90-506: Michael Paul Marshall Smith (born 3 May 1965) is an English novelist, screenwriter and short story writer who also writes as Michael Marshall , M. M. Smith and Michael Rutger . Born in Knutsford , Cheshire , Smith moved with his family at an early age to first Illinois and then Florida . When he was seven, the family moved again, this time to South Africa, and then to Australia before eventually returning home to England in 1973. He
180-641: A ' cult hit ' and ran for two series. Between 2002 and 2004, he also co-wrote material for two series of surreal comedy Dare to Believe . Smith's first published story was "The Man Who Drew Cats", which won the British Fantasy Award in 1991 for "Best Short Story". He has been published in Postscripts . His first novel, Only Forward , was published in 1994 and won the August Derleth Award for Best Novel in 1995, and then
270-576: A Pre-Conquest church. The area was devastated by the Normans in 1070, and had not recovered by 1086; the Domesday Book records the manor as having fallen in value from £8 to 20 shillings. Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester held the manor himself after the Conquest; there was a mill, meadow for oxen, and woodland 6 leagues by 4 leagues. A Norman castle was built at Macclesfield. Macclesfield
360-625: A Royal Commission was appointed to investigate further. A report of March 1881 confirmed the allegations of corruption. As a result, the borough constituency was disenfranchised for corruption. The disenfranchisement took effect on 25 June 1885, when the town was transferred to the East Cheshire constituency. However under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 the Macclesfield constituency was recreated with extended boundaries, as
450-599: A community governance review which established a civil parish . Macclesfield Town Council is controlled by the Labour Party, with 9 councillors. There are 3 Independent councillors, and no Conservatives. Macclesfield is also represented by 12 councillors on Cheshire East Council: 9 Labour, 3 Independents. Macclesfield is in the east of Cheshire and on the River Bollin , a tributary of the River Mersey . It
540-552: A county division, later in 1885. From the 1885 general election it has elected one MP. Macclesfield was for some time considered to be a safe seat for the Conservative Party , having been held by it since the 1918 general election , but the 2017 election showed a significant swing away from the Conservatives. Macclesfield has been represented by Tim Roca of Labour since the 2024 general election . It
630-512: A crash occurred in 1851 and many mill-workers emigrated to the American silk town of Paterson, New Jersey . The silk industry remained active in the town in the 1980s, but no longer dominated. Paradise Mill reopened in 1984 as a working mill museum, demonstrating the art of silk throwing and Jacquard weaving . The four Macclesfield Museums display a range of information and products from that period. A short-lived copper -smelting operation
720-399: A ditch could have been and most of the medieval building were within this area. It is unlikely that the ditch and palisade were succeeded by a wall for no record has been found of a murage tax, which would certainly have been levied to keep the wall in repair. The suffix "Gate" in the names of several Macclesfield streets has been taken to indicate the former presence of a gate in the sense of
810-588: A four-year term. The current Town Council term started in May 2023 with 5 Conservative councillors and 10 Independents. The council is elected whole every four years. The current mayor of Knutsford and chairman of the town council is Cllr Peter Coan (Conservative). Prior to Brexit in 2020, Knutsford was part of the North West region for the European Parliament . Knutsford has excellent access to
900-601: A guarded opening in a wall, however, this is very unlikely as the term 'gate' is derived from 'gata', Scandinavian for road, which became gate in Middle English. Therefore, Chester Gate, the Jordan Gate and the Church Wall Gate (some sources give the name Well Gate for this gate), are simply referring to the road to/from Chester or the road leading from the church to the well. These names are preserved in
990-586: A horse-drawn wagon overturned and spilt its load of treacle onto the street, after which the poor scooped the treacle off the road. Before the Norman Conquest , Macclesfield was held by Edwin, Earl of Mercia , who also held much of the east of the county. Three crosses survive from this period, originally located in Sutton and now in West Park , and J. D. Bu'Lock speculates that there might have been
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#17327754110801080-461: A medium-sized supermarket, Booths , also an Aldi , a Little Waitrose , a Sainsbury's Local , Olive and Sage. and two Co-Op stores (one on Princess Street and one on Parkgate Lane). Tesco used to have a small shop in the town centre, which closed many years ago. The retailer had hoped to open a larger store on the edge of the town on Mobberley Road, but councillors in Mobberley objected to
