134-646: Grimsbury is a largely residential area which forms the eastern part of Banbury , in the Cherwell district, in the county of, Oxfordshire , England. It is situated east of the River Cherwell , the Oxford Canal and the Cherwell Valley Line railway. Grimsbury was first settled in the 6th century as a Saxon hamlet and for centuries was a hamlet separate from Banbury on the east side of
268-548: A cattle market , Western Europe's largest. Situated on Merton Street in Grimsbury , for many decades, cattle and other farm animals were driven there on the hoof from as far as Scotland to be sold to feed the growing population of London and other towns. Since its closure in June 1998, a new housing development has been built on its site which includes Dashwood Primary School. The estate, which lies between Banbury and Hanwell ,
402-494: A Saxon chieftain said to have built a stockade there in the 6th century (or possibly a byname from Old English : bana meaning felon , murderer ), and burgh / burh meaning settlement . In Anglo Saxon it was called Banesburh (dative Banesbyrig ). The name appears as Banesberie in the Domesday Book of 1086. Another known spelling was Banesebury in medieval times. During excavations for
536-560: A Vauxhall on the UK market. Early in 1980, Vauxhall moved into the modern family hatchback market with its Astra range that replaced the aging Viva, and quickly became popular with buyers. The Astra was a rebadged version of the first front-wheel drive Opel Kadett, which had been launched in 1979, and was sold alongside the Astra for several years. Initially imported from Opel's plant in Bochum , it
670-490: A White Horse of the nursery rhyme. It stands on the corner of West Bar and South Bar, just yards from the present Banbury Cross. Banbury has a museum in the town centre near Spiceball Park, replacing the old museum near Banbury Cross. It is accessible over a bridge from the Castle Quay Shopping Centre or via Spiceball Park Road. Admission to the museum is free. The town's tourist information centre
804-514: A bridle path to the west and south of the town), its primary use being transport of salt; and Banbury Lane, which began near Northampton and is closely followed by the modern 22-mile-long (35 km) road. It continued through what is now Banbury's High Street and towards the Fosse Way at Stow-on-the-Wold . Banbury's medieval prosperity was based on wool . Banbury Castle was built from 1135 by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln , and survived into
938-776: A capacity for building around 100,000 units a year. In 2012, the Ellesmere Port plant employed around 1,880 staff and had a theoretical (three-shift) capacity around 187,000 units a year. Vauxhall-branded vehicles are also manufactured in Opel factories in Germany, Spain , and Poland . The current car range includes the Astra ( small family car ), Corsa ( supermini ), Crossland ( subcompact crossover SUV ), Mokka ( subcompact SUV ), and Grandland ( compact SUV ). Vauxhall sells high-performance versions of some of its models under
1072-490: A children's play area and a skateboard park. Across the road from the main park there is the sports centre, which includes a swimming pool, courts, café and gym facilities. The sports centre began to be re-developed in late 2009, for a new centre and café, which was completed by mid 2010. Vauxhall Motors Vauxhall Motors is a British car company headquartered in Chalton , Bedfordshire , England. Vauxhall became
1206-465: A full-synchromesh gearbox, mechanical windscreen wipers and a 'six-stage' carburetor. Priced at £168-182, the 10-4 was only slightly more expensive than old-fashioned equivalents from Austin and Morris and cost around £30 more than the cheapest 10-horsepower class car on sale, the Ford 7W . The model was promoted as "The £1 Million Motor Car", reflecting the supposed investment in its design and production and
1340-522: A key feature of Victorian life, both in the town and countryside. In the late 1920s the economy of Banbury was revolutionised by the arrival of new industries and in particular by the relocation of the out of town livestock market to Grimsbury. It used to be held in Neithrop and/or Bridge Street, Banbury. The new site was selected due to its proximity to the railway station. It was formally closed in June 1998, after being abandoned several years earlier, and
1474-599: A local inn, the Reindeer Inn as it was then known (today's Ye Olde Reine Deer Inn). The town was pro-Parliamentarian, but the castle was manned by a Royalist garrison who supported King Charles I . In 1645 during the Civil War, Parliamentary troops were billeted in nearby Hanwell for nine weeks and villagers petitioned the Warwickshire Committee of Accounts to pay for feeding them. The castle
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#17327767363041608-711: A private park in 1890 and opened in 1910, along with the adjacent bowling green . The land south of The New Foscote Hospital in Calthorpe and Easington Farm were mostly open farmland until the early 1960s as shown by the Ordnance Survey maps of 1964, 1955 and 1947. It had only a few farmsteads, the odd house, an allotment field (now under the Sainsbury's store), the Municipal Borough of Banbury council's small reservoir just south of Easington Farm and
1742-408: A reputation for rapid and severe structural corrosion. The F-Type Victor was especially badly affected by this issue, caused by a combination of thin-gauge steel to minimise weight, numerous moisture traps in its body design (for instance the hidden tailpipe design encouraged corrosive exhaust gases and condensation to collect in the rear wing corners), the fitting of a plasticised underseal treatment to
1876-605: A reverse gear in 1904. A single survivor could still be seen at the London Science Museum in 1968. A 1903 model was entered in the London-to-Brighton car run in 2018. To expand, the company moved the majority of its production to Luton in 1905. The company continued to trade under the name Vauxhall Iron Works until 1907, when the modern name 'Vauxhall Motors' was adopted. The company was characterised by its sporting models, but after World War I ,
2010-636: A school uniform which was introduced in 2009. The headteacher is Vicki McLean. St Leonard's Church of England Primary School was originally Christchurch School. Its original buildings were designed by the Oxford Diocesan architect G.E. Street and built in 1860–61. The town centre's Bankside park is near the railway bridge, on the opposite canal to Grimsbury. The Howard Road play area is in Grimsbury. The Verney Road play area, Chaldons Road play area and urban park and Alma Road village green are all in
2144-642: A significant player in the British car market. After 15 months on sale the AS-type Light Six was replaced by the D-type Light Six. This was fundamentally the same as the outgoing model with minor styling and interior updates, but with one major engineering change - namely the addition of Dubonnet suspension to the front, making the new Light Six the first mass-production British saloon car with independent front suspension. The Dubonnet system
2278-400: A single body design across three distinct models. In 1954, GM management sanctioned a switch to a two-body line-up at Vauxhall with concurrent investment to expand both the body shop and production lines at Luton. The new model would replace the four-cylinder Wyvern with a smaller car using the same engine, bringing Vauxhall into line with the established norm for cars in the 1.5-litre class -
