Hubbry Logo
DidcotDidcotMain
Open search
Didcot
Community hub
Didcot
logo
8 pages, 0 posts
0 subscribers
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Contribute something
Didcot
Didcot
Didcot
View on Wikipedia
from Wikipedia

Didcot (/ˈdɪdkɒt, -kət/ DID-kot, -⁠kət) is a railway town and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, located 15 miles (24 km) south of Oxford, 10 miles (16 km) east of Wantage and 15 miles (24 km) north west of Reading. Historically part of Berkshire, the town is noted for its railway heritage, Didcot station opening as a junction station on the Great Western Main Line in 1844.

Key Information

Today the town is known for the railway museum and as the gateway town to the Science Vale: three large science and technology centres in the surrounding villages of Milton (Milton Park), Culham (Culham Science Centre) and Harwell (Harwell Science and Innovation Campus which includes the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory).

History

[edit]

Ancient and Medieval eras

[edit]

The area around present-day Didcot has been inhabited for at least 9,000 years. A large archaeological dig between 2010 and 2013 produced finds from the Mesolithic, Neolithic, Iron Age and Bronze Age.[2][3] In the Roman era the inhabitants of the area tried to drain the marshland by digging ditches through what is now the Ladygrove area north of the town near Long Wittenham, evidence of which was found during surveying in 1994.[4] A hoard of 126 gold Roman coins dating from about 160 was found just outside the village in 1995 by an enthusiast with a metal detector. It is now displayed at the Ashmolean Museum on loan from the British Museum.[5][6]

The Domesday Book of 1086 does not record Didcot. In 13th-century records the toponym appears as Dudecota, Dudecote, Doudecote, Dudcote or Dudecothe. Some of these spellings continued into later centuries, and were joined by Dodecote from the 14th century onward, Dudcott from the 16th century onward and Didcott from the 17th century onward. It is derived from Old English, meaning the house or shelter of Dudda's people.[7][8] The name is believed to be derived from that of Dida, a 7th-century Mercian sub-king who ruled the area around Oxford and was the father of Saint Frithuswith or Frideswide, now the patron saint of both Oxford and Oxford University.[9]

All Saints' parish church, parts of which go back to the 12th century

Didcot was then a rural Berkshire village, and it remained so for centuries, only occasionally appearing in records. If Didcot existed at the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, it will have been much smaller than several surrounding villages, including Harwell and Long Wittenham, that modern Didcot now dwarfs. The nearest settlement recorded in the Domesday Book was Wibalditone, with 21 inhabitants and a church, whose name possibly survives in Willington's Farm on the edge of Didcot's present-day Ladygrove Estate.[10] The oldest parts of the Church of England parish church of All Saints go back to the 12th century. They include the walls of the nave and east wall of the chancel, which were built about 1160.[11] The church is a Grade II* listed building.[12]

Early modern era and the coming of the railways

[edit]
White Cottage, the oldest house in Didcot

Parts of the original village survive in the Lydalls Road area around All Saints' church. In the 16th-century Didcot was a small village of landowners, tenants and tradespeople with a population of about 120.[13] The oldest surviving house in Didcot is White Cottage, a 16th-century timber-framed building in Manor Road that has a wood shingle roof. It is a Grade II listed building.[14] At that time the village centre consisted of a group of cottages and surrounding farms around Manor, Foxhall and Lydalls Roads. Those still surviving include The Nook, Thorney Down Cottage and Manor Cottage, which were all built in the early to mid-17th century.[11] Didcot village was on the route between London and Wantage (now Wantage Road), which in 1752 was made a toll road. Didcot had three toll gates that collected revenue for the turnpike trust until 1879, when the trust was dissolved due to the growing use of the railway.[11]

Great Western Railway

[edit]

The Great Western Railway, engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, reached Didcot in 1839. In 1844 the Brunel-designed Didcot station was opened. The original station burnt down in the late 19th century. Although longer, a cheaper-to-build line to Bristol would have been through Abingdon farther north but the landowner, the first Lord Wantage, is reputed to have prevented that alignment.[15] The railway and its junction to Oxford assisted the growth of Didcot. The station's name helped to standardise the spelling "Didcot".

Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway

[edit]

Didcot's junction of the routes to London, Bristol, Oxford and to Southampton via the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway (DN&S) made the town militarily important, especially during the First World War campaign on the Western Front and the Second World War preparations for D-Day. The DN&S line has since closed, and the large Army and Royal Air Force ordnance depots have disappeared beneath the power station and Milton Park Business Park; however the 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search Regiment RLC is still based at the Vauxhall Barracks in the town.

Remains of the DN&S railway survive in the eastern part of town. This line, designed to provide a direct link to the south coast from the Midlands and the North avoiding the indirect and congested route via Reading and Basingstoke, was built in 1879–82 after previous proposals had failed. It was designed as a main line and was engineered by John Fowler and built by contractors TH Falkiner and Sir Thomas Tancred, who together also constructed the Forth Railway Bridge.[16] It was a very costly line to build due to the heavy engineering challenges of crossing the Berkshire and Hampshire Downs with a 1 in 106 gradient to allow for higher mainline speeds, and this initial cost and the initially lower than expected traffic volumes caused the company financial problems. It never independently reached Southampton, but instead joined the main London and South Western Railway line at Shawford, south of Winchester.

In the Second World War there was so much military traffic to the port of Southampton that the line was upgraded. The northern section between Didcot and Newbury was made double track. It was closed for 5 months in 1942–43 for this to be done. Several of the bridges in the area of Didcot and the Hagbournes were also strengthened and rebuilt. Although passenger trains between Didcot and Newbury were withdrawn in 1962, the line continued to be used by freight trains for a further four years, and there was regular oil traffic to the north from the refinery at Fawley near Southampton. But in 1966 this traffic was also withdrawn, and then the line was dismantled. The last passenger train was a re-routed Pines Express in May 1964, diverted due to a derailment at Reading West. A section of the abandoned embankment towards Upton, now designated as a Sustrans route, has views across the town and countryside.[17]

21st century

[edit]

As at 2011, Didcot had a population of more than 26,000, and by 2021, the population had grown to more than 31,000.[18] The new town centre, the Orchard Centre, was opened in August 2005.[19] As part of the Science Vale Enterprise Zone, Didcot is surrounded by one of the largest scientific clusters in the United Kingdom. There are a number of major science and technology campuses nearby, including the Culham Science Centre, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, and Milton Park.[20] The Diamond Light Source synchrotron, based at the Harwell Campus, is the largest UK-funded scientific facility to be built for more than 30 years.[21]

A Thames Travel bus on Greenwood Way in the new Great Western Park estate

Didcot has been designated as one of the three major growth areas in Oxfordshire; the Ladygrove development, to the north and east of the railway line on the former marshland, is set to double the number of homes in the town since construction began in the late 1980s. Originally, the Ladygrove development was planned to be complete by 2001, but the plans for the final section to the east of Abingdon Road were only announced in 2006. Before the Ladygrove development was completed, a prolonged and contentious planning enquiry decided that a 3,300-home development would be built to the west of the town, partly overlapping the boundary with the Vale of White Horse.[22] This is now known as Great Western Park.

In 2008 a new £8 million arts and entertainment centre, Cornerstone, was opened in the Orchard Centre. It has exhibition and studio spaces, a café and a 236-seat auditorium. Designed by Ellis William Architects, the centre is clad with silvered aluminium panels and has a window wall, used to connect the building with passing shoppers.[23] The United Kingdom government named Didcot a garden town in 2015, the first existing town to gain this status, providing funding to support sustainable and environmentally friendly town development over the coming 15 years.[24] In 2017, researchers named Didcot as the most "normal" town in England.[25]

Railways

[edit]
Didcot Parkway in 2020
A GWR Class 800 from Swansea arriving on Platform 2

Didcot Railway Centre

[edit]
Main article: Didcot Railway Centre

Formed by the Great Western Society in 1967 to house its collection of Great Western Railway locomotives and rolling stock, housed in Didcot's 1932-built Great Western engine shed.[26] The Railway Centre is often used as period film set and has featured in works including Anna Karenina, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and The Elephant Man.[27] The centre is north of Didcot Parkway railway station, and is accessed from the station via the pedestrian subway.