1170-618: A number of art galleries. Macclesfield Chess Club is one of the oldest chess clubs in the country, having been founded in 1886. The 'Macclesfield Literary and Philosophical Society' was formed in 2006, partly in response to The Times' 2004 article. Local newspapers include the Macclesfield Express and the Community News . Macclesfield residents have access to Macclesfield Forum, an online message board , for informal discussion of local news and issues. The town
1260-464: A school (originally in the abandoned Knutsford Gaol) to begin the training of men leaving the armed forces, so that they might eventually train for ordination . This first Knutsford Ordination Test School, for service-men and funded by central church funds, was closed in 1922 and a new, private successor for civilians opened in a house in Knutsford called "Kilrie" in the same year. The school moved to
1350-656: A television series on BBC America , is based on Smith's 2007 novel The Intruders . As M. M. Smith: As Michael Marshall: The Anomaly Series, as Michael Rutger: Knutsford Knutsford ( / ˈ n ʌ t s f ər d / ) is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire East district, in Cheshire , England; it is located 14 miles (23 km) south-west of Manchester , 9 miles (14 km) north-west of Macclesfield and 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (20 km) south-east of Warrington . The population at
1440-573: Is a May Day custom, still observed today, of "sanding the streets" in Knutsford. The streets are decorated with coloured sands in patterns and pictures. Tradition has it that King Cnut , while fording the River Lily , threw sand from his shoes into the path of a wedding party, wishing the newly wed as many children as the grains of sand at their feet. The custom can be traced to the late 1600s. Queen Victoria , in her journal of 1832 recorded: "we arrived at Knutsford, where we were most civilly received,
1530-581: Is a service every two hours to Chester and a service every two hours to Southport via Manchester, Bolton and Wigan . The number of weekday peak trains to Manchester was cut back controversially in December 2008, to allow Virgin Trains West Coast to run extra services between Manchester and London . Knutsford was expected to get a half-hourly train services to Northwich and Manchester (Monday to Saturday) by December 2017, with an increase in
1620-683: Is a stop on the Mid-Cheshire Line that runs from Chester to Manchester Piccadilly , via Altrincham . The station was built in 1862 by the Cheshire Midland Railway (CMR). The CMR was absorbed into the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) in August 1867; this entity continued to serve Knutsford until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. The rail service to Manchester was re-routed via a slower route when
1710-619: Is above £400,000. Knutsford has been under the unitary council of Cheshire East since April 2009. Prior to that Knutsford was in the Borough of Macclesfield. Knutsford Town Council was created after the abolition of the urban district council in the Local Government Reorganisation of 1974. The town comprises five wards: Nether, Norbury Booths, Bexton and Town Centre, Cross Town and St John's Wood. Each ward returns three councillors and each councillor serves
1800-593: Is also served by two locally based radio stations: Canalside Community Radio based at the Clarence Mill in Bollington , just north of Macclesfield, and Cheshire's Silk Radio , an independent commercial radio station with studios in the town. Local information websites include Visit Macclesfield and the local what's on guide, Canalside's The Thread . The last remaining commercial cinema in Macclesfield closed in 1997. Discussions have taken place regarding
1890-527: Is close to the county borders of Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east and Staffordshire to the south. It is near the towns of Stockport to the north, Buxton to the east and Congleton to the south. It is 38 miles (60 km) to the east of Chester , the county town of Cheshire. To the west of the town lies the Cheshire Plain ; Macclesfield Forest is to the east, containing Ridgegate and Trentabank Reservoirs which supply
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#17327754110801980-583: Is now converted into apartments. Macclesfield is the manufacturing home to AstraZeneca , one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies . The furniture store Arighi Bianchi was founded in 1829. Other industries include textiles , light engineering , paper and plastics . Macclesfield station is on the Stafford to Manchester branch of the West Coast Main Line . It is served by three train operating companies : A railway station
