Chipping Norton
Oxfordshire
There are plenty of towns in this neck of the woods that call themselves ‘Gateway to the Cotswolds’, but Chippy, as it’s affectionately known, should win the prize. It has everything that such an acolade deserves: rolling hills and lovely villages within a ten-minute drive, fun shops, pretty lanes, even a theatre – as well as some of the area's most useful shops. Dining opportunities range from the chippy (The Chippy Chippy, of course – although the Arctic Fish Bar is more popular) to fine dining at the Chequers pub. There are plenty of pretty walks to be had without having to drive. Everyone knows it nowadays as home to the notorious Chipping Norton set –David Cameron, Rebekah Brooks and Jeremy Clarkson, et al – who live nearby, and as you'd expect it's a pretty affluent place. But market day on Wednesdays and the farmer’s market on the third Saturday of each month confirms that this is a real place for real people, even if quite a few of them do wear rather a lot of tweed.