Didcot Parkway station

[edit]

The station was originally called Didcot but then renamed Didcot Parkway in 1985 by British Rail; the site of the old GWR provender stores, which had been demolished in 1976 (the provender pond was kept to maintain the water table) was made into a large car park to attract passengers from the surrounding area. An improvement programme for the forecourt of the station began in September 2012. This was viewed as being the first phase of better connecting the station to Didcot town centre.[28]

Economy

[edit]

Power stations

[edit]
Main article: Didcot power stations
Aerial view of Didcot Power Stations A (centre) and B (extreme left)

Didcot A Power Station (between Didcot and Sutton Courtenay), which was commissioned in 1968, ceased generating electricity for the National Grid in March 2013. Country Life once voted the power station the third worst eyesore in Britain.[29] The power station cooling towers were visible from up to 30 miles (48 km) away[citation needed] because of their location, but were designed with visual impact in mind (six towers in two separated groups 0.5 miles (800 m) apart rather than a monolithic 3×2 block), much in the style of what is sometimes called Didcot's 'sister' station – Fiddlers Ferry Power Station – at Widnes, Cheshire, constructed slightly earlier. The power station had also proved a popular man-made object for local photographers.[citation needed]

In October 2010, Didcot Sewage Works became the first in the UK to produce biomethane gas supplied to the National Grid, for use in up to 200 homes in Oxfordshire.[30] On Sunday 27 July 2014 three of the six 114-metre (374 ft) cooling towers were demolished in the early hours of the morning, using 180 kilograms (400 lb) of explosives. The demolition was streamed live by webcam.[31] On Tuesday 23 February 2016, part of the boiler house building at the power station collapsed; one person was declared dead, five injured and three missing. All were believed to have been preparing the site for demolition.[32] On Sunday 17 July 2016, what remained of the structure was demolished in a controlled explosion. The bodies of the three missing men were still in the remains at that time. A spokesman said that because of the instability of the structure, it had not been possible to recover the three bodies. For safety reasons, robots were used to place the explosive charges, and the site was demolished just after 6am. On Sunday 18 August 2019, the remaining three cooling towers were demolished at 7am.[33]

Motor Racing

[edit]
The Didcot-built Williams FW06 from 1978, being raced at Silverstone in 2007

Didcot has a strong connection with motorsports and most notably the Williams Grand Prix Engineering team as Frank Williams founded the team there in a former carpet warehouse on Station Road in 1977.[34][35] After establishing themselves in Formula One, the factory, now including a small 'Williams Museum', moved within Didcot to a new factory adjacent to the Didcot A Power Station site on Basil Hill Road.[36] They stayed there until 1995 when they finally outgrew the site, moving to the former Jansen Pharmaceutical site in nearby Grove where they are still based today. After Williams Grand Prix Engineering's departure, the site was used for the design and production of the BMW V12 LM and BMW V12 LMR sports prototype racing cars, a joint collaboration between Williams and BMW which would go on to win the 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans.[37] During the 1990s Williams also ran their joint British Touring Car Championship effort with Renault; Williams Touring Car Engineering from a warehouse on Churchward on the Southmead Industrial Estate in Didcot.[38] In 2012 a road through the new Great Western Park development in Didcot was named Sir Frank Williams Avenue in honour of Williams' contribution to the town.[39]

In the late 1960s and 1970s, Rich's Sidings in Didcot was home to Maxperenco, a racing car manufacturer run by Andrew Duncan who produced both Single-Seater Formula cars and GT Sports cars.[40]

During the 1980s and 1990s the Southmead Industrial Estate in Didcot was also home to Nissan Motorsports' Europe headquarters where they raced Nissan Primera touring cars in the British Touring Car Championship.[41] This would go on to become Team RJN who are still based on the Southmead Industrial Estate to this day.[42]

More recently, Didcot is home to a Pirelli distribution and logistics centre which provides tyres for Formula One Grand Prix motor racing events across Europe.[43][44] In 2015 the head offices of the Bloodhound LSR land speed record attempt team were moved to the new University Technical College (UTC) Oxfordshire site on the boundary between Didcot and Harwell. In 2019 the team relocated to Berkeley Green Technical College in Gloucestershire.[45]

Agriculture

[edit]
Opium poppies were being cultivated at Harwell in June 2009

Didcot is surrounded by farmland which has historically grown traditional British crops such as wheat and barley, sheep farming is also common in the area.[46] The area is also noted for farmers growing opium poppies for legal production of morphine and heroin to meet National Health Service demand.[47] The poppies produced are sold to Macfarlan Smith, a major pharmaceutical company, who hold a licence from the United Kingdom's Home Office.[48]

Didcot formerly had a dairy bottling factory and chicken farm in the town from 1935 to 1987, initially operated by Job's Dairy and later after 1970, Express Dairy; the site employed a large number of local people.[49] The dairy was located in the Northbourne area of the town, and was later redeveloped into a residential area around Western Avenue, next to the former Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway line, now a cycle path.[50]

Printing

[edit]

From 2007 until 2017, the Daily Mail & General Trust had a printing plant in Didcot.[51]

Military

[edit]

The British Army's Vauxhall Barracks is on the edge of town. The regimental headquarters of 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search Regiment RLC is based in the town.[52]

Governance

[edit]
Civic Hall, Didcot

There are three tiers of local government covering Didcot, at parish (town), district and county level: Didcot Town Council, South Oxfordshire District Council and Oxfordshire County Council. The town council has its offices at the Civic Hall on Britwell Road.[53]

The town council comprises 21 councillors representing the five wards in the town:[54]

  • All Saints – 5 members
  • Ladygrove – 6 members
  • Milbrook – 1 member
  • Northbourne and Orchard – 4 members
  • Park – 5 members

Meetings of the town council are chaired by the mayor. Mayors are elected by the councillors for a one-year term; since 6 May 2025 the mayor has been Councillor Jim Loder (Park ward).[55]

Didcot is also the largest town in the parliamentary constituency of Didcot and Wantage, which has been represented since 2024 at Westminster by Olly Glover, Liberal Democrat.

Administrative history

[edit]

Didcot was an ancient parish in Berkshire. When elected parish and district councils were created in 1894, Didcot was given a parish council and included in the Wallingford Rural District. The rural district council moved its offices from Wallingford to Didcot in the 1950s.[56] Wallingford Rural District was abolished in 1974 and the area was transferred to Oxfordshire and the new district of South Oxfordshire, becoming the largest town in the new district. After 1974 parish councils were allowed to declare their parishes to be towns and take the style town council, as Didcot has done.[57] The Civic Hall was built for the town council in 1979 and also serves as a venue for public events.[53]

Health

[edit]

The district in England with the highest healthy life expectancy, according to an Office for National Statistics (ONS) study, is the 1990s-built Ladygrove Estate in Didcot.[58] While the average UK healthy lifespan was thought to be 68.8 for women and 67 for men in 2001, people in Ladygrove district of Didcot could expect 86 healthy years. It is believed Ladygrove may have benefited from the local recreation grounds and sports centre.[58][59]

Education

[edit]

Didcot is served by seven primary schools: All Saints' C of E, Aureus, Ladygrove Park, Manor, Northbourne C of E, Stephen Freeman and Willowcroft. Along with these seven schools based in Didcot, a further six local village schools form the Didcot Primary Partnership: Blewbury Endowed C of E, Cholsey, Hagbourne, Harwell Community, Long Wittenham C of E and South Moreton County.[60] Didcot Primary Academy, opened in 2016 in the Great Western Park area,[61] falls under Harwell Parish.