2070-771: Is served by good road links from the north, south and west, but has fewer roads going east due to the terrain of the Peak District. From the south, access from Congleton and the Potteries is from the A536 , and via the A523 from Leek. From the north, the main access to the town is the A523 from Manchester, Hazel Grove and Poynton . The main west–east road is the A537 Knutsford to Buxton road. At various points around
2160-508: Is situated in a 17th-century timber-framed building just off King Street, which was a blacksmith's forge in the 19th century. It has a museum, garden, shop and gallery featuring various exhibitions, talks and events, and walking tours are also available. On permanent exhibition are the May Queen's dress shoes and crown from 1887. Scenes from the George C. Scott film Patton were filmed in
2250-522: Is so named after the Duke of Cumberland who stayed there in 1745 when pursuing the fleeing Prince. The population was 24,137 by 1841. Armoury Towers was completed in 1858 and the Bridge Street drill hall was completed in 1871. Macclesfield was once the world's biggest producer of finished silk . A domestic button industry had been established in the town by the mid-16th century, although
2340-635: Is the original home of Hovis breadmakers , produced in Publicity Works Mill (commonly referred to as "the Hovis Mill") on the canal close to Buxton Road. It was founded by a Macclesfield businessman and a baker from Stoke-on-Trent . Hovis is said to derive from the Latin "homo-vitalis" (strength for man) as a way of providing a cheap and nutritious food for poor mill workers and was a very dry and dense wholemeal loaf completely different from
2430-457: The 2011 Census was 13,191. Knutsford's main town centre streets, Princess Street (also known locally as Top Street) and King Street lower down (also known as Bottom Street), form the hub of the town. At one end of the narrow King Street is an entrance to Tatton Park . The Tatton estate was home to the Egerton family and has given its name to Tatton parliamentary constituency, which includes
2520-613: The Cheshire County Show in the parish of Tabley, near Knutsford. The annual Knutsford Royal May Day festival is where hundreds of people parade through the streets, and the May Queen is crowned. During the May Day weekend there is also a funfair run on ‘The Heath’ (a large field near the centre of Knutsford) where the crowning of the May Queen also takes place) This is said to be one of the largest travelling funfairs in
2610-589: The Manchester Metrolink trams took over the CLC direct line between Altrincham and Manchester; the heavy rail service was re-routed, via Stockport , to Manchester. Currently, Northern Trains generally run an hourly service in both directions. Trains operate to Northwich and Chester to the south-west; northbound services travel to Altrincham, Stockport and Manchester. There are extra trains to and from Stockport at peak times on weekdays. On Sundays, there
2700-513: The Philip K. Dick Award in 2000. The plot involves the lead character, Stark, having to find a missing man he believes to have been kidnapped, and travel through the strange zones of his city. In 1996 his second novel, Spares , was released, a novel in which the lead character, Jack, goes on the run with clones who are used for spare body parts for rich people, when he realises they are people with feelings. Steven Spielberg 's DreamWorks purchased
2790-506: The Winter Hill TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Manchester , Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West , Capital North West & Wales , Heart North West and Cheshire's Silk Radio . The Knutsford Guardian and Knutsford Times are the local newspapers in the town. There are many events in and around the town each year including the May Day festivities, The RHS Flower show at Tatton Park and
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2880-535: The town's museums explore the local silk industry. Other landmarks include Georgian buildings such as the Town Hall and former Sunday School ; St Alban's Church , designed by Augustus Pugin ; and the Arighi Bianchi furniture shop. The population of Macclesfield at the 2021 census was 57,539. A person from the town is referred to as a Maxonian . Situated in the ancient Hundred of Hamestan ,
2970-458: The 18th century, reaching 8,743 in 1801. In the 1580s, Macclesfield was one of the earliest towns in the county to have Puritan preaching "Exercises", and it was also an early centre for the Quakers . By 1718 an estimated 10% of the population was Nonconformist . Towards the end of that century, the town had a large Methodist congregation, and Christ Church was the only Anglican church in
3060-625: The Barnaby fair on St Barnabas day (11 June), the other on the feast of All Souls (2 November). In recent years the Barnaby fair has been reinvented as the Barnaby Festival, a cultural festival in mid-June. The weekly market no longer happens but on the last Sunday of each month the Treacle Market is held, a large market selling locally produced food and handmade items such as clothing, handmade goods and pottery. Macclesfield