2412-454: A single body design in order to maximise productivity and reduce supply costs. The British government had also revoked the RAC taxable horsepower system and replaced it with a flat charge per vehicle regardless of engine size. This meant that there was no longer such an imperative to offer similar models with different engine capacities to fit in the different bands of the old tax system. Therefore,
2546-508: A single body design) with the addition of the Cresta , which was a more luxuriously styled and appointed version of the Velox. Following GM practice from America, from this point Vauxhall began offering annual minor updates, improvements and styling changes to its cars to both keep up with competitors and to tempt existing owners to replace their car. Since the restarting of car production in 1945
2680-486: A spell, working as a draughtsman with GM's Lansing -based Oldsmobile division. As the first significant post-acquisition passenger car, the Cadet, initially retailing at £280, is generally regarded as demonstrating Vauxhall's newly acquired interest and expertise in controlling production costs, but it was also the first British car to feature a synchromesh gearbox . General Motors continued to reposition Vauxhall towards
2814-590: A star to perform at their factory for three consecutive days. Vauxhall was one of the first English car makers to switch from wartime to civilian production, mostly due to the ease with which Bedford trucks in production for military use could be redirected to the civilian market. The first post-war civilian trucks were made a few days before VJ Day in August 1945, with Vauxhall car production resuming in September. These initial models were essentially unchanged from
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#17327767363042948-638: A subsidiary of Stellantis in January 2021, having previously been owned by General Motors since 1925. Vauxhall is one of the oldest established vehicle manufacturers and distribution companies in the United Kingdom. It sells passenger cars, and electric and light commercial vehicles under the Vauxhall marque nationally, and used to sell vans, buses, and trucks under the Bedford brand. Vauxhall
3082-423: A unitary structure, independent front suspension with coil springs, a leaf-sprung live rear axle and a 1.5-litre four-cylinder overhead valve engine with a three-speed manual transmission with column-mounted change - it was, by necessity, virtually all brand new. The drivetrain was largely lifted from the outgoing E-Type Wyvern, but the engine received a higher compression ratio and updated carburation to account for
3216-597: A water spring lay to the south of it. The Ruscote estate, which now has a notable South Asian community, was expanded in the 1950s because of the growth of the town due to the London overspill and further grew in the mid-1960s. British Railways closed Merton Street railway station and the Buckingham to Banbury line to passenger traffic at the end of 1960. Merton Street goods depot continued to handle livestock traffic for Banbury's cattle market until 1966, when this too
3350-525: Is 52 feet 6 inches (16 m) high, and topped by a gilt cross. Towns with crosses in England before the reformation were places of Christian pilgrimage. The English nursery rhyme " Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross ", in its several forms, may refer to one of the crosses destroyed by Puritans in 1600. In April 2005, Princess Anne unveiled a large bronze statue depicting the Fine Lady upon
3484-419: Is home to the world's largest coffee-processing facility ( Jacobs Douwe Egberts ), built in 1964. The town is famed for Banbury cakes , a spiced sweet pastry. Banbury is located 64 miles (103 km) north-west of London , 37 miles (60 km) south-east of Birmingham , 27 miles (43 km) south-east of Coventry and 22 miles (35 km) north-west of Oxford . The name Banbury may derive from "Banna",
3618-538: Is in the Cherwell Valley with many hills in and around the town. Apart from the town centre, much of Banbury is on a slope and each entry into the town is downhill. Estates such as Bretch Hill and Hardwick are built on top of a hill and much of the town can be seen from both. Other notable hills include the suburban, Crouch Hill and the more central Pinn Hill, and Strawberry Hill on the outskirts of Easington. Mine Hill and Rye Hill lie, along with many others, to
3752-539: Is located in the museum entrance in the Castle Quay Shopping Centre. Tooley's Boatyard was built in 1778 and is a historic site with a nearly 250-year-old blacksmiths' shop and narrow boat dry dock. Spiceball Park is the largest park in Banbury. It is east of the Oxford Canal , mainly west of the River Cherwell , north of Castle Quay and south of Hennef Way. It includes three large fields,
3886-480: Is now used as an entrance to a shopping centre. The Northern Aluminium Co. Ltd. or Alcan Industries Ltd. pig and rolled aluminium factory was opened in 1931 on land acquired in 1929 on the east of the Southam road, in the then hamlet of Hardwick. The various Alcan facilities on the 53-acre site closed between 2006 and 2007. The factory was demolished between 2008 and 2009. The laboratory was also closed in 2004 and
4020-404: Is now used as offices for numerous companies. Another major employer is Jacobs Douwe Egberts , which produces instant coffee . The facility moved to Banbury from Birmingham in 1965. In the central area were built many large shops, a bus station, and a large car park north of Castle Street. In 1969 proposals for the redevelopment of the central area were in hand, leading to the creation of
4154-485: Is on a floodplain and suffered severe floods in 1998 and 2007. On 31 December 1894 Grimsbury became a separate civil parish , being formed from part of Warkworth, on 1 April 1932 the parish was abolished and merged with Banbury. In 1931 the parish had a population of 3501. Workmen found a fizzing and burning incendiary chemical that was suspected to be left over from a long-demolished World War I munitions factory and ammunition testing range. Thames Valley Police closed
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4288-457: Is priced for sale and is a tabloid. The Banbury Cake was formerly a free newspaper: its print edition ceased publication in 2017 and its website subsequently also closed. Regional TV news is provided by BBC South and ITV Meridian . Television signals received from the Oxford TV transmitter, although some parts of the town get a better TV signal from the local relay transmitter which
4422-591: Is served by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central . Local radio stations are BBC Radio Oxford , Heart South , and Capital Mid-Counties . Banbury Music Radio was a local Internet radio station . At one time Banbury had many crosses (the High Cross, the Bread Cross and the White Cross), but these were destroyed by Puritans in 1600. Banbury remained without a cross for more than 250 years until
4556-675: Is the 1930 and earlier old town of "Old Grimsbury". Grimsbury, Old and New, along with the hamlets of Nethercote and Huscote were historically hamlets in Warkworth parish, Northamptonshire, but which were transferred in 1889 to the parish of Bodicote, Oxfordshire. A retail and residential development was built on the former site of the Bridge Motors Vauxhall dealership and opened in 2010. The region has in recent decades been home to many Asian families and has recently been settled by many East European immigrants. Grimsbury
