Stony Stratford Walk: Town Centre【4K】

Located in the county of Buckinghamshire, and around 50 miles northwest of central London, is the town of Stony Stratford.
Geographically, Stony Stratford is situated at the southeastern bank of the River Great Ouse, where the Roman road Watling Street crosses it, hence the 'Stratford' part of the name, meaning 'Roman road river crossing'. The 'stony' component can be interpreted literally as a stony area, perhaps to distinguish it from other nearby settlements including Old Stratford and Fenny Stratford.
In 1194 a market charter was granted to Stony Stratford by Richard I. Since then, many monarchs have visited, including King John, Edward I, Richard II and Henry VIII among others.
At the heart of the town is St Mary & St Giles Church. Its origins go back to the 13th century, although the oldest part of the current edifice is the 15th century tower. The rest was rebuilt in 1776. St Giles is the patron saint of people with disabilities, and many churches dedicated to his name are situated next to major roads, so that weary travellers could enter and find rest and peace.
In 1483 the uncrowned boy king Edward V stayed the night in Stony Stratford before being taken to the Tower of London by his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester (who later became Richard III). Later that year, Edward and his younger brother Richard of Shrewsbury were murdered in the tower. They were 12 and 9 or 10 years old respectively. The culprit remains the source of speculation to this day with Shakespeare among others alleging that they were smothered to death with pillows under orders of Richard III, although this has never been proven.
From the 17th to the 19th century, the era of the stagecoach provided the means for growth for towns situated along historic roads. In the case of Stony Stratford it was located along the London to Chester route. The emergence of Birmingham as an industrial powerhouse during the 18th century would also play a role, being as Stony Stratford is roughly equidistant between London and
Birmingham. Travellers would rest in coaching inns for food and drink and, in some cases, a bed for the night, while the horses were changed. Several former coaching inns feature prominently in the town today.
Two of Stony Stratford's coaching inns from the stagecoach era form the basis for the legend behind the phrase "a cock and bull story". These are, intuitively enough, The Cock and The Bull. As can be seen in the video they are situated just a few doors down from each other. The story goes that when passengers visited, there would be a private competition between The Cock and The Bull to see who could tell the most outlandish news stories to the locals, and have them be believed. When these were relayed, people would begin to dismiss them as "cock and bull stories", i.e. tall tales heard from these two establishments.
The coaching inn era came to an abrupt end with the arrival of the railway in the neighbouring town of Wolverton in 1838. Wolverton's railway works opened that same year and provided a source of employment to those in Stony Stratford. From 1887 to 1926 the Wolverton and Stony Stratford Tramway provided a link between the two towns. Today, public transport to Stony Stratford consists of bus services from Milton Keynes and other nearby settlements including Wolverton, whose station is two miles away for reference to those who wish to walk.
In 1967 Milton Keynes was officially founded as a new town as a means of relieving housing congestion in London. Its designated area incorporated neighbouring towns including Stony Stratford, thus making it a constituent town of Milton Keynes.
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Filmed: 5th March 2023
Link to the walk on Google Maps: goo.gl/maps/9Hj1W6Ru5F5dUUmN6
Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Wolverton Road
0:39 London Road
1:32 High Street
6:02 Church Street
7:53 High Street

[@bexhil7]

Another great video of Stony Stratford Walk: Town Centre【4K】💛💛💛💛

[@ShakeelAhmed-pr7gn]

Interesting town. Nice to see some beautiful structures. Thank you for the pleasant walk.

[@4KExplorer]

Always appreciated, thanks!

[@Zoomalison]

Lovely video - and the little snatches of conversation that you've captured are fascinating. Come back during the week when shops are open and it's full of people, because it's the people that really make Stony.

[@franhanington766]

Thank you for the lovely walk. It's been awesome.

[@4KExplorer]

That's very kind, thanks!

[@ndavies5968]

Just fitted the new wilks budgeons store signage here yesterday ..I love stony statford , has a real nice atmosphere

[@FollowMatty]

Great video! The Old George looks like a good drinking hole.

[@4KExplorer]

Indeed, among a few others I suspect!

[@abdulrkhan2008]

Terrific walk. looking. forward to...oops. forgot the spelling..