3150-550: The Black Prince . The Earls of Chester established the Forest of Macclesfield , which was much larger than its present-day namesake. It was used for hunting deer and pasturing sheep and cattle. By the end of the 13th century, large areas of the forest had been ploughed because of the pressure of population growth. In 1356, two trees from the forest were given to archer William Jauderell to repair his home. Macclesfield Castle
3240-919: The ECB Premier Division of the Cheshire County Cricket League It won the National Village Championship trophy at Lords in 1989. Knutsford Hockey Club plays its home games at Knutsford Leisure Centre and are based at the Crosstown Bowling Club on Chelford Road. This 100-year-old club runs 3 men's teams, a ladies team, a mixed team and a badgers team. The Men's 1st XI play in Division 1 of The North West Hockey League Knutsford Football Club , formed in 1948, play at their Manchester Road ground. The club has two Saturday teams,
3330-555: The Middle Ages. Battles at which there were sizeable numbers of Cheshire archers include Agincourt and Crecy. In 1277 Edward I employed 100 of these archers from the Macclesfield area as his personal bodyguard, his successor Richard II also employed a bodyguard of these yeoman archers who came from the Macclesfield Hundred and the forest districts of Cheshire. The borough had a weekly market and two annual fairs:
3420-541: The Old Rectory in Hawarden , Wales, where it was opened by A. G. Edwards , Bishop of St Asaph and Archbishop of Wales , and Cosmo Lang , Archbishop of York , on 26 January 1927. By Michaelmas 1939, when the Old Rectory was required for housing refugees, the school relocated one last time to Hawarden Castle before closing finally the next year. There were other Ordination Test Schools, including
3510-882: The Sunday frequency to hourly, but the promised additional services have failed to materialise. Local bus operators in Knutsford are D&G Bus and Warrington's Own Buses . Since April 2018, bus service cutbacks has left Knutsford with fewer regular routes; these are: In the past, it was common for one bus operator to run most or all of the bus routes in Knutsford. Crosville Motor Services ran buses across Cheshire and North Wales . Star Line Travel later took over services, who were based in Knutsford (at Stanley Road Industrial Estate) and Wythenshawe; they were taken over by North Western Road Car Company , who then later became part of Arriva Midlands . Star Line Travel's Knutsford depot closed, which made running bus routes in Knutsford an unattractive proposition for Arriva, who ceased to serve
3600-520: The UK, with a large selection of rides and games to enjoy. Local folklore claims that Edward "Highwayman" Higgins had a tunnel running under The Heath, where he hid his booty. The Knutsford Guardian , established in 1860, is the only weekly paid-for paper dedicated to covering the town and its surrounding villages. The newspaper is teamed with the Northwich , Middlewich , and Winsford Guardian. There
3690-459: The centre of Knutsford, in front of Knutsford Town Hall . The building was designed by Alfred Waterhouse, and for much of the 20th century was home to Knutsford Boys' Club and latterly a furniture show room and post office. It is now home to the Lost & Found pub and cocktail bar. Macclesfield Macclesfield ( / m æ k əl z f i əl d / ) is a market town and civil parish in
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3780-594: The county to invite John Wesley to preach. During the Civil War , in 1642 the town was occupied for the King by Sir Thomas Aston , a Royalist. In the Jacobite Rising of 1745 , Charles Stuart and his army marched through Macclesfield as they attempted to reach London. The mayor was forced to welcome the prince, and the event is commemorated in one of the town's silk tapestries. Cumberland House on Jordangate
3870-440: The film rights for Spares, but a film was never made. When the rights lapsed, DreamWorks did produce The Island , whose plot had strong similarities to Spares , though Smith did not consider it worthwhile to pursue legal action over the similarities. He now considers it unlikely a Spares film will ever be made. The novel The Straw Men was the first to be written under the shortened name "Michael Marshall". This change of name
3960-405: The first mention of silk buttons is not until 1649. In the mid-18th century, when metal buttons became fashionable, the silk-button industry transitioned to silk manufacture in mills. Macclesfield's first silk mill was founded by Charles Roe in 1743 or 1744. The mills were initially powered by water, and later by steam. There were 71 silk mills operating in 1832, employing 10,000 people, but
4050-705: The first team in the Cheshire League and the second or A team in the Altrincham and District League. Two Associated Veterans teams also play on Sundays in the Cheshire Veterans League. In 2015, a youth team has been fielded again after a break of 127 years. Every 10 years Knutsford hosts an international three-hour endurance race for Penny-farthing bicycles. Regional local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North West and ITV Granada . Television signals are received from