Two of Didcot's state secondary schools; St Birinus School and Didcot Girls' School are single-sex schools that join at sixth form to host Didcot Sixth Form. There are two other secondary schools in Didcot which have opened alongside the construction of the Great Western Park estate; UTC Oxfordshire (ages 14–19), in 2015,[62] and Aureus School (ages 11–16), in 2017.[63]

Arts and culture

[edit]

Arts centre

[edit]

Cornerstone, a 278-seater multi-purpose arts centre, was opened on 29 August 2008.[64][65]

Choir

[edit]

Didcot Choral Society, founded in 1958, performs three concerts a year in various venues around the town as well as an annual tour (Paris in 2008, Belgium in 2009).[66]

Symphony orchestra

[edit]

Didcot Concert Orchestra, founded in 2017, performs concerts every February, May and October at Cornerstone arts centre in Didcot.[67][68]

Film and TV

[edit]

In November 2018, Rebellion Developments began setting up a new studio on the edge of Didcot, valued at $100 million, using the existing former Daily Mail printing works on Milton Road. The studio is planned to be used for film and TV series based on 2000 AD comic series characters, including Judge Dredd: Mega City One.[69]

Local media

[edit]

Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC South and ITV Meridian. Television signals are received from the Oxford TV transmitter.[70]

Didcot's local radio stations are BBC Radio Oxford on 95.2 FM, Heart South on 102.6 FM and Greatest Hits Radio on 106.4 FM.

Local newspapers are the Didcot Herald[71] and Oxfordshire Guardian.

Sport and leisure

[edit]

Leisure centres

[edit]

Didcot has three main leisure centres:

  • Didcot Leisure Centre[72]
  • Didcot Wave Leisure Centre (pool)[73]
  • Willowbrook Leisure Centre[74]

Parks, gardens and open spaces

[edit]

Didcot Town Council maintains the following:[75]

  • Edmonds Park
  • Loyd Recreation Park
  • Smallbone Recreation Park
  • Garden of Remembrance
  • Marsh Recreation Ground
  • Great Western Drive Park
  • Ladygrove Park and Lakes
  • Ladygrove woods
  • Ladygrove Skate Park
  • Mendip Heights Play Area
  • The Diamond Jubilee Garden
  • Broadway Gardens
  • Stubbings Land
  • Millennium wood at the Hagbourne Triangle
  • Cemetery, Kynaston Road

Didcot also has a nature reserve, Mowbray Fields, where wildlife including common spotted orchid and Southern Marsh Orchid occur.[76]

Sport clubs

[edit]

Cricket

[edit]

Didcot Cricket Club's current home ground is at Boundary Park in Great Western Park.[77]

Cycling

[edit]

Didcot Phoenix cycle club[78] was founded in 1973 and is represented by over 70 members who participate in a range of cycling activities including touring, time trials, road racing, Audax, cyclocross and off-road events.

The OVO Energy Women's Tour, a road cycling event, passed through Didcot on 12 June 2019.[79] The race was halted for around 30 minutes on the Broadway because of a crash that caused the withdrawal of race leader Marianne Vos.[80]

Karate

[edit]

The Didcot Karate School teaches traditional Goju-ryu karate for adults and children at the Fleet Meadow Community Hall.[81] The club has been long established in the town and has been listed by the town council as a key local activity.[82]

Korfball

[edit]

Didcot Dragons Korfball club was founded in 2003. The club has two teams in the Oxfordshire leagues. They train in Willowbrook Leisure Centre in the winter and Boundary Park in the summer.[83]

Football

[edit]
Didcot Town Football Club's Station Road Ground in 1982

Didcot Town Football Club's home ground is the Loop Meadow Stadium on the Ladygrove Estate, having moved from their previous pitch off Station Road in 1999 to make way for the new Orchard Centre development. Founded in 1907, the club currently play in the 8th tier of the English Football League system.

Most notable achievements include winning the FA Vase in 2005 and reaching The FA Cup 1st Round in 2015.

Running

[edit]

Didcot has its own chapter of the Hash House Harriers.[84] The club started in 1986 (the first run was on 8 April of that year).

Didcot Runners is an AAA affiliated running club founded in 2003 that meets every Tuesday & Thursday for group runs and fitness sessions. Its members participate in running races across the country.[85]

Table tennis

[edit]

The Didcot & District Table Tennis Association (DDTTA) was established in 1949 to promote the playing of table tennis in the Didcot area. It organises an annual league competition containing affiliated teams from towns and villages across south Oxfordshire.[86]

Notable people

[edit]
[edit]

Didcot's synonymous connection with railways was noted in Douglas Adams and John Lloyd's humorous book the Meaning of Liff, published in 1983. The book, a "dictionary of things that there aren't any words for yet", referred to "a Didcot" as "The small, oddly shaped bit of card which a ticket inspector cuts out of a ticket with his clipper for no apparent reason".[98] Didcot is referred to in Ricky Gervais' comedy feature film David Brent: Life on the Road: the song "Lady Gypsy" on the film's soundtrack tells of a romantic meeting "by the lakeside, just south of Didcot".[99] An electricity pylon on farmland alongside Abingdon Road (opposite Tamar Way) on the eastern edge of Didcot featured on the cover of US rock band Black Swan Lane's album Under My Fallen Sky, released in November 2017.[100]

The name Middle Earth was added to this Didcot road sign by anonymous artist Athirty4

In March 2018, anonymous artist Athirty4 added a series of fictional fantasy names to a number of road signs in Didcot.[101] The names included: Narnia, Neverland, Emerald City, Middle Earth, and Gotham City. Oxfordshire County Council thought the signs were an act of vandalism; however, members of the general public felt that the signs brought a lot of positive attention to the town.[102]

Nearby places

[edit]

References

[edit]

Bibliography

[edit]

Further reading

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Didcot

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia

Didcot is a town and civil parish in , , located approximately 10 miles south of and serving as a key commuter hub due to its strategic position along transport corridors. With a of 32,183 recorded in the 2021 , the settlement has experienced rapid growth, increasing by over 35% in the prior, driven by developments and its designation as a garden town aiming to deliver thousands of new homes and jobs by 2031. Originally a modest agricultural village with Saxon origins, Didcot's modern identity stems from its railway heritage, marked by the opening of Didcot Parkway station in 1844 as a junction on the , which catalyzed industrial expansion and the establishment of the as a preserved museum of Great Western Railway artifacts. The town's economy was further shaped by the , including the coal-fired Didcot A operational from 1970 until 2013 and the adjacent gas-fired Didcot B commencing in 1997, which provided significant employment before the shift away from coal generation.

Geography and Demographics

Location and Physical Features

Didcot is situated in southern , , approximately 15 miles (24 km) south of and 9 miles (14 km) southwest of Wallingford, at coordinates 51°36′35″N 1°15′00″W. The town lies within the district, bordered by the River Thames to the north and the Ock Brook to the south, forming part of the lowlands. The terrain consists of flat to gently undulating associated with the River Thames, characterized by soils that support agricultural use due to their fertility and water retention properties. These heavy clay soils overlie gravel and sand deposits, contributing to the area's vulnerability to waterlogging. Didcot's position places it near the northern escarpment of the to the south and within the broader Thames gap separating the to the east from the Downs. The local climate is temperate oceanic, with mild winters and cool summers; average annual precipitation measures about 738 mm, with the wettest month being October at around 56 mm. Mean temperatures range from a July high of 21.8°C to a January low of 6.8°C, though the floodplain location exposes the area to fluvial flood risks from the Thames and its tributaries, as evidenced by historical inundations requiring property protections. The population of Didcot parish grew from 25,101 residents in the 2011 Census to 32,183 in the 2021 Census, reflecting an average annual increase of 2.5%. Mid-year estimates further indicate a rise from 24,373 in 2009 to 27,426 in 2019, driven by net inward migration and natural change. This expansion has resulted in a population density of 3,556 persons per square kilometer as of 2021, up from lower densities in prior decades amid expanding residential developments.
Census YearPopulationAnnual Growth Rate (from prior census)
201125,101-
202132,1832.5%
In terms of ethnic composition from the 2021 , 88% of Didcot residents identified as White, with forming the majority subgroup alongside smaller proportions of and White Other. The remaining 12% comprised Asian or Asian British (approximately 5.5%), Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups (around 3%), Black or Black British (2%), and other categories including Arab. This marks a slight increase in non-White proportions compared to earlier censuses, consistent with broader trends in where the Asian population share rose to 2.9% district-wide. Socioeconomically, Didcot ranks as relatively undeprived according to the 2019 , with no lower-layer super output areas falling within the 10% most deprived nationally across the overall index or key domains such as , , and health. One area experienced moderate deprivation related to , placing it in the 30% most affected nationally. Household composition data from 2021 shows typical family structures, with average sizes supporting the town's commuter-oriented residential profile.

