“In Reading gaol by Reading town
There is a pit of shame”
(The Ballad of Reading Gaol – Oscar Wilde)
Recent publicity about the Bayeux Tapestry being moved to London in preparation for it being displayed at the British Museum this autumn, reminded me that I had for some time been meaning to go to see the copy of it that resides in Reading Museum. Crossrail (now called the Elizabeth Line) extends westwards from London as far as Reading and for holders, like me, of a London Freedom Pass, travel on the line is free after 9am.
This post just describes the highlights from my day in Reading, rather than being a blow-by-blow description as is normal for most Europe Explored trips.
Tuesday 21st July 2026 – Reading
On arrival at Reading station, I headed straight to Reading Museum where the copy of the Bayeux Tapestry is on display. In the Museum, the whole of the first floor is given over to the Tapestry, which is where I decided to start. There were a few other people viewing the exhibit, but it was not crowded, as I had feared. The copy in Reading was made in the 1880s by ladies of the Leek Embroidery Society in Staffordshire. It aims to be a faithful reproduction of the original, but there are some differences. An extra layer has been added along the bottom recording the names of the women who had embroidered each panel. The original has some naked figures in the borders, but these have been clothed in this copy. Also, the colour and thickness of the thread used varies from the original. It was good that I could follow the narrative of the tapestry at my own pace, with plenty of time to stop and look at things in more detail when I wanted.
On the top floor of the museum there are a number of other galleries. There is an art gallery, which houses different exhibitions. At the time of my visit it was showing pictures of Reading. The Silchester Gallery displays exhibits from the nearby Roman town of Silchester. There is also a gallery devoted to Huntley & Palmers biscuits, which were made in the town until 1976. The ground floor of Reading Museum is devoted to the history of the town – from a small market town to rapid industrialisation in the 19th century, through to it becoming a centre for IT and service industries in the late 20th century.
In nearby Forbury Gardens there is an enormous cast iron statue of a lion. The Maiwand Lion is a war memorial to the men of the Berkshire Regiment who died in the second Anglo-Afghan War.
Just beyond Forbury Gardens is the site of Reading Abbey, which covers a large area. It was built by Henry I and he was buried here. The precise location of Henry I’s grave is unknown and attempts to locate his remains have, so far, been unsuccessful. The Abbey was destroyed in Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century. In summer, the ruins of the Abbey are used to stage open air performances of plays, and on the day of my visit, Hamlet was going to be staged that evening.
Alongside the ruins of the Abbey is Reading Prison, which was built in 1844 and shut down in 2014. It has been immortalised in Oscar Wilde’s poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol, based on his experience of being incarcerated there for homosexuality.
I walked along the River Kennet to a former pumping station by a weir, which is now an outpost of Reading Museum.
Reading is a town, not a city, and it does not have a cathedral. The main church in the centre of the town is Reading Minster and I walked to it, before heading to the south of the town.
The Museum of English Rural Life occupies a large site, part of which was once a hall of residence for Reading University. An exhibition covers how rural life changed during seasons of the year. There are large collections of agricultural machinery and tools, as well descriptions of traditional rural crafts.
Before leaving Reading, I decided to go for a walk along the River Thames which runs just to the north of the town centre. I crossed the Thames at Caversham Bridge and went to Caversham Court Garden, which was looking rather parched after the recent heatwave. The Thames here used to be the county boundary between Berkshire and Oxfordshire, with Caversham being in Oxfordshire, but nowadays it is just part of Reading.
Although not a traditional tourist destination, I found enough in Reading to keep me occupied for a day and I am glad that I went.