in Dunstable^{[citation needed]}.

One of the reasons for the town's prosperity, and the large number of Inns or public houses in the town, is the fact that it was one or two day's ride (approx 35 miles) from London, and therefore a place to rest and spend the night. There are two Pubs which still have coaching gates to the side that show this: the Sugar Loaf in High Street North, and the Saracens Head in High Street South. The Saracens Head, normally a name given to pubs frequented by Knights of the crusades, can be seen to be considerably lower than the road to its front, witness to the fact that the road has been resurfaced a number of times during the lifetime of the pub.

Dunstable's first railway opened in 1848. It was a branch of the London and North Western Railway, joining the West Coast Main Line at Leighton Buzzard. A second railway linking Dunstable with Hatfield on the Great Northern Railway via Luton opened in 1858. Dunstable Town station was closed when passenger services to Dunstable were withdrawn in 1965 and the track between Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard was removed. The line between Dunstable and Luton on the Midland Main Line remained open for freight traffic for many years and the track is still in place.

Dunstable was a significant market town, but its importance diminished as the neighbouring town of Luton grew.

In the twentieth century, the local economy was dominated by the printing and motor vehicle industries but with the closure of the main factories and the decline of manufacturing in the area, this distinctiveness has been lost.

Dunstable is now one of the largest towns in England without a railway connection.^[4] Without access to a rail station Dunstable's inhabitants and visitors rely almost solely on the motor car for transportation. Although congested the towns roads provide the means to connect to the countries motorways systems with ease.

The A5 trunk road lies at the heart of Dunstable's transport infrastructure, directing movement north and south. This movement is additionally complemented by the M1 motorway located east of the town in Luton via the town's other major A road, the A505.

As part of the solution to Dunstable's growing traffic problems proposals for A5-M1 Link road North of the town have been submitted. These comprise of a two-lane dual carriageway running east from the A5 north of Dunstable to join the M1 at a new Junction 11a south of Chalton. Current timetables put start of construction in 2013/14 for completion in 2015/16.^[5] However, it is not felt that this will rid the town of its current woes. Following the Highways Agencies decision to drop claims for the Dunstable Eastern Bypass, the Woodside Connection is also currently under scrutiny.

Several bus routes operate throughout the town and link with the larger terminals in Luton. There have been a number of campaigns for the re-establishment of a passenger railway; although none of them has proved to be successful, plans are now going ahead for a guided bus service, "The Luton to Dunstable Busway", between central Dunstable and London Luton Airport via Luton town centre, much of which will run along the lines of the old track.^[6] This project too has been steeped in delays and problems.

Since the closure of the Queensway Hall, the town has been awaiting the opening of the multi-million pound theatre project. After lengthy discussions this was opened in April 2007 in the Grove Gardens and was aptly named the Grove Theatre. National and local productions take place regularly at this cornerstone of Dunstable's cultural exploits. The facilities include six bars and restaurants (none are currently open - a Wetherspoons is being fitted out with no sign of any activity on any of the other empty units) and an auditorium with a capacity to hold 1000.^[7]

One of the towns little gems is that of the Little Theatre, home of the Dunstable Rep Theatre Group that also hosts dramatic performances throughout the year. The auditorium, once part of the Chews Trust was fully opened in 1964 by Bernard Bresslaw. It sits next to the historic Chews House on High Street South.^[8]

Along with several parks and open spaces kept by South Bedfordshire District Council, Dunstable Lesiure Centre is operated by Leisure Connection Ltd on the council's behalf. It houses a 25-metre swimming pool, squash courts, a large hall, extensive fitness studio, indoor bowling green and multi-use outdoor pitch.^[9] It is situated next door to the newly built Grove Theatre, a modern 24-lane ten-pin bowling centre and Dunstable College.

The town hosts a successful Rugby Union team that plays in RFU Midlands 1 (level 5) called Dunstablians and Dunstable Town Football Club, currently in Southern Football League Division One Midlands.^[10]

Within the town, there is the new Grove Theatre, the newly refurished Priory House Heritage Centre (free to the public), and the Priory Church where Henry VIII formalised his divorce from Catherine of Aragon. There is shopping in the heart of the town at the Quadrant Shopping Centre; across High Street North there is a secondary area called Eleanor's Cross Shopping Precinct with a modern statue commemorating the original cross. Nearby Luton has the Waulud's Bank prehistoric henge and Luton Museum & Art Gallery.