4690-653: The Bishop of Lincoln 's demesne lands, and a fourth which was leased to Robert son of Waukelin by the Bishop. Among Banbury's four Medieval mills was probably a forerunner of Banbury Mill, first referred to by this name in 1695. In the year 1279, Laurence of Hardwick was also paying 3 marks (equivalent to 40 shillings) in annual rent to the Bishop for a mill in the then Hardwick hamlet. The forerunners of Butchers Row were probably long standing butchers' stalls which were known to be in situ by 1438. The old Victorian Corn Exchange
4824-530: The Brooklands circuit, the Vauxhall was so far ahead of all other cars of any class that the driver could relax, accomplishing the 200 miles (320 km) at an average speed of 46 mph (74 km/h), when the car was capable of 55 mph (89 km/h). The Y-Type went on to win class E of the trial. The Y-Type was so successful that it was decided to put the car into production as the A09 car. This spawned
4958-632: The Civil War , when it was besieged. Due to its proximity to Oxford , the King's capital, Banbury was at one stage a Royalist town, but the inhabitants were known to be strongly Puritan . Banbury played an important part in the English Civil War as a base of operations for Oliver Cromwell , who is reputed to have planned the Battle of Edge Hill in the back room (which can still be visited) of
5092-580: The Local Government Act 1972 it became part of the traditionally Conservative-ruled Cherwell District Council , an unparished area with Charter Trustees . A civil parish with a town council was set up in 2000. The post of the mayor of Banbury was created in 1607. The first mayor was Thomas Webb. A number of roads are named after former mayors of the town, including Mascord Road, Mold Crescent and Fairfax Close. Another former mayor, Angela Billingham , went into national politics. Banbury
5226-485: The River Cherwell in Oxfordshire , South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire and southern parts of Warwickshire and Northamptonshire which are predominantly rural. Banbury's main industries are motorsport, car components, electrical goods, plastics, food processing and printing. Banbury
5360-460: The Ruscote ward of Banbury, is a large food and coffee producing factory. It was built in 1964 and has gone through a number of ownership changes since. It is still sometimes known by its previous names of Bird's , Kraft and General Foods or GF. Banbury was once home to Western Europe's largest cattle market, on Merton Street in Grimsbury. The market was a key feature of Victorian life in
5494-580: The Vauxhall A-Type . Four distinct types of this were produced between 27 October 1908 and when mass production halted in 1914. One last A-Type was put together in 1920. Capable of up to 100 mph (160 km/h), the A-Type Vauxhall was one of the most acclaimed three-litre cars of its day. Two cars were entered in the 1910 Prince Henry Trials, and although not outright winners, performed well, and replicas were made for sale officially as
Grimsbury - Misplaced Pages Continue
5628-687: The Vauxhall Viva small family car commenced, with the new car being aimed at the like of the Ford Anglia . The German version of the car was sold as the Opel Kadett . The locally assembled Vauxhall Viva was launched in Australia in May 1964. In 1966, Vauxhall's Slant Four engine went into production – the first production overhead camshaft inline-four to use a rubber timing belt . Also,
5762-533: The West Midlands . As such it has close cultural links with neighbouring Midlands towns such as Stratford-upon-Avon , Leamington Spa , and Warwick . In 1998 and 2007, Banbury was subject to heavy flooding due to its location by the River Cherwell. Heavy clay and Ironstone deposits surround Banbury. The Domesday Book in 1086 listed three mills, with a total fiscal value of 45 shillings , on
5896-737: The executive car market with the launch of its all-new Carlton saloon and estate, which were facelifted versions of the German-built Opel Rekord . A year later, a more upmarket saloon model, the Senator , was launched under the Opel brand, and finally became available as a Vauxhall from 1983. By 1979, Vauxhall had increased its market share substantially; it was still some way behind Ford and British Leyland, but had overtaken Talbot (the Peugeot -owned successor to Rootes and Chrysler UK ). By this time, GM had decided to withdraw
6030-479: The nave by four- bay arcades . St Leonard's was a chapel of ease to Christ Church in Broad Street until 1921, when Grimsbury was constituted as a separate parish with Saint Leonard's as its church. In 1931 a fire destroyed much of the south side of St Leonard's and thereafter the church was redecorated and a new vestry built. In 1978 a new Church of England Parish of Banbury, comprising four districts,
6164-415: The 1882, 1900, 1910 and 1922 Ordnance Survey maps. Duke Street, was located at the western edge of Wilkins' (now demolished) brick pit, was developed around 1870. There was a substantial 'brick, tile and drain works' with a short tramway in it to the east of Grimsbury in the vicinity of Howard Street according to the 1882, 1883 1900, 1910, 1922 1923 and 1947 Ordnance Survey maps. It had closed by 1923 and
6298-481: The 1908 RAC and Scottish Reliability Trial, held in June that year. The cars were so successful that Pomeroy took over from Hodges. Pomeroy's first design, the Y-Type Y1, had outstanding success at the 1908 RAC and Scottish 2000 Mile Reliability Trials – showing excellent hill-climbing ability with an aggregate of 37 seconds less time in the hill climbs than any other car in its class. With unparalleled speeds around
6432-525: The 1920s), wrap-around front and rear screens, large chromed bumpers and an exhaust tailpipe integrated into one of the rear overriders. A year after launch the Victor would also provide the basis for Vauxhall's first factory-built estate car . The new P-Type Velox/Cresta models were announced in October 1957. Like the Victor these essentially featured updated versions of the drivetrain (and running gear) from
6566-623: The 1994 and 1995 F1 World Championships was based on the Wildmere Industrial Estate. The Marussia F1 team had its manufacturing and production facility sited on Thorpe Way Industrial Estate using the building formerly owned by Ascari Cars , a luxury sports car manufacturer. Both Simtek and Marussia F1 had been brought to Banbury by Nick Wirth who owned the Simtek team and was the former Technical Director at Marussia. After Marussia F1 went into administration in 2014, their base
6700-620: The AS-type Light Six . With an all-steel body and a refined and modern overhead valve inline-six engine, the Light Six was produced in 12- and 14- 'tax horsepower' variants. Modernisation and expansion of the Luton factory meant that the Light Six was sold for £195 for the standard four-door saloon, which was significantly less than many of its older rivals with four-cylinder engines and less interior appointments, and Vauxhall made
6834-742: The C-type, but now known as the Prince Henry . During the First World War, Vauxhall made large numbers of the D-type, a Prince Henry chassis with derated engine, for use as staff cars for the British forces. After the 1918 armistice, the D-type remained in production, along with the sporting E-type . Pomeroy left in 1919, moving to the United States, and was replaced by C.E. King. In spite of making good cars, expensive pedigree cars of
