Tours and Trails

If you like doing interesting virtual tours of villages, towns, churches and historic buildings, then click on the links below and see just what this area has to offer.

Available Now:

Heritage Hunter Trails
Broughton (pdf) Heritage Hunters Broughton Heritage Trail.
A walk designed by the Two Villages Archive Trust, with thanks to Milton Keynes Parks Trust, starting in the car park in Shackerstone Close in front of Broughton Fields School. Self guided.
Olney (pdf) Heritage Hunters Olney Heritage Trail.
A walk designed by children from Olney Middle School to give history of the town from their perspective. Approx 40 minutes long, it includes the history of the buildings the children felt were significant; and explains some of the history of Olney itself. Self guided.
Willen Lake (pdf) Willian Lake Walk
A walk designed by Willen Primary School children. Approx 45 minutes long and
wheelchair friendly. It explains the history of buildings and how newer areas came
into being. Self guided.
Place
Village/Town Trails
Castlethorpe Do the tour of this ancient village; read about individual houses and the people who lived there. The tour has links to other parts of the site such as the church tour and the photo albums..

Deanshanger Click on the tour points on the village read about the history of this Northamptonshire village which once was the home for two businesses of national repute.

Fenny
Stratford
Historic photos showing some of the character and lifestyle of this old town. Includes some shots taken in the 1960’s – a reminder that for many of us, our childhood will soon be classed as being in a “historic” period!

Hanslope The first village trail to be posted on the site, and the one which set the format which many others have followed. A walk through a village full of character, with acknowledgements to village life past and present.

New
Bradwell
A Google-mapped virtual tour with hotspots and pop-ups. See the aerial views of the town. Investigate this community which grew as a railway town alongside the rise of Wolverton Works.

Newport Pagnell A text-based trail with lots of links to click on to open windows showing old photographs. The tour includes a map of the fortifications of the town in the Civil War.

Milton Keynes Village An innovative approach to a village trail, enabling you to look in several directions from any chosen point on the trail, and also step back into the past to see how that view used to look. One of the “Jewels of Milton Keynes” sites.

Olney Do the tour of Olney’s historic market place and read the fascinating history of many of the buildings there. Discover who lived there, and what trades, businesses and occupations came. thrived and disappeared around this centre of Olney.

Sherington Have a wander round this quiet village. This trail has been
revamped and includes archive photographs as well as modern views and historical
details.

Stoke
Goldington
A very detailed tour all round the village, with the option of having an audio commentary in the local accent, which supplies many extra details not printed on the page.

Stony Stratford An attractive tour of this historic town, with many “now and then” photos which show what has changed and what hasn’t in Stony Stratford. Links to other pages containing further information.

Woburn
Sands
Two photo-tours using old postcards, photos and modern equivalent views to give interesting “then and now” comparisons of areas around Woburn Sands. A High  Street “then and now” trail has been added.

 

Place
Church Tours
Broughton See the unique medieval wall paintings in St Lawrence’s Church. As it is not often open to the public, this is your best chance to enjoy them.

Castlethorpe Do the tour of the church of St Simon & St Jude, see the stained glass. There is also a plan of the churchyard with its own set of images.

Hanslope St James the Great has the highest church spire in Buckinghamshire: don’t miss the panoramic view from the top, or the wealth of other interesting features – ancient and modern. This is the church tour which set the standard for all the others to follow.

Milton Keynes
Village
Do the tour of All Saints Church – part of which was once used as a school. Interesting stonework, carvings and even an underground hypercaust heating system!

Sherington The tour of St Laud’s Church has been comprehensively updated to include many new features, with tours inside and outside the church, historical details, archive photos, and details of recent restorations.

Thornton A church within the grounds of a college! St Michael & All Angels was extensively altered in the 18th century, but many interesting features have remained. This wide-ranging tour and study of the building and its latter-day renovation will take you into them all, even telling you about the coffins in the vault! Famous places like York Minster aren’t done in this level of detail….

Towcester The complete experience: the history, the online tour, details of notable people and burials, war memorials, benefaction boards, monumental brasses, monumental inscriptions – the lot!