4140-787: The gaol was used as a military prison, for the detention of soldiers found guilty of committing offences. From 1916 it was used to house conscientious objectors who broke the Military Service Act 1916 . In April 1916 there was an Easter Rising in Ireland, where rebels hoped to form an independent Ireland free from British rule. At least 600 rebels involved in that rising were transported to Knutsford by train from Holyhead and imprisoned in Knutsford Gaol. During this period many prisoners were not properly fed and resorted to eating grass and anything discarded by visitors. The gaol
4230-570: The hilltop around what is now St Michael's Church . It was granted a charter by Edward I in 1261, before he became king. Macclesfield Grammar School was founded in 1502. The town had a silk -button industry from at least the middle of the 17th century and became a major silk-manufacturing centre from the mid-18th century. The Macclesfield Canal was constructed in 1826–31. Hovis breadmakers were another Victorian employer; modern industries include pharmaceuticals , such as Astra Zeneca . Multiple mill buildings are still standing and several of
4320-482: The horror short story "Hell Hath Enlarged Herself" was in development as a feature film by Cuba Productions and Lightworks Films , financed by the UK Film Council . Smith will be a producer and co-screenwriter on the film. In 2012 he launched Ememess Press, a virtual small press specialising in producing electronic versions of the short fiction written under the name Michael Marshall Smith. Intruders ,
4410-569: The lowest, from at least 1850–2005, −16.7 °C (1.9 °F) on 25 December 1860. The town is famous for its once thriving silk industry, commemorated in the Silk Museum. The Georgian Town Hall was designed by Francis Goodwin in 1823. Macclesfield is home to an Augustus Pugin church, St Alban's on Chester Road. The former Cheshire County Asylum on Pavilion Way was designed by Robert Griffiths in Italianate style. It
4500-660: The modern version. Waters Green was once home to a nationally known horse market which features in the legend of the Wizard of Alderley Edge . Waters Green and an area opposite Arighi Bianchi , now hidden under the Silk Road, also held a sheep and cattle market until the 1980s. Macclesfield is said to be the only mill town to have escaped bombing in World War II . After the war, two pharmaceutical companies opened facilities in Macclesfield, Geigy (now part of Novartis ) and
4590-455: The motorway network, with junctions to the M6 (J19) and M56 (J7) motorways nearby. However, this can also have disadvantages as the A50, which runs through Knutsford town centre, follows a similar route to the M6 between Warrington and Stoke-on-Trent ; this means that if the M6 is closed, due to an accident or roadworks, then a large volume of traffic transfers to the A50 and causes major traffic jams in Knutsford. Knutsford railway station
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#17327754110804680-503: The names of three streets in the town, Chestergate, Jordangate and Back Wallgate, which have several older and listed buildings . A charter of 1595 established a town governing body consisting of the mayor, two aldermen and 24 "capital burgesses", and the powers of this body were increased by a charter of 1684. By the Tudor era , Macclesfield was prospering, with industries including the manufacture of harnesses, gloves and especially buttons, and later ribbons, tapes and fancy ware. Coal
4770-413: The neighbouring communities of Alderley Edge and Wilmslow . Knutsford is near Cheshire's Golden Triangle and is on the Cheshire Plain between the Peak District to the east and the Welsh mountains to the west. Residents include Coronation Street actress Barbara Knox and footballers Peter Crouch , Sam Ricketts , Michael Jacobs and Phil Jagielka . Knutsford, situated in Cheshire, England,
4860-422: The north and Kidsgrove to the south. The canal was surveyed for its Act of Parliament by the canal and roads engineer Thomas Telford , and built by William Crosley (junior), the Macclesfield Canal Company's engineer. It was the last narrow canal to be completed and had only limited success because within ten years much of the coal and other potential cargo was increasingly being transported by rail. Macclesfield
4950-431: The novel and produced a popular TV series Cranford . Despite several references to Knutsford, including King Street and The Heath , the TV adaptation was actually filmed in Lacock , Wiltshire. Notably, in 1987 Legh Road in Knutsford, designed by Richard Harding Watt , doubled for Colonial Shanghai in the opening scenes from Steven Spielberg 's film Empire of the Sun . A Gaskell protégé who died in Knutsford in 1859