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#17327767363046968-598: The Castle shopping centre in 1977 (the centre was later combined into the Castle Quay centre). The 1977 plans to build a multi-storey car park on what is now the open air car park behind Matalan and Poundland were scrapped in 1978 and another one was built to the rear of the Castle Shopping Centre in 1978. The former Hunt Edmunds brewery premises became Crest Hotels headquarters, but closed in
7102-596: The Cavalier range by 1978, but there never was an estate version. The Cavalier helped Vauxhall regain lost ground in this crucial sector of the market, while the Chevette proved to be hugely popular in the growing supermini sector, as more buyers turned to smaller cars following the oil crisis of 1973. The Chevette range later evolved into a three-door estate, as well as saloons with two or four doors. Both models were based on models produced by Opel, GM's German subsidiary,
7236-467: The Centre of Banbury Studies was published in the 1870s or 1880s and it asserted that the term originated in the 1830s but no source is given for that assertion. In the 1850s magazine articles used "Banburyshire" or the hyphenated term "Banbury-shire". The Banburyshire Natural History Society was formed in 1881. In the 20th century a number of books used the term "Banburyshire" in their titles, dating from
7370-468: The Chevette being based on the Opel Kadett , but with a distinct front end. Along with the Chevrolet Chevette in the US and Canada, the Chevette and Kadett were built on GM's T-Car platform . Similarly, the Cavalier was based on the Opel Ascona , but featured the front end of the Manta , as did the Chevrolet Chevair in South Africa . This marked the end of a long and gradual process by GM to consolidate its two European subsidiaries with preference for
7504-421: The E-Type Wyvern was a significantly larger car than its direct competitors. The new car would be launched for 1957 alongside new Velox/Cresta models which could, correspondingly, be slightly enlarged since their body no longer had to be shared with a model in the class below. The small model, named the F-Type Victor was announced first in February 1957. Although its engineering followed familiar Vauxhall lines -
7638-558: The E-Type models in a new, larger and much more flamboyantly-styled body. American styling cues were again much in evidence, this time being heavily influenced by a 1954 Cadillac concept car called the Park Avenue. Both the new Vauxhall models continued the success of their predecessors. The Victor achieved new sales records for Vauxhall and in the late 1950s was Britain's most exported car, being sold in most right-hand drive car markets such as Australia, New Zealand , South Africa , India , Pakistan , Thailand and Singapore . The model
7772-465: The FD Victor was launched at the Earls Court Motor Show , considered by many to be one of Vauxhall's finest all-British styling efforts. During the 1960s, Vauxhall acquired a reputation for making rust-prone models. The corrosion protection built into models was tightened up significantly, but the reputation dogged the company until at least the early 1980s. In 1967, Vauxhall became a Royal Warrant Holder : Motor Vehicle Manufacturers to HM The Queen –
7906-429: The GSe sub-brand. Significant former Vauxhall production cars include the Victor , Viva , Chevette , and Cavalier . Vauxhall is set to close its Luton plant in the future due to Government incentives for plug-in electric vehicles adversely affecting ICE vehicle sales, despite the plant readying a 2025 transition to a new all-electric Vauxhall Vivaro 3 line. Scottish marine engineer Alexander Wilson founded
8040-521: The Luton factory as well as a significant expansion of Vauxhall's engineering and design staff. The first of the new models was released in September 1937. This was the H-type 10-4 (the model number referring to its 10 tax-horsepower, four-cylinder engine). This was the first truly small Vauxhall in many years. As well as its advanced unibody structure - a first for a British saloon car - the 10-4 also featured an overhead valve engine, fully hydraulic brakes and Dubonnet front suspension. Other features included
8174-422: The Market Quarter estate. There is also one other park and one minor playground on the seat. The nearby hamlet of Nethercote, Banbury is within walking distance, where, as well as Banbury Lane itself, there are numerous public footpaths running through Nethercote, Banbury . Stagecoach Oxfordshire run a majority of services in the area, which are: Banbury Banbury is an historic market town on
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#17327767363048308-421: The Marlborough Road area and in Bath Road, Kings Road, Park Road, and Queen Street in Neithrop. The mostly late 19th-century suburb of Grimsbury witnessed rapid growth between 1881 and 1930. About 300 more houses were built after 1945, in the areas of Grimsbury Square, Fergusson Road, Howard Street, School View, and Edward Street. To the north of Grimsbury Square is the 1945–55 area of "New Grimsbury" and south of it
8442-401: The River Cherwell along with the nearby hamlet of Nethercote, Banbury . The placename appears to be a corruption of the Saxon name for a defended enclosure (burh) of a person called Grim, although it may be noted that old maps of the area record the name as 'Grimsby', a form still used by older inhabitants of the locality. 'Grim' and 'by' are both Danish elements, and it may be significant that
8576-411: The River Cherwell. On the opposite bank they built Grimsbury , which was formerly part of Northamptonshire . Another district, Neithrop , is one of the oldest areas in Banbury, having first been recorded as a hamlet in the 13th century. Both Grimsbury and Neithrop were formally incorporated into the borough of Banbury in 1889. Banbury stands at the junction of two ancient roads: Salt Way (used as
8710-453: The Royal Mews. The warrant of HRH The Prince of Wales was added in 1994. By the late 1960s, the company was achieving five-figure sales on its most popular models, including the entry-level Viva and the larger Victor . In 1970, the HC Viva was launched, which went on to become Vauxhall's best-selling car of the decade, featuring among the 10 best-selling cars in Britain each year until after 1976, with production not finishing until 1979, when
8844-422: The Second World War, car production at Luton was suspended to allow Vauxhall to work on the new Churchill tank . Despite a bombing raid in August 1940, in which 39 employees were killed, it was taken from specification to production in less than a year, and assembled there (as well as at other sites). More than 5,600 Churchill tanks were built. Luton also produced around 250,000 lorries for the war effort, alongside
8978-412: The Tesco Express, The Pepper Pot pub and the Atlantis Fish bar and set up a 100 m (330 ft) cordon on 19 April 2012. Three World War I phosphorus grenades on 20 April and an unreleased number of anti-tank grenades were destroyed on 24 April. The area around the Tesco Express Middleton Road, Grimsbury, witnessed the disposal of several lost pieces of World War I ordnance that remained buried after