Etymology and Early Settlement

Name Origins

The name Didcot derives from , specifically a compound of a Dudda or Dydda (a form common in Anglo-Saxon ) and cot, meaning "," "," or "dwelling," thus denoting "Dudda's cottage" or the associated homestead of an individual named Dudda. This etymology reflects typical late Saxon naming conventions for rural settlements centered around a key habitation or small farmstead, likely post-dating the initial Anglo-Saxon of the area. The toponym first emerges in written records during the 13th century, appearing in variants such as Dudecota, Dudecote, Doudecote, Dudcote, or Dudecot, which preserve the phonetic evolution from the Old English roots while adapting to Middle English orthography. These spellings indicate gradual linguistic standardization amid Norman influence on documentation, though the core elements remained tied to the Anglo-Saxon substrate rather than deriving from Norman French or Latin terms. The Domesday Book of 1086 does not record Didcot by this name, instead listing the underlying manor as Wibaldeston (from Old English Wigbald's tun, or "Wigbald's farmstead"), suggesting the modern name supplanted an earlier designation around the 12th–13th centuries. Medieval manorial records link the estate to Norman lords, including Henry de Ferrers (a under ) who granted it to Nigel de Albini circa 1086–1100, but these tenurial shifts did not alter the name's Anglo-Saxon origins, which persisted independently of feudal ownership. The form Didcot gained prevalence by the , with Dudcote or Dudcot lingering in some contexts until the , when railway development further entrenched the contemporary spelling.

Prehistoric and Roman Evidence

Archaeological investigations in the Didcot area have revealed evidence of human activity dating back to the period, with stray finds including worked flints indicating transient use of the around 7000 BC. Later prehistoric occupation intensified during the , as evidenced by early arrowheads and a late pit uncovered during excavations at a proposed development site. Iron Age settlements from approximately 800 BC onward are attested by storage pits, enclosures, and pottery sherds, suggesting rural agrarian communities engaged in farming and surplus storage in a of cleared near courses. Roman period remains indicate continued low-density , with excavations uncovering structural evidence of a and associated features such as ditches containing . In April 1995, a metal detectorist discovered a hoard of 126 high-quality gold aurei coins, primarily from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD including issues of , buried in the vicinity of the presumed villa site west of Didcot; the hoard was declared and acquired by the . This find, alongside scatters of and enclosures spanning the Middle Iron Age into the Roman era, points to sustained agricultural exploitation without evidence of urban development. The absence of large-scale infrastructure underscores Didcot's role as a peripheral agrarian locale within the broader of .

History

Medieval Period

Following the Norman Conquest of 1066, the manor of Didcot was granted to Henry de Ferrers, a prominent baron under William I. De Ferrers subsequently transferred the estate to Nigel de Albini, establishing a feudal structure centered on manorial lordship. This ownership pattern reflected broader Norman redistribution of Anglo-Saxon lands, with Didcot functioning as a typical rural manor under lay control rather than direct ecclesiastical oversight. The of All Saints emerged as the focal point of medieval religious life, with its walls constructed around 1160 and retaining a Norman font indicative of early Romanesque influences. The site, elevated on a and accompanied by a tree estimated at over 1,200 years old, underscores continuity from possible Saxon origins, though the current structure dates to the . activities emphasized administration and tithes supporting agrarian tenants, without evidence of monastic ties specific to Didcot. Didcot's medieval economy revolved around agriculture, with tenants cultivating arable fields and pastures under manorial obligations typical of villages. Trade remained minimal, confined to local markets, as the settlement lacked urban privileges or significant non-agrarian crafts until later periods. The , striking in 1348–1350, caused widespread depopulation and labor shortages that eroded feudal bonds regionally, contributing to unrest like the 1381 , though direct records of local participation or impacts in Didcot are absent. These events prompted gradual shifts in tenantry conditions, including higher wages and commutation of labor services, aligning with national trends toward post-plague economic adjustments.

Early Modern Era

During the 16th century, Didcot experienced profound agricultural restructuring under the influence of the Stonor family, who had held the manor since acquiring it in 1317 from previous owners. The Stonors, based at their estate in Stonor Park near Henley-on-Thames, administered Didcot remotely through appointed stewards, prioritizing estate management that facilitated the wholesale enclosure of open fields and commons. This process converted communal arable lands into enclosed pastures, prompting bitter complaints from tenants who feared loss of grazing rights and conversion to sheep farming, a shift driven by rising wool profits in the Tudor economy. Local manorial courts handled disputes, but enclosure proceeded, consolidating land under fewer hands and altering the village's open-field system that had persisted since medieval times. The (1642–1651) brought direct repercussions to Didcot due to its location in , a contested region between forces centered in and Parliamentarian armies advancing from . Proximity to the First and Second Battles of Newbury (September 1643 and October 1644, respectively, approximately 15 miles northwest) exposed the village to troop movements, foraging, and minor engagements, as evidenced by a marked increase in recorded deaths in the during this period—attributable to combat, disease, or the burdens of billeting soldiers. While no major battles occurred in Didcot itself, the conflict disrupted local agriculture and governance, with manorial loyalties divided; the Stonors, Catholic sympathizers with historical ties to networks, navigated fines and sequestration risks under Parliament's eventual dominance. The Stonors retained control until 1671, when they divested the manor amid family financial strains post-Restoration, transferring influence to new proprietors who continued pastoral emphases. Into the , Didcot functioned as a self-contained agrarian under governance for and churchwardens for maintenance, isolated by poor roads and reliant on markets for surplus and . Population remained modest and stable, comprising roughly 120 families in the mid-16th century—a figure indicative of limited expansion despite enclosures, constrained by subsistence farming and pre-enclosure depopulation legacies from events like the . This era solidified Didcot's pre-industrial character, with timber-framed cottages and watermills supporting a tenant-based geared toward sheep rearing over .

Rise of Railways in the 19th Century

The Great Western Railway (GWR) constructed its broad-gauge main line from London Paddington to , passing through Didcot with construction commencing in the area by 1839 and the route fully operational by 1841, positioning the town as a strategic junction due to favorable offering superior gradients for extensions northward to and southward. The Didcot station opened on 12 June 1844 as the terminus for the new 10-mile to Oxford's Grandpont station, completed under the Oxford Railway Act of 1843 despite initial parliamentary delays from competing proposals and local opposition. This infrastructure elevated Didcot's connectivity, serving as a critical interchange for passengers and freight between the capital, the , and emerging regional lines. Land acquisition challenges shaped early development, as GWR engineers under encountered resistance from local landowners, preventing expansion of worker housing westward toward the historic village core and instead directing growth eastward into what became known as New Didcot. The Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway (DN&SR), an independent venture authorized in 1863, connected at Didcot to provide southward access via Newbury toward and —bypassing more direct coastal or rival routes amid territorial disputes and GWR dominance— with the Didcot-to-Newbury segment opening in 1868 to handle goods and passengers, though financial strains limited its viability against established networks. GWR promptly established maintenance facilities, including a large timber-framed engine shed at the station for servicing, which supported operational demands and drew skilled engineers and laborers. These developments triggered causal , with in track maintenance, signaling, and logistics attracting an influx of skilled workers from rural areas and industrial centers, fostering ancillary trades like ironworking and provisioning. Didcot's surged from 319 in 1801 to 403 by 1841, then accelerated to approximately 4,200 by 1901, reflecting direct job creation—estimated at hundreds in roles—and induced migration for family support services, converting the locale from agrarian subsistence to a specialized -dependent . This growth underscored railways' role in reallocating labor from to industry, though it concentrated prosperity in sectors vulnerable to technological shifts.