5040-436: The ordination of women. St Cross is an Anglican church recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, built between 1880 and 1887. Unlike St John's the church has had two female vicars since the Church of England approved the ordination of women. St Vincent de Paul is a Catholic church in the Diocese of Shrewsbury . The current church opened in 1983, replacing an older church on
5130-432: The over 50s at Knutsford Library (as well as other libraries in Cheshire). Knutsford Cricket Club was established in 1881 and plays its home games on Mereheath Lane in the Cheshire Cricket Alliance. Toft Cricket Club is located at Booths Park, Chelford Road. The Cricket Club gets its name from a neighbouring civil parish of Toft where the original ground was located when the club was established in 1928. Toft play in
5220-420: The pharmaceutical division of ICI (now AstraZeneca ). Macclesfield was first represented in Parliament after the Reform Act of 1832 , when it was granted two Members of Parliament (MPs). This situation lasted until 1880, when after problems at the general election that year it was decided to declare the election void and suspend the writ of election (so no by-election could take place). In September 1880
5310-537: The predecessor of the House of the Epiphany , Kuching. Knutsford has five primary schools (one of these is a Roman Catholic school). Knutsford also has a high school: Knutsford Academy, which also has a Sixth Form. Some secondary school pupils from the town travel to schools in Altrincham, Hartford , Holmes Chapel , Hale and Macclesfield . Some sixth formers from the town travel to colleges in Northwich and Timperley . Macclesfield College run some adult education courses in Knutsford and Age UK run computer courses for
5400-446: The proposed development, thinking it might result in more cars travelling through their village. In 2008, Aldi announced plans to open a superstore in Knutsford, but construction did not begin until September 2012. The store officially opened in July 2013. Barclays has a large campus site at Radbroke Hall on Toft Road just outside Knutsford, employing approximately 3000 staff in IT and support functions. Before Barclays purchased
5490-488: The same site dating from the 1920s that was demolished due to subsidence. The first St Vincent de Paul church is still standing and has since been converted in to The Little Theatre. The current church includes a plaque blessed by Pope John Paul II on his visit to Manchester in 1982. The church was modified in 1999 to include an apse with a stained glass window, which had previously been installed at Cross and Passion Sisters convent chapel, Maryfield, Dublin . The church claims
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#17327754110805580-424: The site, it was owned by The Nuclear Power Group. St John the Baptist church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building . It is an active Anglican parish church in the located in the Church of England Diocese of Chester built between 1741 and 1744. It is in the Conservative Evangelical tradition of the Church of England and it has passed resolutions to reject
5670-413: The streets being sanded in shapes which is peculiar to this town". Knutsford was the model for Elizabeth Gaskell 's novel Cranford . She lived in the town for some time, on what is now known as Gaskell Avenue, and she is buried in the Unitarian Chapel graveyard. Many of the places and people described in her books can be identified as being based on places and people in the town. In 2007 the BBC adapted
5760-442: The town centre, some of these roads combine, such as the A537 / A523 on the Silk Road section, giving rise to traffic congestion, especially at peak times. The A538 provides access to Prestbury , Wilmslow and Manchester Airport , with the B5470 being the only other eastbound route from the town, heading to Whaley Bridge and Chapel-en-le-Frith . Macclesfield has been accused of having few cultural amenities. In 2004, research
5850-429: The town in January 2009. Star Line Travel's coach division was later split between Bullocks Coaches and Selwyns Travel . Manchester Airport is located 5 miles (8 km) from Knutsford in the civil parish of Ringway ; however, there are no direct bus or railway links to it from Knutsford. Knutsford town centre has several restaurants and pubs, coffee shops, boutiques, antique shops and art galleries. Knutsford has
5940-440: The town is recorded in the Domesday Book as "Maclesfeld" and in 1183 it was referred to as "Makeslesfeld". The English Place-Name Society gives its name as being derived from the Old English name, Maccel , and field , yielding the meaning "Maccel's open country". Although "Silk Town" seems to be its preferred nickname, the traditional nickname of Macclesfield is " Treacle Town". This refers to an historical incident when
6030-410: The town's drinking water, as well as Tegg's Nose and the Peak District . The Macclesfield Built-up Area forms an urban area which extends from the town to an area that includes the town of Bollington and the village of Prestbury . The urban area has a population of 63,954. According to the 2011 Census , the gender makeup of the population was 31,266 male and 32,688 female. The ethnic makeup of