9112-490: The UK's lowest unemployment rates, as of April 2016 it stood at 0.7%. Once Poland joined the European Union in 2004, a number of Banbury-based employment agencies began advertising for staff in major Polish newspapers. In 2006 one estimate placed between 5,000 and 6,000 Poles in the town. With the influx of the largely Roman Catholic Poles, one local church was offering a Mass said partially in Polish and specialist Polish food shops had opened. Jacobs Douwe Egberts , in
9246-429: The Vauxhall badge still being built in the UK. The introduction of the Opel-based Vauxhalls marked a significant improvement in both the design and build quality of Vauxhall cars, which were now considered strong rivals to their Ford competitors. By the end of the 1970s, Vauxhall had boosted its market share substantially, and was fast closing in on Ford and British Leyland. In 1978, Vauxhall strengthened its position in
9380-522: The Vauxhall brand from most other European markets in favour of Opel. This saw an end to the export of Vauxhall models, as exports to Continental Europe had fallen from 32,000 units in 1970 to 12,900 units in 1978. By 1981, these were largely confined to Chevettes sold in Germany. While Opel-built cars were exported to the UK and badged as Vauxhalls, no Vauxhall-built cars were exported badged as Opels. It would not be until 1990 that Vauxhall would resume left hand drive production for export. Similarly,
9514-416: The Vauxhall brand more than doubled. This was complemented in 1983 with an estate , based on the Camira produced in Australia by Holden , with the tailgates for the Vauxhall version being built there and shipped to Luton. It was Britain's second-best selling car in 1984 and 1985, and spent most of its production life vying with the Ford Sierra for top place in the large family car market. The Cavalier
9648-549: The Victoria Place apartment development. Local living conditions had improved greatly during the Victorian era with the removal of several poorly built cottages that were deemed to be only " hovels " and an end to the endemic " dwarfism " and rickets that had plagued the local children in the early 19th century. A slightly later development still further east in Grimsbury was of larger houses. A lot of cottages on what
9782-760: The Viva nameplate was finally discontinued after 16 years and three generations. In 1973, the Vauxhall Firenza "Droopsnoot" coupe was unveiled at the Earls Court Motor Show, introducing the public to Vauxhall's new aerodynamic look for all of its subsequent 1970s models. By 1973, the Victor was losing sales in a market that was becoming increasingly dominated by the Ford Cortina . This was not enough to keep Vauxhall from being well behind market leaders like Ford in sales, and most of its range
9916-710: The Wyvern and Velox were still competitive despite being considered small and cramped alongside the likes of the Morris Minor or the A40 Devon of Austin. The Velox especially, with its smooth and powerful engine in a relatively small car, offered strong performance and good reliability to compete against the V8-powered Ford Pilot . The L-Types were replaced by a truly new model, the E-Types, in 1951 with
10050-411: The areas of Grimsbury Square, Fergusson Road, Howard Street, School View, and Edward Street. To the north of Grimsbury Square is the 1945–55 area referred to as New Grimsbury. South of it is the old town of "Old Grimsbury" built prior to 1930. It was expanded in both the late 1950s and early 1960s with a mixture of working-class and middle-class homes. Further minor expansions were also taking place towards
10184-538: The bigger, heavier E-Type models these gave very poor performance, especially the Wyvern with an engine all-but unchanged since 1937. The new engines, both slightly larger than the existing design, were fitted to both models during 1952 and brought performance up to a competitive level. In terms of price and production the E-Type Vauxhalls were now full contenders in the mid-size car market in Britain, alongside
10318-487: The border of Banburyshire's area. There was a plan in the late 2000s to expand the Bretch Hill estate westwards into local farmland, but this has now been suspended due to the credit crunch and local hostility to the plan, including the southern expansion towards Bodicote . The Hanwell Fields Estate was built in the north between 2001 and 2009. It was intended to provide affordable social housing to
10452-512: The closure of the local ammunition testing range. They were reckoned to be part of a batch of 20 that were lost in 1919. On 26 April some World War II smoke bombs were also disposed of. Fire station manager Mick Clarke said fire crews and the Royal Logistics Corps were disposing of them. The post-1945 housing estate is situated at the northern end of the first (old) Grimsbury estate. About 300 more houses were built after 1945, in
10586-413: The company at 90–92 Wandsworth Road, Vauxhall , London, in 1857. It was founded as Alex Wilson and Company, and from 1897, the company built pumps and marine engines. In 1903 the company built its first car, a five-horsepower single-cylinder model steered using a tiller , with two forward gears and no reverse gear. About 70 were made in the first year, before the car was improved with wheel steering and
10720-420: The company's designs were more austere. Much of Vauxhall's success during the early years of Vauxhall Motors was attributable to Laurence Pomeroy . He joined Vauxhall in 1906 at the age of 22, as an assistant draughtsman. In the winter of 1907/8, the chief designer F. W. Hodges took a long holiday, and in his absence, the managing director Percy Kidner asked Pomeroy to design an engine for cars to be entered in
10854-517: The construction of an office building in Hennef Way in 2002, the remains of a British Iron Age settlement with circular buildings dating back to 200 BC were found. The site contained around 150 pieces of pottery and stone. Later there was a Roman villa at nearby Wykham Park. The area was settled by the Saxons around the late 5th century. In about 556 Banbury was the scene of a battle between
10988-468: The current Banbury Cross was erected in 1859 at the centre of the town to commemorate the marriage of Victoria, Princess Royal (eldest child of Queen Victoria ) to Prince Frederick of Prussia . The current Banbury Cross is a stone, spire-shaped monument decorated in Gothic form . Statues of Queen Victoria, Edward VII and George V were added in 1914 to commemorate the coronation of George V. The cross
11122-514: The decoration of the ceiling designed in the style of a canal narrowboat . There are two primary schools in Grimsbury. Dashwood Banbury Academy moved from Dashwood Road on the other side of the river to brand-new buildings in Merton Street in 2008. The school is part of a Federation with the town's main secondary school, Wykham Park Academy , formerly Banbury School. It has 200 pupils. It is unusual for an Oxfordshire primary school in having
11256-673: The early 1960s. The county of Oxfordshire has two main commercial centres, the city of Oxford itself that serves most of the south of the county, and Banbury that serves the north (such as Adderbury , Cropredy , Deddington , Wroxton , Great Bourton , and Bloxham ) plus parts of the neighbouring counties of Northamptonshire and Warwickshire . The villages of King's Sutton and Middleton Cheney , and possibly also Aynho , Fenny Compton , Charlton , and Croughton could be considered part of Banburyshire, as well as Upper and Lower Brailes . The settlements of Bicester , Hinton-in-the-Hedges , Chipping Norton , and Hook Norton are on