20th Century Industrialization and Wars

During , the acquired 620 acres of land north of Didcot in 1914 to establish an Army Ordnance Depot, which opened on 15 June 1915 under the command of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps for munitions storage and supply logistics. Initially intended as temporary, the facility expanded rapidly, covering eight square miles by 1919 with its own internal rail network to facilitate efficient distribution amid wartime demands. This infrastructure played a key role in Britain's logistical efforts, leveraging Didcot's established railway connections for rapid munitions transport. In the post-World War II era, Didcot transitioned toward heavy industrialization, particularly in energy production, utilizing the former Ministry of Defence depot site north of the town. Construction of Didcot A, a 2,000 MW coal-fired power station with four 500 MW units, began in the mid-1960s and was commissioned around 1970 by the Central Electricity Generating Board to provide reliable baseload electricity to the national grid. The project, costing £104 million, generated significant local employment during construction and operation, contributing to economic multipliers through ancillary jobs in supply chains and services despite initial environmental concerns. Didcot's energy infrastructure expanded further in the with the development of Didcot B, a 1,440 MW combined-cycle gas turbine plant commissioned in 1997, enhancing flexibility in power generation amid the 's shift toward . These facilities underscored Didcot's contributions to national , with Didcot A delivering consistent coal-based output and Didcot B offering higher efficiency at around 55% through advanced gas turbine technology. The power stations' operations supported suburban expansion by attracting workers, fostering and infrastructural development tied to industrial employment needs.

Post-2000 Developments and Garden Town Status

In December 2015, Didcot received Garden Town designation from the UK government, with ambitions to deliver approximately 15,000 new homes and 20,000 jobs by 2031 as part of a broader strategy to foster sustainable growth integrated with green spaces and infrastructure. By 2023, however, job creation within the town reached only 1,215, far short of projections, prompting reports of resident disillusionment over unmet promises of economic vitality and cohesive community benefits. Housing expansion has accelerated, exemplified by the Valley Park development, which secured outline planning permission in February 2022 for up to 4,254 dwellings, including 35% affordable units, alongside public open spaces and educational facilities. In 2025, Homes advanced this with submissions for an additional 172 homes featuring energy-efficient designs to support modern living standards. Parallel projects, such as Homes' approval in October 2025 for two- to four-bedroom homes with integrated play areas, underscore the ongoing residential boom despite lagging job targets. Infrastructure challenges persist, with exacerbated by rapid housing growth outpacing transport upgrades; the Housing Infrastructure Fund 1 (HIF1) scheme, intended to link Didcot with surrounding areas via bypasses and crossings, saw enabling works begin in 2025 but full construction delayed to early 2026, targeting completion and traffic relief by 2028. These delays have fueled local frustration, as fragmented green space delivery and inadequate amenities highlight discrepancies between policy goals and on-ground outcomes.

Transportation

Railway Infrastructure

Didcot Parkway serves as a principal station on the , functioning as a key junction for passenger services in southern . Operated mainly by Great Western Railway, it provides frequent direct trains to London Paddington, with the fastest journeys taking 37 minutes, and to in approximately 13 minutes. The station accommodates over 3 million passengers annually, supporting efficient regional connectivity. This infrastructure underpins Didcot's role as a commuter hub, enabling rapid access to employment centers in and , which bolsters the local economy through daily workforce mobility. Historically, the area included extensive freight sidings and a goods depot spanning 600 feet by 250 feet with multiple tracks, facilitating industrial transport until the last dedicated freight operations ceased in 1962. Adjacent to Didcot Parkway lies the , an operational heritage museum preserving Great Western Railway equipment on the site's former engine sheds. Run by the volunteer-supported Great Western Society since its establishment in the 1970s, the centre maintains and operates , vintage carriages, signalling systems, and recreated period structures for public demonstration. Preservation efforts emphasize authentic GWR operations, including running heritage trains along a dedicated demonstration line.

Road Networks and Recent Projects

Didcot's primary road connection is the A4130, a cross-country route extending approximately 29.6 miles from Burchetts Green in to Rowstock in , facilitating links to via the A34 and to Reading eastward. Secondary B roads, such as the B4493, provide local access, including connections to nearby areas like Harwell, though these have faced capacity constraints amid . The town's robust rail infrastructure has historically mitigated some , with road traffic primarily serving local commuting and freight to adjacent employment sites. To alleviate congestion from housing and employment expansion, the Highways Infrastructure Fund 1 (HIF1) scheme, valued at £332 million, encompasses widening 1.8 km of the A4130 to east from the A34 Milton Interchange toward Didcot, including new bridges and 1.6 km of segregated walking and cycling paths. Approved by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government in 2024 following a 2023 rejection and subsequent £28 million cost increase, early-stage works including fencing and earthworks commenced in October 2025, with full traffic opening targeted for 2028. The project also integrates enhancements for bus services and addresses heavy goods vehicle routing concerns raised by local stakeholders. Under the Didcot Garden Town Delivery Plan, cycle and walking infrastructure improvements form part of the Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP), aiming to connect fragmented routes into continuous networks, such as the north-south Line linking existing paths. These enhancements, informed by 2023 consultations on local routes, prioritize micro-hubs and safer paths to support sustainable travel amid growth, with ongoing development through 2025.

Economy

Energy Production and Power Stations

Didcot A was a with a capacity of 2,000 megawatts (MW), operational from 1970 until its closure on 22 March 2013. The plant generated baseload electricity for the UK National Grid, contributing to grid stability by providing reliable dispatchable power during periods of high demand. Its shutdown followed npower's decision to of the European Union's Large Plant Directive, which limited operating hours to 20,000 beyond 1 2008; the station reached this threshold, after which continued operation would have required costly emissions controls. The decommissioning of Didcot A included the of its cooling towers, with the first three structures brought down by controlled explosives on 27 2014 using 180 kilograms of charges. This event attracted hundreds of spectators despite safety warnings, sparking local controversy over public access, cleanup efforts, and the emotional significance of the structures to residents and former workers who viewed them as symbols of industrial heritage. Didcot B, a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant with a capacity of 1,440 MW, was commissioned in the early and remains active as of 2021, supplying natural gas-generated electricity with lower carbon emissions compared to equivalents. Operational flexibility allows it to ramp up quickly for peak loads, supporting grid reliability amid the UK's shift from . The plant has faced incidents, including a major on 19 October 2014 that temporarily halted operations, highlighting maintenance challenges in aging gas infrastructure. conducted extensive maintenance in 2023 to ensure availability for winter peaks, underscoring ongoing investments to extend service life. Collectively, the Didcot stations historically supported thousands of direct and indirect jobs through operations and local supply chains, bolstering the regional economy via procurement of fuel, equipment, and services, though specific figures vary by plant lifecycle phase. Post-Didcot A closure, the transition emphasized gas and renewables for , with no evidence indicating local levels from the site exceeded national plant averages prior to shutdown.

Other Sectors: Agriculture, Manufacturing, and Services

The Didcot area lies within the Upper Thames Clay Vales National Character Area, characterized by heavy clay soils that historically supported mixed arable farming and , with large regular fields and limited hedgerows. These soils, often fine loamy over clayey, have facilitated cereal production and livestock grazing, though agricultural intensity varies with and drainage. Urban expansion as a garden town has contributed to a decline in farming's economic role, yet small-scale local operations persist in the vicinity, including arable cultivation on surrounding heavy clay lands. Manufacturing in Didcot traces to the 19th-century Great Western Railway works, which produced locomotives and until nationalization in 1948, with remnants preserved at the museum site. The town also hosted early operations of Williams Grand Prix Engineering, which began manufacturing Formula 1 cars there in 1977 at a facility near Didcot Parkway before relocating to Grove in the . Small-scale manufacturing endures in high-performance engineering and related fields, supported by proximity to Oxfordshire's science parks, though the sector remains limited compared to historical rail activities. The services sector forms the primary non-energy economic pillar, dominated by retail in the town center's Orchard Centre, which hosts over 60 outlets for fashion, homeware, food, and leisure despite recent contractions in employment. Many residents commute via rail to professional services, research, and development roles in and , leveraging the Swindon-Didcot-Oxford corridor's connectivity to science parks and universities for diversification into and advanced analytics. Local firms like Keit Industrial Analytics contribute to process monitoring in and minerals, underscoring a shift toward knowledge-intensive services.