6120-413: The unitary authority of Cheshire East , Cheshire , England. It is sited on the River Bollin and the edge of the Cheshire Plain , with Macclesfield Forest to its east; the town lies 16 miles (26 km) south of Manchester and 38 miles (61 km) east of Chester . Before the Norman Conquest , Macclesfield was held by Edwin, Earl of Mercia and was assessed at £8. The medieval town grew up on
6210-475: The whole urban area was under 96.2% white and 2.2% Asian; other ethnic minorities were 1.6%. The religious make up of the whole area includes: 66.3% Christian, 0.5% Muslim, 24.8% irreligious and 6.8% not stated. Like most of the United Kingdom, Macclesfield has a temperate maritime climate ( Köppen : Cfb ). Records of the climate extend back to at least 1850. Between 1881 and 2005, the highest temperature has been 33.1 °C (91.6 °F) on 3 August 1990 and
6300-443: The window was designed by Harry Clarke , although other sources state the window is too modern to have been designed by Clarke himself but it can still be attributed to the Harry Clarke Studio. There is a Methodist church; a Unitarian church dating from 1689, where the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell is buried; and a Gospel church, located in the old ticket office at Knutsford station. In 1919, Toc H founder Tubby Clayton opened
6390-431: Was a fortified town house built by John de Macclesfield in the later Middle Ages . Construction began in 1398, and that year an application was made for a licence to crenellate , or fortify, the building. Two chantries were founded in the town: one in 1422 by the Legh family, and one in 1504 by Thomas Savage . In 1502, Macclesfield Grammar School was founded by Sir John Percyvale. No proof exists that Macclesfield
6480-637: Was built in Over Ward by Manchester City Council in the 1960s. At the end of the 20th century, all of the homes on the estate that had not already been sold to their occupants were transferred to Manchester Methodist Housing. In 2005 Knutsford was named as the most expensive town to buy a house in Northern England , followed by nearby town Altrincham . There is an extremely large range of house prices in Knutsford, varying from approximately £175,000 to nearly £4,000,000 in late 2017. The average price
6570-463: Was built in the town for the mayor's court and the borough court (portmote). The town lacked industries at this date and was described as poor, remaining a small market town until the end of the 15th century, with a population numbered in the hundreds. The Cheshire archers were a body of elite soldiers noted for their skills with the longbow that fought in many engagements in Britain and France in
6660-548: Was created to perform 'The Monkey Run' at Barnaby. After recent rationalisation , the town now has one museum: the Silk Museum, on Park Lane, which includes paid access to Paradise Mill, a former silk mill. The Silk Museum houses the Ancient Egyptian artefacts brought back by Victorian antiquarian Marianne Brocklehurst and her partner Mary Booth: these were formerly held in West Park Museum, as well as
6750-710: Was demolished in 1934. Knutsford was the place in which General George S. Patton , shortly before the Normandy invasion , delivered a speech perceived to be critical of the Soviets , and to have "slap(ped) the face of every one of the United Nations except Great Britain", which nearly ended his career. After the Second World War , overspill housing estates were created in the town to accommodate families from Manchester . The Longridge overspill estate
6840-701: Was educated at Chigwell School , where he was in Swallows House and dated fellow pupil and future senior Sky News editor Sally Arthy, and at King's College, Cambridge , where he studied Philosophy, Social and Political Science , and became involved with the Cambridge Footlights . Under the pseudonym of Michael Rutger, he moved on to become a comedy writer and performer on the BBC Radio 4 series And Now in Colour , which has been described as
6930-494: Was established by Roe in 1750, processing ore from mines at Alderley Edge and Ecton ( Staffordshire ), and later from Anglesey . The business switched to copper processing and the manufacture of brass in 1767, before closing after Roe's death in 1781. The industry is reflected in some of the town's street names. Between 1826 and 1831 the Macclesfield Canal was constructed, linking Macclesfield to Marple to
7020-421: Was ever a walled town. When the settlement was first established and for some centuries afterwards there would have certainly been some sort of ditch and palisade round the western side of the town which was not naturally defended. This was necessary in order to keep out undesirable people and stray animals. No physical trace of a ditch remains though measurements and the shape of certain streets suggest where such