11390-660: The early 1980s, the Vauxhall brand was withdrawn from sale in all countries apart from the UK. At various times during its history, Vauxhall has been active in motorsports, including rallying and the British Touring Car Championship . After 92 years under GM's ownership, Opel /Vauxhall was sold to Groupe PSA in 2017. Vauxhall has major manufacturing facilities in Luton (commercial vehicles, IBC Vehicles ) and Ellesmere Port (passenger cars). The Luton plant employs around 1,100 staff as of 2024 and has
11524-426: The floorpan which served to trap moisture and dirt once it became chipped or cracked and the fact that the Victor was built in quantities and rates that the Luton plant had not previously dealt with. A manufacturing plant at Ellesmere Port , Cheshire, was opened in 1962, initially making components to supply to the production lines in Luton, before passenger-car production began there in 1964. In 1963, production of
11658-622: The hamlet is situated on the Northamptonshire side of the ancient river crossing which would have been used by the armies of Danes from Northampton mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. It is possible that the name was derived from a pseudonym for the pagan god Woden . Grimsbury currently includes the town's Royal Mail sorting offices , which were built over the former Banbury Merton Street railway station , Banbury railway station , Banbury United F.C. 's ground, and
11792-423: The kind that had served the company well in the prosperous prewar years were no longer in demand; the company struggled to make a consistent profit and Vauxhall looked for a major strategic partner. On 16 November 1925, Vauxhall was acquired by General Motors for US$ 2.5 million. At the time, the purchase was not popular among senior U.S. GM executives. Vauxhall was only making seventeen cars per week and
11926-531: The larger, and in terms of both absolute sales and market share, more successful Opel, which sold 925 000 vehicles to Vauxhall's 143 600. Since the early 1960s, Vauxhalls, whilst being designed and built in the United Kingdom, increasingly shared their general specification, engineering features, and styling with Opel counterparts (the Viva with the Kadett and the Victor with the Rekord , for instance) even if
12060-456: The last all-British Vauxhall. Following the introduction of the Chevette and Cavalier, virtually all future Vauxhalls would be lightly restyled Opels, under what was described by the company's management as "Opelisation". The exceptions would be based on models from elsewhere in the GM organisation. However, Vauxhall retained its two British factories at Luton and Ellesmere Port, with most cars wearing
12194-475: The last workshops had shut in 1955. It was mostly built on by 1965 according to the 1955 and 1965 O.S. maps. The Banbury Town Council built the houses in King's Road and on the Easington estate. Other working-class type houses were built at the south end of Britannia Road and the area to the east between 1881 and 1930, as well as in both Old Grimsbury Road and Gibbs Road. More up-market houses were built in both
12328-631: The late 1970s and was abandoned in the late 1980s, while the Crown Hotel and the Foremost Tyres/Excel Exhausts shops found new owners after they closed in 1976 due to falling sales. Hella , a vehicle electronics firm, closed its factory on the Southam Road in the mid-2000s. The ironmonger , Hoods, opened in the mid-1960s and closed in 2007, with the shop becoming part of the then enlarged Marks and Spencer . Owing to
12462-554: The latest engineering developments. Vauxhall and GM management planned a completely new three-model car range which would use cutting-edge unibody construction instead of the traditional body-on-frame design. The first mass-production unibody car, the Citroën Traction Avant began production in 1934, the same year that design work on the new Vauxhall range began. As well as designing an entirely new car body, this change required major expansion, renewal and investment in
12596-665: The likes of the Ford Consul / Zephyr and especially the increasingly old-fashioned Hillman Minx . By 1953 Vauxhall was building 110,000 E-Type models at Luton per year, with around half of production going to export - mostly in the Commonwealth markets which still maintained preferential tariffs for British-made products. For 1955, the E-Type Vauxhalls received a facelift with new frontal and interior styling and minor mechanical refinements. Most importantly, Vauxhall returned to offering three car models (albeit all still sharing
12730-421: The limiting factor for Vauxhall sales had been production, sometimes leading to lengthy waiting lists for customers. While the Luton factory had been expanded and modernised in the early 1950s, the main restriction was the lack of capacity for building the unitary bodyshells. Expansion of the body shop would require large investment that GM was reluctant to release and this was the main reason for Vauxhall relying on
12864-523: The local Anglo-Saxons of Cynric and Ceawlin , and the local Romano-British . It was a local centre for Anglo-Saxon settlement by the mid-6th century. Banbury developed in the Anglo-Saxon period under Danish influence, starting in the late 6th century. It was assessed at 50 hides in the Domesday survey and was then held by the Bishop of Lincoln . The Saxons built Banbury on the west bank of
12998-406: The middle of the British car market, aiming to produce higher volumes of more conventional cars that, using GM's large engineering, design and production resources, would offer modern technology and high levels of equipment at a reasonable price with competitors being the likes of Wolseley and Humber. The Cadet had been the first step in this process, which gathered pace in June 1933 with the launch of
13132-426: The new Bedford Dunstable plant , which was opened in 1942, with Bedford designs being common in British use. As a morale booster for the company employees, on 23, 24, and 25 February 1944, Adelaide Hall appeared in concert at the factory in Luton, where she entertained the employees during their lunch break. In all, she performed in front of more than 10,000 workers; this was the first time that Vauxhall had contracted
13266-542: The new 1948 L-Type Vauxhalls consisted of just a pair of models, both using the body structure, floorpan and many running gear parts of the H-type/Ten model. However Vauxhall's director of styling, David Jones, managed to fit brand new exterior panels to the front, rear and rear-quarters of the old body centre-section to give the L-type a modern look which shared its basic shape and features with GM's Chevrolet Fleetline of
13400-493: The new cars having been in development since 1948. GM was still restricting Vauxhall to a one-body policy and the range still consisted of two models differentiated mostly by their engines – the four-cylinder EIX Wyvern and the six-cylinder EIP Velox . While they were designed at Luton they drew a lot of influence from styling developments made in Detroit , especially the revised 1951-model year Chevrolets . The E-Types continued
13534-410: The new widespread availability of high octane fuel and so made more power. Stylistically the Victor followed the familiar Vauxhall trend of following American styling trends, although the Victor took this to a new level by closely resembling the famous 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air , complete with tailfins , prominent 'flutes' on the bonnet (a modern evocation of a familiar Vauxhall styling cue dating back to
