Bray | |
---|---|
Village and civil parish | |
St Michael's Church | |
Location within Berkshire | |
Population | 8,425 (2001) 9,110 (2011 Census including Burchett Green, Hawthorn Hill, Oakley Hill and Paley Street) [1] |
OS grid reference | SU9079 |
Civil parish |
|
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | MAIDENHEAD |
Postcode district | SL6 |
Dialling code | 01628 |
Police | Thames Valley |
Fire | Royal Berkshire |
Ambulance | South Central |
UK Parliament | |
Bray, occasionally Bray on Thames, is a suburban village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire. It sits on the banks of the River Thames, to the southeast of Maidenhead of which it is a suburb. The village is mentioned in the comedic song "The Vicar of Bray". Bray contains two of the eight three-Michelin-starred restaurants in the United Kingdom and has several large business premises including Bray Studios at Water Oakley, where the first series of Hammer Horror films were produced.
The civil parish of Bray is far larger than the village itself and includes a number of other villages and hamlets over an area of 24.98 km2 (9.64 sq mi). It had a population of 8,425 at the 2001 census, [2] increasing to 9,110 at the 2011 census. [1] Bray is a large parish, although its area has shrunk considerably since Maidenhead was detached. As well as the village, the parish contains a large number of villages and hamlets, which were originally scattered amongst the remains of the dense woodland of Windsor Forest that once covered the area. These include: Braywick, Holyport, Water Oakley, Oakley Green, Moneyrow Green, Stud Green, Foxley Green, Touchen End, Braywoodside and Fifield.
Exclusive houses on the river between Bray and Maidenhead Bridge have been referred to as Berkshire's 'Millionaires' row' in the national press.[ citation needed ] The flood risk of these houses has been decreased by the Jubilee River, a large drainage ditch dug between north Maidenhead and Datchet. Monkey Island, in the Thames, is associated with the 3rd Duke of Marlborough, and houses two structures that he built and furnished with paintings of monkeys, and the Grade I listed building, Monkey Island Hotel. [3] The ecclesiastical parish shares the wide parish boundaries and is named Bray St Michael with Braywoodside. [4]
The first documented mention of Bray was as Brai in the Domesday Book of 1086.
Since the redistribution of parliamentary boundaries, which took effect at the 2010 general election, Bray has been in Maidenhead, the parliamentary constituency of former Prime Minister Theresa May. In terms of local government, it is in the Bray electoral ward of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.
Bray contains two of the eight three-Michelin-starred restaurants in the United Kingdom: [5] The Fat Duck is a restaurant run by chef Heston Blumenthal in the centre of Bray. The restaurant opened in 1995, [6] and has held a three-star Michelin Guide rating since 2004. In 2005, it was named the best restaurant in the world by Restaurant magazine [7] and in 2008, 2009 and 2010, Best Restaurant in the UK, [8] scoring a maximum 10 out of 10 in the Good Food Guide . The Waterside Inn was founded in 1972 by the brothers Michel and Albert Roux after their success with Le Gavroche. It is currently run by Michel's son, Alain and Frederic Poulette. The restaurant has three Michelin stars and in 2010 became the second restaurant outside France to retain all three stars for 25 years. [9]
Bray sits on the banks of the River Thames, one and a half miles (2.4 km) south of Maidenhead town centre and 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Windsor. The B3028 road runs through the centre of Bray, and the A308 Maidenhead to Windsor road runs between Bray and the adjoining village of Holyport. The M4 motorway junction 8/9 is approximately 1 mile (2 km) from Bray, and Maidenhead railway station is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) away in Maidenhead town centre.
The Church of England parish church of St Michael was built in 1293, supposedly to replace a Saxon church at Water Oakley. [10] It has a number of sculptures which may have come from the earlier church, including a damaged Sheela na Gig. It is best known to brass rubbers for housing the superb memorial brass of 1378 to Sir John Foxley, the Constable of Southampton Castle, and his two wives. One of the local cottages has a tunnel which it is believed leads to the church and served as an escape route for clergymen. The current Vicar of Bray is the Reverend Ainsley Swift.
The Jesus Hospital is a red-brick group of almhouses, founded in 1609 by William Goddard to house thirty-four of the aged poor of Bray and six of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers, to which he belonged. A full-size effigy of Goddard stands over the entrance. [11] Jesus Hospital is now run by The Donnington Hospital Trust having been transferred from The Fishmongers Company in 2010.
The village features as the home of the eponymous "The Vicar of Bray" in a satirical 18th-century song of that name. The titular character frequently changed his religious principles in order to remain in office throughout various reforming upheavals in the English church. The story was turned into an opera in 1882 and a film in 1937.
Edward Lear makes reference to Bray in More Nonsense Pictures, Rhymes, Botany, etc: [17]
"There was an old person of Bray,
Who sang through the whole of the day
To his ducks and his pigs,
Whom he fed upon figs,That valuable person of Bray."
Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Buckinghamshire. The town is situated 27 miles (43 km) west of Charing Cross, London and 13 miles (21 km) east-northeast of the county town of Reading. The town differs from the Parliamentary constituency of Maidenhead, which includes a number of outer suburbs and villages, including villages which form part of the Borough of Wokingham such as Twyford, Charvil, Remenham, Ruscombe and Wargrave.
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is a Royal Borough of Berkshire, in South East England. While it is named after both the towns of Maidenhead and Windsor, the borough also covers the nearby towns of Ascot and Eton. It is home to Windsor Castle, Eton College, Legoland Windsor and Ascot Racecourse. It is one of four boroughs entitled to be prefixed Royal and is one of six unitary authorities in the county, which has historic and ceremonial status.
Dorney is a village and civil parish in the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England, bordering on the River Thames to the west and south, and bisected by the Jubilee River. In 2011 it had a population of 752. It is 2.3 miles (3.7 km) west of neighbouring Eton, which is a slightly larger parish.
Holyport is a suburban village in the civil parish of Bray, about 2 mi (3.2 km) south of Maidenhead town centre in the English county of Berkshire.
Heston Marc Blumenthal is a British celebrity chef, TV personality and food writer. Blumenthal is regarded as a pioneer of multi-sensory cooking, food pairing and flavour encapsulation. He came to public attention with unusual recipes, such as bacon-and-egg ice cream and snail porridge. His recipes for triple-cooked chips and soft-centred Scotch eggs have been widely imitated. He has advocated a scientific approach to cooking, for which he has been awarded honorary degrees from the universities of Reading, Bristol and London and made an honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
The Fat Duck is a fine dining restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, England, owned by the chef Heston Blumenthal. Housed in a 16th-century building, the Fat Duck opened on 16 August 1995. Although it originally served food similar to a French bistro, it soon acquired a reputation for precision and invention, and has been at the forefront of many modern culinary developments, such as food pairing, flavour encapsulation and multi-sensory cooking.
Maidenhead is a constituency in Berkshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Since its creation at the 1997 general election, the seat has been held by Conservative Member of Parliament Theresa May, who served as Home Secretary from 2010 to 2016 and as Prime Minister from 2016 to 2019.
Cookham is a historic Thames-side village and civil parish on the north-eastern edge of Berkshire, England, 2.9 miles (5 km) north-north-east of Maidenhead and opposite the village of Bourne End. Cookham forms the southernmost and most rural part of the High Wycombe urban area. With adjoining Cookham Rise and Cookham Dean, it had a combined population of 5,779 at the 2011 Census. In 2011, The Daily Telegraph deemed Cookham Britain's second richest village.
The Waterside Inn, in Bray, Berkshire, England, is a restaurant founded by the brothers Michel and Albert Roux after the success of Le Gavroche. It is currently run by Michel's son, Alain. The restaurant has three Michelin stars, and in 2010 it became the first restaurant outside France to retain all three stars for twenty-five years.
Water Oakley is a hamlet on the River Thames in the civil parish of Bray in the county of Berkshire, England. It is the location of both Bray Film Studios and the Oakley Court Hotel.
Garrey Dawson is a British chef who has appeared on television in the BBC programme Ready Steady Cook.
Bacon ice cream is an ice cream generally created by adding bacon to egg custard and freezing the mixture. The concept of bacon ice cream originated in a 1973 sketch on the British comedy series The Two Ronnies as a joke; it was eventually created for April Fools' Day by a New York ice cream parlour in 1982. In the 2000s, the English chef Heston Blumenthal experimented with ice cream, making a custard similar to scrambled eggs and adding bacon to create one of his signature dishes. It now appears on dessert menus in other restaurants.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal is a restaurant in London, England, created by Heston Blumenthal. Opened in January 2011, it received a Michelin star within a year and earned its second in 2014. In April 2014, it was listed fifth on The World's 50 Best Restaurants in Restaurant.
The Hinds Head, is a gastropub in Bray, Berkshire. The pub dates from the 15th century, and was converted into a restaurant in the 1920s. It was awarded a single Michelin star in the 2013 edition of the Michelin Guide and has retained it ever since. It has been owned by chef Heston Blumenthal since 2004.
Carl Magnus Lindgren was a Swedish chef. Lindgren was a senior chef at celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant The Fat Duck, the Michelin-starred restaurant in Bray, Berkshire.
St Michael's Church, Bray, is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England in Bray, Berkshire.
James "Jocky" Petrie is a Scottish professional chef, best known for his work alongside chef Heston Blumenthal as head of development of the Experimental Kitchen at The Fat Duck, and as Group Executive Development Chef for Gordon Ramsay. He has regularly appeared as mentor and judge on a number of television shows including MasterChef, Heston's Fantastical Food, In Search of Perfection, and Top Chef Suomi.