7110-535: Was first opened at Beech Lane by the LNWR on 19 June 1849, which was replaced a month later by Hibel Road station . The current station dates from the modernisation of the West Coast Main Line in the mid-1960s, when the old station buildings were replaced. Macclesfield has a bus station located within the town centre. The original building opened on Sunderland Street, just outside the railway station; it
7200-459: Was governed locally by Macclesfield Municipal Borough (see Macclesfield (borough) ) until 1974 when Macclesfield Borough Council was established, a local government district with borough status . Following the establishment of Cheshire East Council in 2009 the borough was abolished and the Mayoralty transferred to charter trustees . Macclesfield Town Council was established in 2015 following
7290-405: Was granted a borough charter by Ranulf de Blondeville, Earl of Chester , in the early 13th century, and in 1261 a second charter was granted by the future King Edward I , allowing a market, fair and judicial court. The medieval town stood on the hilltop, centred on the parish church of All Saints , which was built in 1278, an extension of a chapel built in approximately 1220. In 1357, a hall
7380-404: Was mined from the 16th century. In 1664, the population was around 2,600, making Macclesfield the third-largest town in the county, after Chester and Nantwich , although the town had expanded little from its medieval extent and had fewer large houses than Nantwich and Stockport . By around 1720, the number of households had increased to 925, and this rapid population growth continued throughout
7470-404: Was originally due to the publishing of another book of the same name in 2001 by Martin J. Smith. However, Marshall Smith then decided to use the split to offer the possibility of publishing different genres of books under the two names – "modern day" novels as Michael Marshall, and horror /science fiction as Michael Marshall Smith. On 1 September 2006, it was announced on his official website that
7560-568: Was published in The Times naming Macclesfield and its borough the most uncultured town in Britain, based on its lack of theatres, cinemas and other cultural facilities. The Northern Chamber Orchestra is the oldest professional chamber ensemble in the North West; its home is the Macclesfield Heritage Centre and presents a series of eight concerts a year, attracting international guest soloists. The Silk Opera Company
7650-583: Was recorded in William the Conqueror 's Domesday Book of 1086 as Cunetesford (" Canute's ford "). King Canute ( Knútr in Old Norse ) was the king of England (1016–1035) and later king of Denmark, Norway and parts of Sweden as well. Local tradition says that King Canute blessed a wedding that was taking place and forded the River Lily , which was said to be dangerous then, though other reports say it
7740-494: Was replaced in 2004, when a new bus station opened on Queen Victoria Street. The principal operators around Macclesfield are two subsidiaries of Centrebus Group : D&G Bus and High Peak Buses . Fifteen bus routes run within the town and to other locations including Altrincham , Buxton , Congleton , Crewe , Knutsford , Stockport , Wilmslow and Wythenshawe . Only two services run on Sundays: route 58 to Chatsworth House and route 130 to Handforth Dean . Macclesfield
7830-400: Was represented by David Rutley , a Conservative and practising Mormon . He was selected for this seat in 2010, when Sir Nicholas Winterton , who had been the incumbent for 38 years, announced his retirement following unfavourable press coverage relating to the claiming of Parliamentary expenses. Sir Nicholas' wife, Ann Winterton , held the neighbouring seat of Congleton . Macclesfield
7920-545: Was the Birkin Brook at or near Booth Mill. The English Place-Name Society gives the name as being derived from the Old English for Knutr's ford or possibly hillock ford . Knutsford gaol was built in 1817 and later extended in 1853. It was not just built to house those committed of crimes but also to house those who could not be employed. In 1915, due to the low population and there being an ongoing World War
8010-474: Was the administrative centre of the Hundred of Macclesfield , which occupied most of east Cheshire. The Earl of Chester's manor of Macclesfield was very large, and its boundary extended to Disley . The manor house was on the edge of the deer park, on the west of the town. In the 14th century, it had a king's chamber and a queen's hall, as well as a large stable, and the manor served as a stud farm for Edward
8100-609: Was the once-popular novelist Selina Davenport , who abandoned writing despairingly in 1834 and kept a tiny Knutsford shop instead. Knutsford Amateur Drama Society was established in 1925 and moved to its premises in Queen Street, Knutsford shortly after the end of the Second World War. Now known by the name of the building it occupies, Knutsford Little Theatre continues to produce a selection of plays each year, including an annual pantomime. Knutsford Heritage Centre
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