13668-465: The north of the estate in 2008–2011. Grimsbury was expanded further as the Market Quarter housing development has begun on the former cattle market site, along with the new Axis housing estate just to the east, which has added over 300 new homes and a primary school to replace Dashwood School . Grimsbury was once home to Western Europe's largest cattle market, on Merton Street. The market was
13802-483: The northeast, southeast and west of Banbury. Banbury is located at the bank of the River Cherwell which sweeps through the town, going just east of the town centre with Grimsbury being the only estate east of the river. Banbury is at the northern extreme of the UK's South East England region, less than two miles (3 km) from the boundary with the East Midlands , and three miles (5 km) from that with
13936-415: The rear axle retained leaf springs but also with the addition of telescopic dampers. The transmission and steering remained little-changed from the existing design. Vauxhall planned and developed a new range of short-stroke overhead-valve engines for the E-Types but financial and production constraints meant that the first new Wyverns and Veloxes were launched with the same engines as the outgoing L-Type. In
14070-687: The recently discussed race-course at Grimsbury were sold to the Great Western Railway circa 1850, the owner also sold the other part of his land, north of the Middleton Road to the Banbury Freehold Land Society, which was financially backed by Cobb's Bank, to build middle-class houses, but development was slow at the time and some plots were never built upon. The land in question and the location of today's Spice Ball Park are marked as "Liable to flooding" on
14204-528: The same quantities as the entire E-Type range had, but over 180,000 were built between October 1957 and July 1962 with over 100,000 of those cars being exported. Both the Victor and the Velox/Cresta received criticism for their overtly American styling, which many reviewers saw as gaudy against more conservative British tastes. Both models had their styling revised in 1959 to remove some of the more extreme styling details. Both models also quickly developed
14338-757: The same year, albeit at a much smaller scale. The new models were the Wyvern (using the four-cylinder engine previously used in the Twelve) and the Velox using a new wide-bore development of the six-cylinder engine from the Fourteen. Otherwise, the L-Types reused the three-speed transmission (albeit with a switch to a column gear change , hydraulic brakes and Dubonnet suspension of the pre-war models essentially unchanged. Those predecessors had been advanced for their time so
14472-518: The surrounding area's notable links with world motorsport , the town is home to many well known organisations within the industry. Prodrive , one of the world's largest motorsport and automotive technology specialists, is based in the town as are a host of race teams involved in competition across many different disciplines and countries. Within Formula One , two teams have had their base of operations in Banbury. The Simtek team which competed in
14606-606: The three-model range (H-, I-, and J-type unibody designs) that had been launched just before the outbreak of war in 1939. However, they were now renamed simply as the Vauxhall Ten, Twelve and Fourteen respectively, were each available in a single body and specification (four-door saloons to what had been the Deluxe trim level) to ease production and had minor internal and external trim differences to account for shortages or extra costs of various materials. Government regulations of
14740-509: The time meant that 75% of production had to be sent for export, so very few of these revived models reached buyers in the United Kingdom. Further rationalisation occurred in 1946 when the Twelve ceased to be a distinct model and now shared the body of the Ten but with the larger-capacity engine. These models were superseded by 'new' cars in 1948. GM management had dictated that Luton should only utilise
14874-587: The town and county. It was formally closed in June 1998, after being abandoned several years earlier and was replaced with a new housing development and Dashwood Primary School. Banbury railway station is served by three train operating companies: The town's bus routes are operated primarily by Stagecoach in Oxfordshire both within the town and linking it with Brackley , Chipping Norton , Oxford and places further afield including Daventry , Leamington Spa and Stratford-upon-Avon . Hennef Way ( A422 )
15008-717: The two cars were distinct, with few to any interchangeable parts. From the late 1960s and into the early 1970s, increasing economic turmoil in the UK, declining build quality, and increasing strike action throughout British industry (and in stark contrast, the Wirtschaftswunder or economic miracle of West Germany during the same period), plus the entry of the UK into the European Economic Community in 1973, made maintaining two parallel model lines serving similar markets increasingly undesirable. The FE Series Victor , launched in 1972, would be
15142-479: The unusual decision to offer both 12 and 14 models for the same price. Two-door saloon, coupe, tourer and cabriolet bodies were also available for extra cost, plus a range of other body designs from coachbuilders . The Light Six was an immediate sale success, surpassing all previous Vauxhall products by a large margin with 26,000 examples being sold in just over 12 months and with the Luton factory moving onto 24-hour shift work to meet demand. Vauxhall had suddenly become
15276-508: The use of Opel brand on the UK market would be confined to sporting models, and with the success and wide range choice of the new Vauxhall products of the early 1980s, the Manta was the only Opel-badged car being imported to the UK by the end of 1984. When the Manta was finally discontinued in 1988, Opel models were no longer officially imported to the UK. Its successor, the Calibra, was badged as
15410-435: The use of unibody construction, but of a brand new and much larger design with full-width ' pontoon ' styling. They offered significantly more cabin and luggage space and a great deal of effort was put into both the styling of the interior and the reduction of vibration and noise. The complicated Dubonnet suspension system was replaced by more conventional design using coil springs and twin wishbones with telescopic dampers, while
15544-466: The vanguard of automotive engineering for the mass market in Britain. However the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 greatly restricted the sales of all new cars just as the new Vauxhall range was entering the market and production was reaching full flow. Car production was ceased entirely in May 1940, by which time over 50,000 10-4s, 10,000 12-4s and 15,000 14-6s had been built. During
15678-551: The west and north of Banbury, and more upmarket housing in the Hanwell fields area. In January 1554 Banbury was granted a royal charter that established the town as a borough to be governed by the aldermen of the town. The same charter created the position of High Steward of Banbury . Banbury was one of the boroughs reformed by the Municipal Reform Act 1835 . It retained a borough council until 1974, when under