Employment Statistics and Growth Challenges

In , which encompasses Didcot, the rate stood at 1.9% as of December 2023, significantly below the national average of 4.8% recorded in the three months to August 2025. This low rate reflects robust local economic activity, with 's overall at 2.4% per 2021 data, compared to England's 3.5%. in the area is predominantly in services and sectors, which account for a substantial share of jobs, including amplified by rail connectivity; for instance, and storage employment in Didcot is twice the average. The closure of Didcot Power Station B in March 2023 contributed to localized job displacements, though direct operational losses were limited to a few hundred roles historically tied to energy production sites, with broader redundancies numbering in the thousands UK-wide. These were partially mitigated by expansion in and housing-related , driven by ongoing garden town developments that have spurred residential building amid the area's of over 11% from 2011 to 2021. However, 2023 metrics highlight garden town shortfalls, as job creation has lagged behind housing surges, with residents reporting disillusionment over unmaterialized gains despite targets for 20,000 new jobs over 15 years; this raises questions about the causal efficacy of green-focused planning, which prioritizes sustainable urban expansion but has not proportionally stimulated diverse local opportunities. Didcot's economy exhibits heavy reliance on commuting, facilitated by Didcot Parkway's rail connecting to and , where higher-wage knowledge-intensive roles predominate; data indicate over 14,000 residents in circa 2011, with many traveling outward due to limited revival in legacy industries like . This pattern underscores a causal linkage to proximity rather than endogenous job generation, as local growth in lower-paid sectors like caring and leisure (23.7% of Didcot ) fails to retain skilled workers, exacerbating strains from inbound without commensurate on-site anchors.

Governance

Local Administration

Didcot falls under a three-tier local government structure in . The uppermost tier is Oxfordshire County Council, which oversees county-wide services including education, social care, highways, , and libraries across its jurisdiction of approximately 600,000 residents. The middle tier is Vale of White Horse District Council, responsible for district-level functions such as , permissions, , , and services within its in south-west . Didcot, as a principal town in this district, benefits from these services, with the council's headquarters planned for a shared site in Didcot Gateway alongside District Council to enhance administrative efficiency. At the local level, Didcot Town Council serves as the parish authority, managing community-specific amenities like parks, allotments, cemeteries, and civic events, while providing input on broader issues such as planning consultations without decision-making powers. This council operates from facilities including the Civic Hall and focuses on enhancing local through maintenance of public spaces and support for community groups. Complementing these bodies, the Didcot Garden Town Advisory Board was established following the town's designation as a Garden Town in December 2015 by the government, with a mandate to coordinate strategic growth, , and delivery of aligned with plans for up to 15,000 new homes and 20,000 jobs. The board facilitates cross-authority collaboration, including input from parishes and residents, to oversee the Garden Town framework without supplanting the statutory councils' roles.

Policy and Planning Decisions

In 2007, RWE npower, the operator of Didcot Power Station, explicitly rejected proposals to construct a facility on the site, despite its identification in a government report as a potential location due to existing grid connections and industrial . This decision redirected planning priorities away from large-scale energy infrastructure toward residential and commercial expansion, contributing to Didcot's designation as a garden town with ambitions for 15,000 additional homes and 20,000 jobs by 2031. Boundary adjustments, such as incorporating land north of Ladygrove from Long Wittenham parish and areas west of Park Road, facilitated this housing growth by expanding the town's developable footprint, though local objections have highlighted strains on existing services. To address anticipated from over 15,000 new homes, authorities allocated funds through the Housing Infrastructure Fund 1 (HIF1), a £332 million scheme emphasizing segregated cycle paths, pedestrian routes, and road widenings like the A4130 extension. Outcomes have included partial delivery of 20 km of off-carriageway , intended to reduce , but repeated planning rejections—such as in 2023 by —delayed full implementation, exacerbating peak-hour gridlock and bus delays. Persistent tensions arise from mismatched timelines between approvals and rollout, with reporting disillusionment over unmitigated congestion and severed links despite garden town commitments to sustainable growth. For instance, HIF1's focus on active travel modes has yielded improved local connectivity in targeted areas but failed to avert broader spillover effects, such as increased idling emissions and minor accidents at bottlenecks, underscoring causal gaps in sequencing development against verifiable capacity limits. These decisions have prioritized targets, yielding rapid influx but deferred relief for overloaded networks, as evidenced by ongoing public transport unreliability and calls for accelerated delivery.

Society

Education and Schools

Didcot maintains a network of state-funded primary and secondary schools to serve its growing population, with academic performance in key metrics such as GCSE attainment consistently exceeding national averages. Secondary schools include Didcot Girls' School, an all-girls rated Outstanding by in 2022, where 81% of pupils achieved grade 4 or above in English and GCSEs in summer 2024, and 71.8% secured grade 5 or above—compared to the national figure of 45.2%. St Birinus School, a boys' , contributes to the shared Didcot provision, where students achieve strong results, particularly in , as noted in evaluations. Aureus School, a mixed opened in 2017 to accommodate expansion in the Great Western Park area, received its first Good rating in December 2024 and reported students achieving an average of a quarter-grade higher across subjects in 2025 GCSEs compared to prior years. Primary schools, such as Manor Primary School and Didcot Primary Academy, provide foundational education, with the latter retaining its Outstanding status following an ungraded inspection in December 2024. Literacy and numeracy outcomes at these institutions align with or surpass county benchmarks, supported by targeted interventions. is facilitated through , a collaboration between Didcot Girls' and schools, offering A-levels and vocational pathways with above-average progression to higher education or employment. Rapid population growth, projected to more than double Didcot's size over recent decades due to housing developments, has necessitated school expansions and new builds. Oxfordshire County Council approved funding in 2024 for a new primary school at Didcot Valley Park, accommodating 630 pupils including special educational needs provision, and a £14.4 million special school opening in phases from 2027 to address rising demand. Earlier initiatives, such as plans for 3,800 additional places approved in 2013, underscore ongoing investments to match demographic pressures.

Healthcare Facilities

Didcot's primary healthcare is provided through several (GP) surgeries, with the Didcot Health Centre serving as the main hub. Opened in 2012, it houses multiple practices including the Didcot Medical Centre and provides services such as routine consultations, vaccinations, and minor procedures for approximately 30,000 registered patients across the town. The centre operates extended hours on weekdays and weekends to address demand, but patient feedback indicates average wait times for appointments exceeding two weeks for non-urgent cases as of 2023. Another key facility is the Milton Gate Surgery in , which caters to the growing residential area and focuses on chronic disease management, though it has faced staffing shortages with only partial coverage during peak periods. The town lacks a full acute hospital, with residents relying on the John Radcliffe Hospital in (approximately 10 miles north) for emergency and specialist care, or the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading (about 12 miles southeast). Transfer times by ambulance average 20-30 minutes to these sites, contributing to occasional delays in critical interventions. South Central Ambulance Service data from 2022-2024 shows Didcot's category 2 response times (e.g., suspected strokes) at around 1 hour 15 minutes on average, exceeding national targets amid regional pressures from population influx. Rapid housing development, with over 5,000 new homes built since 2010, has strained GP capacity, leading to a reported shortfall of 10-15 doctors by 2024. initiatives, including recruitment drives and plans for a new centre by 2027, aim to mitigate this, but local audits highlight ongoing access inequities for elderly and low-mobility patients. Private options, such as the Didcot Health Clinic offering physiotherapy and diagnostics, supplement NHS services but remain limited in scope and affordability.

Military History and Installations

Didcot's military significance began during the First World War with the establishment of the Central Ordnance Depot (COD) in 1915, initially as a temporary facility to store explosives relocated from the Woolwich Arsenal due to safety risks in . The had purchased 620 acres of land in , and the depot opened on 15 June 1915 under the command of George Payne of the Royal Garrison Artillery. By 1919, it had expanded into a major complex spanning approximately eight square miles, complete with its own internal rail network for efficient logistics, operated by the Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) to receive, store, and issue supplies for British and Commonwealth forces. During the Second World War, the depot underwent further expansions to handle a vast array of equipment, including specialized gear for mountain and snow warfare, supporting global supply chains until the war's end. By 1945, around 1,900 troops were stationed there, with temporary camps erected near the town center to accommodate personnel; the site escaped direct bombing despite its strategic importance and proximity to RAF airfields at Harwell and Abingdon. Post-war, a operated on the site now known as Newlands Avenue, utilizing surplus wooden huts. The main ordnance depot closed in 1964, with operations transferred to , and the site was repurposed for the construction of Didcot Power Station. Vauxhall Barracks, originally built adjacent to the depot in the for explosives handling, were retained and, since , have housed the 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search of Logistic , maintaining a limited active presence focused on specialist search and disposal operations. No other major military installations remain in Didcot, with legacy areas integrated into civilian infrastructure.

