www.visitaylesbury.co.uk Take a look at Aylesbury’s new website You’ll find everything you need to Index know about Aylesbury town centre including entertainment, events, 2-3 Welcome & history & culture, gigs, places to Getting Around eat and nightlife. You’ll also find 4-5 Shopping fantastic offers from town centre businesses. 6-7 Markets 10-11 Annual Favourites / www.visitaylesbury.co.uk Regular Free Events 12-13 Festive dates for your Diary: Aylesbury Welcome to Aylesbury, a bustling Town Centre market town in the heart of the Chilterns. 14 Things To Do Parking information Blending history with the attractions of a Aylesbury has a range of short term and long term car parks 16-17 Event contact details modern town, Aylesbury offers something within and close to the town centre. All AVDC car parks are for everyone – from the Heritage Trail and 18-19 Map, including open 24 hours a day, with the exception of Hampden House regular markets in the historic, cobbled places to eat which closes at 8pm. www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk/parking Market Square, to spooky Halloween events 20 Christmas Other parking is available at Friars Square car park, Station for kids and fantastic entertainment at the Opening hours Christmas Lights Switch On. Way, open 7am to 7pm Monday to Saturday and 9.30am to 5.30pm on bank holidays. The town centre is host to an amazing programme Aylesbury is well equipped for cycle parking, with over 250 of events and entertainment, making it a truly unique free bike parking spaces in and around the town centre. experience for both residents and visitors. See www.cycleaylesbury.co.uk for details. This guide will tell you what is on and where, as well as giving you details of attractions and shops within the town. Disabled drivers Aylesbury is proud to have achieved Purple Flag status in recognition of the town’s If you display a Blue Badge, you can park free in any of the night time economy, and you will find many opportunities in this guide for entertaining, council’s car park spaces (except for any reserved space, diverse, safe and enjoyable nights out. Shopmobility spaces, Hale Street car park and Walton Street car park). There is a handy map at the back of the guide to help you find your way round, which includes locations of cafes and restaurants if you’re in need of a rest and a re-fuel after Shopmobility is a scheme to allow anyone with a mobility all that shopping and entertainment! problem, whether temporary or permanent, to get out and about in Aylesbury town centre. Manual and powered The importance of the town centre for events and arts has been recognised and wheelchairs, scooters and walking aids can be borrowed documented in the Aylesbury Town Centre Plan, which sets out the vision to grow free of charge. Shopmobility is on the ground floor of the Aylesbury as a centre for the arts. Aylesbury is part way through an exciting multi-million Upper Hundreds car park. Tel: 01296 336725 pound improvement programme. The town centre has seen major change in the last few years with the opening of the Waterside Theatre, a new marina at Circus Fields, as well Online rail and bus information as improvements to Waterside South, Vale Park and public spaces – and there’s plenty www.arrivabus.co.uk more to come. Traveline For further information on what to do in Aylesbury and the improvement programme, www.travelinesoutheast.org.uk take a look at Aylesbury’s new website, which features up-to-date details on events, Black cabs gigs, nightlife plus offers from town centre businesses. 01296 422222 www.visitaylesbury.co.uk 4 5 Shopping Click and Collect The town boasts three main shopping centres, Friars Many shops in Aylesbury offer a click and collect service, where you can Square and Hale Leys, both under cover, and Aylesbury purchase products online and collect them in-store. Stores which offer this Shopping Park. service include: H Samuel, Dorothy Perkins, Burton, Topshop, o2, Claire’s, New Look, Blue Inc, House of Fraser, Ernest Jones, River Island, Waterstones, All offer many well-known high street retailers; Superdrug, Shoe Zone, Next, Boots, Accessorize, Clarks, Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer, Carphone Warehouse, WH Smith, Bon Marche, Office, Moss Bros and Friars Square has Topshop, Office, House of Fraser, Wilkinsons. Pandora, H&M, River Island, Thorntons, BHS, Next, New Look and many more. Unique and Unusual Gifts Hale Leys has Choice, Boots, Accessorize, Clarks, Calendar Club, Vision Express and Toys-UK amongst others. As well as many national and independent shops, Aylesbury has some unexpected hidden gems where you can find unique gifts and stocking fillers: Stores within Aylesbury Shopping Park include Argos, Home Sense, Sports Direct, Lidl and eateries such as St Mary’s Church has inspirational Christmas cards and gifts, advent candles, Frankie