15812-581: Was a GM patent, also used on Chevrolet and Pontiac models in the US and on Opel cars in Europe. The D-type Light Six was priced at between £205 and £245 for the standard saloon depending on the exact specification, which was still a lower-than-average price for a car of the new Light Six's size, power, equipment and technical specification and this was another successful model for Vauxhall. The overall strategy for Vauxhall continued to be to make smaller models with
15946-562: Was also sold in left-hand drive form by General Motors in Canada (under the specially-created Envoy name and under the original Vauxhall Victor name through Pontiac dealerships in the USA. Nearly 400,000 F-Type Victors were built at Luton between the start of 1957 and the end of production in mid-1961. With the Victor taking the place of many previous Wyvern sales, the P-Type models did not sell in
16080-447: Was built on the grounds of Hanwell Farm during 2005 and 2006. Banburyshire is an informal area centred on Banbury, claimed to include parts of Northamptonshire and Warwickshire as well as north Oxfordshire . Use of the term dates from the early to mid 19th century. It was common in the 19th century for market towns in England to describe their hinterland by tacking "shire" onto the town's name. "Stones Map of Banburyshire" held by
16214-474: Was called 'Waterloo' (today's Waterloo Road), which apparently lay just east of Banbury Bridge to the north of the road, had transformed from the early 19th century so that by 1841 Waterloo was considered one of the better off parts of Grimsbury. Due to Banbury's then boom time Grimsbury's principal expansion occurred between 1852 and 1881, when some 500 houses were built, around Middleton Road, Causeway, Merton Street, Duke Street, and North Street. When meadows and
16348-460: Was demolished after the war. The opening of the Oxford Canal from Hawkesbury Junction to Banbury on 30 March 1778 gave the town a cheap and reliable supply of Warwickshire coal. In 1787 the Oxford Canal was extended southwards, finally opening to Oxford on 1 January 1790. The canal's main boat yard was the original outlay of today's Tooley's Boatyard . People's Park was set up as
16482-658: Was discontinued and the railway dismantled. In March 1962 Sir John Betjeman celebrated the line from Culworth Junction in his poem Great Central Railway, Sheffield Victoria to Banbury . British Railways closed this line too in 1966. The main railway station, previously called Banbury General but now called simply Banbury , is now served by trains running from London Paddington via Reading and Oxford once daily, from London Marylebone via High Wycombe and Bicester onwards to Birmingham and Kidderminster and by CrossCountry Trains from Bournemouth and Reading to Birmingham , Manchester and Newcastle . Banbury used to have
16616-640: Was established as a subsidiary of Vauxhall in 1930 to manufacture commercial vehicles. It was a luxury car brand until it was bought by General Motors, who thereafter built mid-market offerings. As Opel made vehicles, they branded under Vauxhall often. From the time of the Great Depression Vauxhall became increasingly mass-market. Since 1980, Vauxhall products have been largely identical to those of Opel , and most models are principally engineered in Rüsselsheim am Main , Germany. During
16750-401: Was founded by Alexander Wilson in 1857 as a pump and marine engine manufacturer. It was purchased by Andrew Betts Brown in 1863, who began producing travelling cranes under the company, renaming it "Vauxhall Iron Works". The company began manufacturing cars in 1903, and changed its name back around this time. It was acquired by American automaker General Motors (GM) in 1925. Bedford Vehicles
16884-467: Was in a financial mess. The company's image and target market were gently but firmly changed over the next five and more years, marked particularly by the introduction in late 1930 of the low-cost two-litre Vauxhall Cadet and the next year the first Bedford truck, which was Chevrolet based. Vauxhall's chief engineer since 1920, Charles Evelyn King, retired as engineering director in 1950. The company's future chief engineer, Harold Drew, left Luton for
17018-536: Was inaugurated. In 1998 the Banbury Team Ministry was dissolved and St. Leonard's reinstated as a separate parish. In 2001 a new dais was built in the nave of St Leonard's and the High Altar was placed in the centre. The font was also moved from the south aisle and placed in the nave at the west end of the church. In 2003 the church was redecorated with the central pillars being painted to reflect
17152-529: Was later produced at the Vauxhall plant in Ellesmere Port. In 1981, the company released the Mk2 Cavalier , the first Vauxhall of this size to offer front-wheel drive and a hatchback bodystyle. Built at the Luton plant, it really boosted Vauxhall's fortunes, with the Cavalier's sales for 1982 almost trebling its total for 1981, and peaking at more than 130,000 by 1984. During that time, sales of
17286-412: Was noted for its excellent fuel economy of over 40mpg when touring due to its efficient modern engine and lightweight body. The 10-4 was considered to be the finest small car in the world at the time of its launch and initial demand greatly exceeded production capacity. Just six months after the 10-4's launch, the 10,000th example left Luton - a production record for the Vauxhall at the time. The H-type 10-4
17420-507: Was only the first and smallest in the proposed trio of similarly advanced unibody cars. The I-type 12-4 (essentially the same as the 10-4 but with a longer wheelbase and an enlarged engine) was introduced in September 1938 and the J-type 14-6 , replacing the old Light Six, was introduced the following month but sales did not begin until early 1939. This advanced three-model range was very well received by critics and buyers and placed Vauxhall in
17554-547: Was purchased by the United States–based Haas F1 Team to service their cars during the European races. Until 2017, when the team went into administration and subsequently folded, Manor Racing (the successor to Marussia) was based in the town. Arden Motorsport , a British multi-formula motorsports team (founded by Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner ), is also based in the town. Banbury has one of
17688-519: Was replaced with a new housing development and Dashwood Banbury Academy, a primary school. Grimsbury Wesleyan Chapel in West Street was a neoclassical brick and stone building completed in 1871. The present Methodist church in West Street is modern. The Church of England parish church of Saint Leonard was designed by the local architect Walter Mills and built in 1890. It is a Gothic Revival building with north and south aisles joined to
17822-630: Was struggling even to keep pace with Chrysler UK (formerly the Rootes Group ). Vauxhall's sales began to increase from 1975, with the launch of two important new models, the Chevette , a small three- door hatchback that was the first car of its kind to be built in Britain, and the Cavalier , a stylish four-door saloon designed to compete head-to-head with the all-conquering Ford Cortina. A two-door coupe and three-door "sport hatch" had joined
17956-452: Was upgraded to a dual carriageway , easing traffic on the heavily congested road and providing north Banbury and the town centre with higher-capacity links to the M40 motorway . The Oxford Canal is a popular place for pleasure trips and tourism. The canal's main boatyard is now the listed site Tooley's Boatyard . The Banbury Guardian is published weekly on Thursdays by Johnston Press ,
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