Culture and Leisure

Arts and Media

The Cornerstone Arts Centre, a purpose-built facility opened in 2008, functions as Didcot's principal hub for performing and , encompassing a 220-seat , café bar, , and four studios dedicated to theatre productions, music performances, exhibitions, workshops, and classes. Managed by District Council, it programs national touring shows in drama, comedy, and family entertainment alongside local education initiatives. Didcot supports several amateur musical ensembles, including the Didcot Choral Society, a non-auditioning mixed-voice of about 60 members from the town and nearby villages, which rehearses weekly and performs a range of choral repertoire. The Didcot Concert Orchestra, established as Didcot's first high-standard amateur symphony orchestra, draws skilled local players to deliver concerts of classical works and lesser-known pieces, often at , with performances scheduled biannually such as in and May. Additional community groups encompass the Didcot Community Choir, blending gospel with pop and classical elements, and the Vocalize Community Choir, holding rehearsals in Didcot for inclusive singing sessions. Local media centers on the Didcot Herald, a weekly tabloid edition within the Herald Series, distributed in Didcot since at least 2014 and covering town-specific news, events, and issues alongside broader reporting. Didcot contributes to screen media through location filming at sites like , featured in productions such as the 2024 miniseries , and via Rebellion Film Studios, a Didcot-based facility operational since around 2020 with a 22,000-square-foot main stage and additional shooting spaces for film and television. Other area exteriors have appeared in films including (2011) and (2012).

Sports and Recreation Facilities

Didcot features several leisure centres providing indoor sports and fitness options. Didcot Leisure Centre includes a four-court sports hall for activities such as badminton, volleyball, and indoor football, along with four squash courts, two fitness studios, a group cycle studio, and a function room. The nearby Didcot Wave Leisure Centre offers a 25-metre swimming pool with a wave machine and flume, plus a 50-station gym equipped for strength and cardio training. Willowbrook Leisure Centre, located in the Ladygrove area, provides a main hall with four badminton courts suitable for indoor football and small group sports, as well as three studios for classes in dance, gymnastics, yoga, and fitness. Public parks in Didcot support , including team sports and play. Edmonds Park contains two play areas, junior and senior football pitches, a multi-use sports court, and a pavilion with car parking facilities. hosts and running activities, with hireable spaces for various events. Local sports clubs emphasize community participation. Didcot Town Football Club plays home matches at Loop Meadow Stadium, which has a capacity of 3,000 spectators including 350 seated. Didcot Club fields five senior teams and operates from , offering competitive play for various skill levels. Running groups include Didcot Runners, which meets Tuesdays and Thursdays at Willowbrook for coached sessions, and Harwell Harriers, based at with runs on similar evenings. Didcot Dragons Club, founded in 2003, trains Tuesdays at Aureus School and competes in the league, promoting mixed-gender, non-contact play similar to and .

Notable Incidents and Controversies

Power Station Events

On 19 October 2014, a major fire erupted at Didcot B Power Station, originating in one and spreading to three others due to strong winds, requiring 20 fire crews at its peak. The blaze, caused by an , was brought under control without injuries, though it temporarily disrupted operations and prompted an investigation ruling out or . The most severe incident occurred on 23 2016 at the decommissioned Didcot A Power Station, where a section of the boiler house collapsed during demolition preparations, killing four workers—Michael Collings outright, and later recovered bodies of Chris Huxtable, Kenneth Cresswell, and John Shaw—and injuring five others. The collapse exposed structural instabilities in the aging facility, with autopsies confirming multiple injuries as the for the victims. Investigations by and the into potential and charges have extended into 2025, nine years later, with authorities describing the probe as entering its "latter stages" amid "significant progress." Families of the deceased have faced prolonged delays in achieving accountability, prompting calls for a into the slow pace and suspicions of inadequate oversight by and contractors. These events underscored demolition risks at legacy power , influencing subsequent protocols without resolved as of late 2025.

Environmental and Development Debates

In November 2006, activists staged a at Didcot A , with around 30 participants entering the site before dawn, chaining themselves to coal conveyor belts, climbing a 650-foot tower, and halting operations for two days, claiming to prevent 20,000 tons of CO2 emissions. The group asserted the station was Britain's second-largest CO2 emitter after Drax, highlighting coal's role in . However, a 2007 WWF report ranking Europe's "Dirty Thirty" largest emitters placed Didcot A fourth among plants, behind Drax and others, indicating while emissions were substantial—contributing to the station's output of over 3,500 MW—activist claims overstated its relative impact compared to empirical data from multiple facilities. Environmentalists frequently criticized the cooling towers as visual eyesores, with a 2003 Country Life poll ranking them Britain's third-worst and a 2010 Beautiful Britain survey placing them seventh, arguing they degraded local landscapes despite architect Frederick Gibberd's modernist design intent. Counterarguments emphasized the station's role in providing reliable baseload electricity to the national grid until its 2013 closure, supporting amid intermittent renewables, with gas-fired Didcot B continuing operations until decommissioning plans advanced reliability transitions. Local air quality data from the period showed contributions to regional pollutants like , but national monitoring indicated no disproportionate exceedances relative to other industrial sites, balancing pollution concerns against the causal necessity of fossil fuels for grid stability pre-decarbonization investments. Didcot's designation as a Garden Town in 2017 spurred debates over rapid housing expansion on greenfield sites, with local plans allocating sites west of the town for up to 2,300 homes under the Core Strategy, prioritizing brownfield where possible but relying on peripheral greenfield to meet targets of 6,399 dwellings from 2011 to 2035. Proponents argued development supports Science Vale's innovation cluster, yet a 2023 review revealed only 1,215 net new jobs against a 20,000-job target by 2031, fostering resident disillusionment over "car-based urban sprawl" and fragmented green spaces without commensurate employment gains, questioning sustainability narratives that overlook economic realism in matching housing to local job creation. The 2024 Didcot Green Infrastructure Strategy seeks to mitigate losses through enhanced connectivity and biodiversity, but critics contend greenfield conversion risks irreversible habitat fragmentation, with empirical shortfalls in job delivery underscoring tensions between growth imperatives and environmental preservation.

Notable People

Historical Figures

William Bradbery (11 July 1776 – 11 August 1860), born in Didcot, (now ), pioneered commercial cultivation in . Beginning around , he supplied markets from beds initially near the town, later expanding to sites in and , marking the shift from wild foraging to systematic farming of the crop. His operations grew to employ dozens and provided watercress for the of 1851, demonstrating early entrepreneurial adaptation to urban demand for fresh produce. In the medieval era, Didcot manor was held by the Stonor family, notably John le Stonor (died 1354), who served as Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1340 and was a key advisor in Edward III's government, influencing legal and administrative reforms amid the preparations. The family's tenure, starting in the 13th century, integrated Didcot into broader feudal networks tied to royal service. The 19th-century arrival of the Great Western Railway at Didcot in 1839 owed much to local landowners, including those associated with , who declined to sell land for a direct route, compelling the line's path through the town and spurring its growth as a junction. This decision, rooted in estate interests, positioned Didcot as a rail hub without direct involvement of figures like , though his designs shaped the broader network.

Modern Residents

Matt Richardson, a and born in Didcot on 28 May 1991, gained prominence through appearances on shows such as and , as well as his stand-up specials addressing imposter syndrome in entertainment. He has cited his Didcot upbringing in routines exploring everyday British life and career insecurities. Actress Megan Hughes, raised in Didcot, portrayed Maud Spellbody in the series (2017–2020), earning a Children's BAFTA nomination for the cast in 2018 at age 13. Her role contributed to the adaptation's popularity among young audiences, drawing on classic . Musician Tom Webber, originating from Didcot, has performed at festivals including and Reading, blending busking roots with original folk-rock since picking up guitar around age 12. His 2022 summer tour highlighted self-taught progression from local streets to national stages. Didcot's railway heritage has featured prominently in popular media, with the Didcot Railway Centre serving as a location for numerous films and television productions that require period Great Western Railway settings. Notable examples include Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), where the engine shed depicted a German armaments factory with locomotives 3738 and 6697; Anna Karenina (2012), using the shed as Moscow station alongside locomotives 5322 and 3822; and Paddington 2 (2017), which filmed scenes at the coal stage. Other credits encompass The Danish Girl (2015) for Copenhagen and Paris stations, Carrie's War (2004) as Paddington, and episodes of series like Inspector Morse ("The Wolvercote Tongue," 1987). In literature, Didcot receives a humorous entry in and John Lloyd's (1983), defining it as "the tiny oddly-shaped bit of card which a ticket inspector cuts out of a ticket with his clipper for no apparent reason," playing on the town's railway associations. The town lies in southern , bordered by Abingdon approximately 5 miles (8 km) north, Wallingford 6 miles (10 km) southeast, and 8 miles (13 km) west, with 12 miles (19 km) further north. Didcot functions as a commuter gateway, connected via Didcot Parkway station to Paddington in about 45 minutes and in 15 minutes on frequent Great Western Railway services.