Dunstable Downs, a chalky escarpment outside the town, is a popular site for kite flying, paragliding, and hang gliding, while the London Gliding Club provides a base for conventional gliding and other air activities at the bottom of the Downs. Further into the countryside are the open-range Whipsnade Zoo, a garden laid out in the form of a cathedral at Whipsnade Tree Cathedral, and the Totternhoe Knolls motte-and-bailey castle.

The oldest part of the town is along the Icknield Way and Watling Street where they cross. These roads split the rest of the town into four quadrants which have each been developed in stages.^[11]

The north-west quadrant started to be developed in the nineteenth century when the British Land Company laid out the roads around Victoria Street. The development of the Beecroft area began with the houses around Worthington Road; after World War II the borough council extended the estate up to Westfield Road with its shops, and then up to Aldbanks. The war-time site of the Meteorological Office, where the road Weatherby is now, was redeveloped by George Wimpey and others. At the north of the town there is an estate originally marketed as French's Gate Estate, and at the west of the town there is an area of houses on Lancot Hill.^[12]

The south-west quadrant has largely been developed since World War II. There are three main estates. In the Lake District Estate all the streets are named after places in the Lake District and Cumbria; the estate includes a parade of shops on Langdale Road. It was originally called the Croft Golf Course Estate and was built by Laing Homes. Oldhill Down Estate around the Lowther Road shops was developed by William Old Ltd, and the Stipers Hill Estate around Seamons Close was initially created by the Land Settlement Association.^[13]

In the south-east quadrant, the area around Great Northern Road was developed at the end of the nineteenth century as Englands Close Estate and Borough Farm Estate. The Downside Estate including the shops on Mayfield Road was planned by the borough council in 1951.^[14]

The north-east quadrant is a mainly commercial and civic area, the result of redevelopment in the early 1960s. But the site of the Waterlows printing works around Printers Way is now occupied by houses built in the 1990s. The Northfields Estate at the north of the town was completed by the borough council in 1935.^[15]

Further east, near the border with Luton, there is another area that has largely been developed since World War II. To the south of Luton Road, Jeansway was completed after the war; to the north, Poynters Estate and Hadrian Estate were built on either side of Katherine Drive, where there is a parade of shops. The area also includes the Woodside Estate which contains most of the factories and warehouses that still exist in Dunstable.^[16]

For council elections the town is divided into wards. Since 2002 these have been called Chiltern, Dunstable Central, Icknield, Manshead, Northfields and Watling .^{[17] [18]}

• Nigel Benson, author and illustrator
• Paul Clayton, footballer
• Gary Cooper, American film actor
• John Dunstaple (or Dunstable), 15th century composer who was probably born in the town
• Damon Gough, musician known as Badly Drawn Boy
• Nikki Iles, musician
• Sam Kydd, actor
• Khawaja Nazimuddin, prime minister of Pakistan
• Alexander Neckam, scientist and teacher
• Elkanah Settle, poet and playwright
• Faye Tozer, member of the pop group Steps
• Members of the rock band Red Star Rebels (see Blacky Rebel)

Dunstable is twinned with:

• Bourgoin-Jallieu, (France)
• Porz-Am-Rhein, (Germany). This is now part of Köln
• Brive-la-Gaillarde, (France) Up until 2005

• Queensbury School, Langdale Road

• Prehistory: C. L. Matthews (revised J. Schneider), Ancient Dunstable, 2nd edition, Manshead Archaeological Society, 1989, ISBN 0-9515160-0-0.
• Historical town-centre locations: N. C. Benson, Dunstable in Detail: An Illustrated Guide to the Town of Dunstable, Book Castle, 1986, ISBN 0-9509773-2-2.
• Second World War: J. Yates and S. King, Dunstable and District at War from Eyewitness Accounts, Book Castle, 2006, ISBN 1-903747-79-1.

• Dunstable information and resources
• Dunstable Town Council's Official Website
• Dunstable Gazette Website
• Dunstable Town Cricket Club
• Web Site of The White Swan Public House
• Dunstable Town Football Club
• Dunstablians Rugby Union Football Club
• Dunstable links on Chainki wiki
• Animated and narrated legend of how Dunstable got its name

v • d • e Towns and villages in Bedfordshire

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