and Benny’s. Holly socks, olive wood hearts and crosses and more. Other excellent hunting grounds for quality and reasonably The Museum Shop sells a wide range of pocket money toys that make great priced goods and independent shops are the High Street, stocking fillers, as well as Quentin Blake mugs, Roald Dahl books and gifts. Kingsbury, Cambridge Street and Buckingham Street, all There are also gift ideas for adults, including art cards and books of local of which are within easy walking distance of the Market interest. Square. The Square hosts traditional open air markets, with a Vintage & Craft Bazaar every Tuesday and a general The Queens Park Arts Centre Christmas Pop Up Shop will be packed with market every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Delicious unique, hand-made items made by the tutors and students of Queens Park local produce can be found at the Farmers’ Markets from 9 until 31 December. The shop will be open during term time and which are held on the last Tuesday of throughout the run of their “Alice in Wonderland” panto. every month except December. Local produce can also be found on our weekly Foodie Friday Market. Mix 96 will again be collecting presents for disadvantaged children across Buckinghamshire. Please drop a gift into the studios on Bourbon Street during office hours in December (no need to wrap your gift) 6 7 Every Tuesday, Regular stalls include: 9am to 2pm Fruit and veg, Come to the weekly fresh meat, fresh Vintage & Craft Bazaar, fish, handbags and where you can find luggage, mobile phone accessories, hats and unique items from gloves, cut flowers and handmade jewellery bedding plants, dog and gifts to antique beds, Italian bread home furnishings, and deli, ladies collectable books costume jewellery. and vinyl and retro ornaments and accessories. Get ready for Christmas! Enjoy the hustle and bustle of last minute Christmas Markets in Christmas week shopping, pick up your fresh fruit and Tuesday 20th December veg for Christmas Wednesday21st December dinner and maybe a Farmers’ few final gifts while Market Thursday 22nd December until 8pm soaking up the festive atmosphere Get Ready For Christmas! Friday 23rd December Find unique gifts and tasty in Market Square. Saturday 24th December treats at our festive Farmers’ Market on Tuesday 29 November. The Farmers’ Market shares the Market Square with the Vintage & Craft Bazaar so why not browse all the stalls and make a day of it? 8 9 “Memories are everything apparently, and I have only great ones of the fabulous Friars” David Bowie A HERITAGE TO BE PROUD OF Birthplace of the Friars Paralympic Movement The Local Music Club That Rocked The World! Legendary among music fans and artists alike, Friars Dr. Ludwig Guttmann introduced sport as a Aylesbury is a world famous music club that has been rehabilitation method to people with spinal injuries Mark Jordan running in Aylesbury since 1969. With over 93,000 who were patients at the National Spinal Injuries Unit members, it is believed to be the largest music club in at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Aylesbury. An archery Europe. Having closed in 1984, Friars Aylesbury reopened competition for sixteen disabled athletes was held in June 2009 to tie in with its fortieth anniversary. to coincide with the 1948 London Olympic Games. This was the start of the Stoke Mandeville Games Artists including Queen, Genesis, Blondie and U2 and the Paralympic Movement was born. In 1960 the frequented Friars Aylesbury. David Bowie chose Friars International Stoke Mandeville Games took place in Aylesbury to perform the world debut of two of the Rome, the host city of the Olympic Games, setting a twentieth century’s most iconic albums, ‘Hunky Dory’ and ‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders precedent that has continued until today. Mark Jordan From Mars’. The opening line of the first song on the Ziggy The Paralympic Games returned to its birthplace in album, ‘Five Years’, even references Aylesbury’s Market 2012 for the Flame Lighting Ceremony, starting the 24 Square. For his July 1972 Friars show Bowie flew in 50 hour torch relay that officially opened the London 2012 American journalists just for this show which put both Paralympic Games. Friars and Aylesbury firmly on the cultural world map. In March 2014, a Heritage Flame Lighting Ceremony Friars is widely acknowledged as being instrumental in the was held in Stoke Mandeville which represented the success of many of the artists who performed here, and is first ever international leg of a Paralympic Torch Relay. fondly remembered as an important stepping stone on the Geoffrey Tyrell path to fame. On 2nd September 2016 Aylesbury and Stoke Mandeville stadium played host to the Paralympic Flame lighting “(Friars) Aylesbury is proud of its place in rock music history, and Ceremony for the Rio 2016 Olympic games.