CYCLING TOUR
Date: Friday 23 September
Time: 17:30 – 20:00
Start: Broadway Cinema, Nottingham, NG1 3AL
Finish: Little Brickhouse Restaurant, Nottingham, NG1 5FB
Duration: 2.5 hours
Distance: 10 km
Difficulty: easy/medium
Surface: tarmac, quiet roads where possible
Highlights: commons, slums, housing developments, urban history, aperitivo.
This ‘perambulation on wheels’ will retrace the original route of Nottingham’s dramatic expansion following its 1845 Enclosure Act. Following the passage of the Corporation backed enclosure bill, green fields formerly subjected to common grazing rights were released for development. Over the course of the next fifty years, Nottingham was transformed from a compact and congested centre, constrained by its old town borders, into an industrial, sprawling, powerhouse of the Midlands. The story or urban enclosure is full of historical intrigue; with over a hundred acres of land suddenly available for house building, every interested party was desperate for a cut of the proceeds. The story deserves far more than two hours while riding a bike, but let’s make a go of it.
The price includes a light dinner and glass of natural wine at Little Brickhouse Restaurant.