Please note that the postcard from series
ended in 2004 and that descriptions of shops and services were correct at
time of going to press
Where is it:
Wangford, like many of its sister villages just inland from the
Suffolk coastline, is almost inseparable from the A12, about three
miles west of Southwold. With fewer than 150 homes the village is
not the most imposing on the Lowestoft to Ipswich road but does
offer a traditional, almost quaint, step back to simpler communities
of days gone by.
What's on offer:
Everything a traditional village should provide is here –
a post office, St Peter and St Paul’s Church and an old-fashioned
pub. What the village steers clear of is any urge to be modern for
the sake of it. The bypass that skirts the village’s north-west
side is in stark contrast to the cottage-lined high street –
complete with the home of Wangford’s very own aristocrat,
Lady Penelope Gilbey, daughter of the 4th Earl of Stradbroke.
Tell me some history:
The village, although small, has had its own court – law enforcement
being dispensed at the pub. When the Lord Nelson coach began its
service in 1807, the pub also became a regular stop on the London
to Yarmouth trunk road. Horses were changed or rested here and,
just as they do today, travellers refreshed themselves with food
and drink and rested for the night. It is also on the fringes of
the Henham Estate, owned by Australia-based Keith Rous, the 6th
Earl of Stradbroke. But the estate, valued at up to £12m,
is now up for sale. The church of St Peter and St Paul was built
in the 16th century and dominates the pretty main street.
Pretty streets and the church
at the end.
What’s it like today?
A row of delightful Victorian cottages line the road leading down
the hill from the church – a road that comes to an abrupt
halt where it is interrupted by the dual carriageway. The houses
mingle with a local shop, children’s playground and tennis
courts.
Angel Inn at Wangford
Eat and drink?
The almost Dickensian Angel Inn on the High Street is the hub of
the village for travellers and tourists. The 400-year-old establishment
provides accommodation as well as dining in the restaurant
and traditional bar food. The business is set back about a
mile from the road on the B1126 to Southwold.
Local attractions?
It seems content to be a gateway to sophisticated Southwold, but
Wangford is also something akin to the walking capital of north
Suffolk. Routes through local woodland and across marshland suit
young and old ramblers.
Blythburgh estuary, the National Nature Reserve at Walberswick and
the famous RSPB reserve at Minsmere are just a short drive away
for birdwatchers.
