Watford: Difference between revisions
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* [[Kelly Smith]], [[England women's national football team|England women's national team]] and [[Arsenal L.F.C.|Arsenal]] footballer |
* [[Kelly Smith]], [[England women's national football team|England women's national team]] and [[Arsenal L.F.C.|Arsenal]] footballer |
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* [[Ray Cooper]], percussionist (performed in both [[Elton John]]'s and [[Eric Clapton]]'s bands) |
* [[Ray Cooper]], percussionist (performed in both [[Elton John]]'s and [[Eric Clapton]]'s bands) |
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[[ |
[[ Kiek]], teacher |
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==Twinning== |
==Twinning== |
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Revision as of 12:20, 16 March 2006
| Borough of Watford | |
|---|---|
|
 Shown within Hertfordshire |
| Geography | |
| Status: | Town, Non-metropolitan district and Borough |
| Region: | East of England |
| Admin. County: | Hertfordshire |
| Area: - Total |
Ranked 347th 21.43 km² |
| Admin. HQ: | Watford |
| ONS code: | 26UK |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total (2004 est.) - Density |
Ranked 292nd 79,300 3,700 / km² |
| Ethnicity: | 86.0% White 8.2% S.Asian 2.7% Afro-Carib. |
| Politics | |
| Watford Borough Council logo Watford Borough Council http://www.watford.gov.uk/ | |
| Leadership: | Mayor & Cabinet |
| Mayor: | Dorothy Thornhill (Liberal Democrats) |
| MP: | Claire Ward |
Watford is a town and district (styled as a borough due to the historical charter granted by Henry VIII) located 15.5 miles (25 km) north west of Charing Cross in London and within the bounds of the M25 motorway.
Watford district has 80,000 inhabitants. The parish of Watford Rural covers an area to the south of the borough of Watford (which is largely urbanised), in the Three Rivers district.
Transport
Watford is within the M25 motorway with Watford Metropolitan Line station at the outer edge of the London Underground system. There are faster trains to central and north London from Watford Junction and Bushey stations. The Metropolitan Line branch is due to be diverted to Watford Junction via the disused Croxley Green branch.
Watford also has its own airport, listed as Watford Regional Airport, but known locally and offically as Elstree Aerodrome. Many private charters, and well as occasional holiday charters take off from here, with the request customs service contributing to the popularity of this hub. Many celebrities are known to travel through Watford, due to its location close to the world famous Elstree Film and Television Studios.
Politics
Unlike most English districts, its council is led by a directly-elected mayor, currently Dorothy Thornhill of the Liberal Democrats. She is the only directly-elected Liberal Democrat mayor.
Claire Ward has represented Watford in Parliament since the 1997 general election in the Labour Party interest. Her constituency includes the whole of Watford Borough and in addition five wards from Three Rivers district.
Nightlife
The High Street running through the town centre is the main place for any activity at night. The part of town is sometimes referred to as the café quarter, and has a high concentration of the town's bars, clubs and restaurants.
The Watford Observer reported on 30 October 2005 that Watford is the "binge drinking capital" of Hertfordshire.
North of Watford
The phrase "North of Watford" is widely used to describe areas of the United Kingdom that are north of London. This is possibly because Watford was the first place that horses were changed on the route to the north-west from London. Alternatively, the phrase may refer to the Northamptonshire village of Watford, about 50 miles farther north, which traditionally was an important waypoint on the old east-west and north-south coaching routes. This was the point where the main north-south road, rail and canal routes came together at a gap in the hills known as Watford Gap. Watford in Hertfordshire is much better known and so frequently mistaken, in the context of this phrase, for the same place.
An alternative theory is that many of the original signs at the southern end of the M1 motorway bore the legends "Watford" and "The North", Watford being the first major town on that route.
People
Watford was the birthplace of:
- Michael Bentine, politician and ex-Goon
- Terry Scott, Carry On actor and comedian
- Bradley Walsh, Coronation Street actor and comedian
- Mo Mowlam, politician
- Vinnie Jones, footballer turned actor
- Gareth Southgate, footballer Middlesbrough_F.C.
- Geri Halliwell, singer and former Spice Girl
- Kelly Smith, England women's national team and Arsenal footballer
- Ray Cooper, percussionist (performed in both Elton John's and Eric Clapton's bands)
Jonathan Kiek, teacher
Twinning
Watford has six twin towns. These are:
Mainz in Germany. Linked since 1956.
Nanterre in France. Linked since 1960.
Novgorod in Russia. Linked since 1984.
Wilmington, Delaware in the United States. Linked since 1985.
Pesaro in Italy. Linked since 1988.
Plymouth in Devon. Linked since 1997.
Other Watfords
Sport
Watford is home to professional football club, Watford F.C., who are currently in the Championship. Saracens Rugby Club moved to Watford and shares the same ground, which is in Vicarage Road.
- Watford Football Club
- Saracens Football Club (rugby union)
