Charlbury

Charlbury is a small town on the edge of Wychwood Forest in west Oxfordshire, sitting above the Evenlode valley with a quiet prosperity that has attracted writers, artists and commuters while retaining genuine community character. A direct railway link to Oxford and London Paddington has made it popular as a base for those working in the cities, and its combination of good independent shops, strong community life and attractive stone buildings gives it a vitality that larger and more famous Cotswolds towns sometimes lack.

The market place at the centre of the town is overlooked by the Church of St Mary the Virgin, which has Norman origins and a good variety of medieval stonework. The town has strong Quaker associations from the seventeenth century — Charlbury Meeting House, built in 1779, is one of the oldest Quaker meeting houses in regular use in England. The independent shop scene includes a well-regarded bookshop and a number of food businesses.

The Evenlode valley offers some of the best walking in west Oxfordshire, following the river through ancient meadows past the sites of former monastic estates. Wychwood Forest, much diminished from its medieval extent but still substantial, provides woodland walking and good wildlife habitat nearby. The ruins of Minster Lovell, four miles to the south-west, are among the most romantic in the region and well worth a half-day excursion.