References

  1. https://www.experienceoxfordshire.org/places-to-go/didcot/
  2. https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/southeastengland/admin/south_oxfordshire/E04012477__didcot/
  3. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Didcot-Garden-Town-Case-Study.pdf
  4. https://www.didcot.gov.uk/brief-history
  5. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/16605096.history-didcot-parkway-never-meant-station/
  6. https://www.gem.wiki/Didcot_power_station
  7. https://www.rwe.com/en/press/rwe-generation/2022-07-19-25-anniversary-didcot-b/
  8. https://www.getthedata.com/didcot/where-is-didcot
  9. https://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/4869090917744640
  10. https://geographical.co.uk/culture/the-twin-peaks-of-the-berkshire-downs
  11. https://weatherandclimate.com/united-kingdom/oxfordshire/didcot
  12. https://www.thameswater.co.uk/media-library/home/about-us/regulation/drainage-reports/stage-1/didcot-drainage-strategy-stage-1.pdf
  13. https://data.oxfordshire.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Didcot_profile_Sept21.pdf
  14. https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/censusareachanges/E07000179/
  15. https://www.southandvale.gov.uk/app/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Didcot-Community-Insight-Profile-2.pdf
  16. https://didcot.parish.uk/census/
  17. http://www.didcot.angle.uk.com/info/history.html
  18. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/25081723.old-english-place-names-oxfordshire-listed-explained/
  19. https://eprints.oxfordarchaeology.com/5858/1/OAE_Report2454_XOXLAG20_FINAL_LR.pdf
  20. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/10175786.dig-discovers-9-000-year-old-remains-didcot/
  21. https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/library/browse/issue.xhtml?recordId=1203901&recordType=GreyLitSeries
  22. https://reports.cotswoldarchaeology.co.uk/content/uploads/2014/07/1688-Didcot-V-Eval-04035-complete.pdf
  23. https://www.oxoniensia.org/volumes/2004/weaver.pdf
  24. https://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=MOX23390&resourceID=1033
  25. https://finds.org.uk/database/hoards/record/id/1614
  26. https://heritagesearch.oxfordshire.gov.uk/gis/e3e3da85-dfcb-411b-812f-3de2f1afb271
  27. https://didcotallsaints.org.uk/the-church/
  28. https://ohct.org.uk/church/didcot-all-saints/
  29. https://www.historyhit.com/what-was-the-impact-of-the-black-death-on-britain/
  30. https://explorethearchive.com/peasants-revolt
  31. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/14485221.saxons-stonors-civil-war-and-the-station-a-brief-history-of-didcot/
  32. https://www.uptonvillage.co.uk/2012/11/didcot-described-in-1923/
  33. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/17625138.heralding-past-evolution-didcot/
  34. http://www.berkshirehistory.gowerweb.co.uk/villages/didcot.html
  35. https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/article.php/16/the-great-western-society
  36. https://www.railwaywondersoftheworld.com/gwr.html
  37. https://www.radleyhistoryclub.org.uk/january-2023-meeting-the-history-of-the-railway-from-didcot-to-oxford/
  38. https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Didcot%2C_Newbury_and_Southampton_Railway
  39. https://www.britainexpress.com/counties/oxfordshire/museums/didcot-railway-centre.htm
  40. https://web.prm.ox.ac.uk/england/englishness-Oxon-population-1901-2001.html
  41. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0022526620918864
  42. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/15078695.a-brief-history-of-the-army-in-didcot-by-david-taylor-of-didcot-district-archaeological-historical-society/
  43. https://www.philwilliamswriter.co.uk/2024/02/cod-didcot.html
  44. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/15142025.heralding-the-past-a-brief-history-of-the-army-in-didcot-by-david-taylor-of-didcot-district-archaeological-historical/
  45. https://wanderingdanny.com/oxford/2012/07/didcot-a-power-station/
  46. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-49165336
  47. https://uk.rwe.com/locations/didcot-b-ccgt-power-plant/
  48. https://www.soci.org/news/thames-kennet/thames-kennet-didcot
  49. https://didcotgardentownplan.commonplace.is/
  50. https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/ffff869276c8487aa9b2e484a0430210
  51. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdd36yz3gd4o
  52. https://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/vale-of-white-horse-district-council/planning-and-development/major-housing-developments/valley-park-didcot/
  53. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/persimmon-homes_didcot-persimmonhomes-activity-7366492275507372032-V4io
  54. https://www.tiliahomes.co.uk/news/planning-secured-for-new-didcot-homes
  55. https://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/25547302.didcot-major-road-scheme-due-open-traffic-2028/
  56. https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/green-light-for-332m-project-to-upgrade-road-infrastructure-in-didcot-12-12-2024/
  57. https://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/25555273.didcot-town-frustrated-delays-major-road-scheme/
  58. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/25376849.didcot-residents-disillusioned-garden-town-progress/
  59. https://www.thetrainline.com/train-times/didcot-parkway-to-london-paddington
  60. https://www.rome2rio.com/s/Didcot-Parkway/Oxford
  61. https://www.enterpriseoxfordshire.com/what-we-do/capital-projects/local-growth-fund/didcot-station-car-park-expansion/
  62. https://www.business-money.com/announcements/didcot-the-perfect-commuter-town-for-a-post-covid-life/
  63. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/17775711.ed-vaizey-new-didcot-parkway-game-changer/
  64. https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/
  65. https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/article.php/24/help-out-as-a-volunteer
  66. https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/A4130
  67. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/transport-and-travel/roadworks/major-current-roadworks/didcot-and-area-improvements
  68. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yvppr49gvo
  69. https://news.oxfordshire.gov.uk/early-stage-construction-work-starts-on-major-infrastructure-scheme-for-didcot-and-surrounding-areas/
  70. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/07/Revised-DGT-Plan-2022.pdf
  71. https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/documents/s68729/CMDTM20231214R06%2520Annex%25201%2520-%2520Didcot%2520LCWIP%2520Report.pdf
  72. https://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/didcot-garden-town/improvements-to-be-made-to-cycle-and-walking-routes-in-didcot/
  73. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-21881129
  74. https://www.reuters.com/article/markets/commodities/britain-s-2-000-megawatt-didcot-a-coal-plant-shuts-for-good-idUSL6N0CEBVY/
  75. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/27/didcot-power-station-demolition-cooling-towers
  76. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/jul/31/didcot-demolition-people-behind-falling-towers
  77. https://www.power-technology.com/marketdata/didcot-b-power-station-uk/
  78. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2014/oct/20/while-didcot-b-burned-renewable-energy-powered-on
  79. https://uk.rwe.com/press-and-news/2023-07-10-didcot-b-carrying-out-major-maintenance-programme-ahead-of-winter-2023/
  80. https://www.drax.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Drax_UK_Power_Station_.pdf
  81. https://nationalcharacterareas.co.uk/upper-thames-clay-vales/description/
  82. https://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/5825262474756096
  83. https://owls.oxfordshire.gov.uk/wps/wcm/connect/occ/OWLS/Home/Oxfordshire%2BLandscape%2BTypes/Clay%2BVale/Clay%2BVale%2BInformation/
  84. https://www.williamsdb.com/info/williams-old-hq-at-didcot/
  85. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/04/Delivery-Plan-Chapter-4-10th-October-2017-web-q.pdf
  86. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Town_Centres__Retail_Study_Dec_2023.pdf
  87. https://eeh-prod-media.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/Swindon-Didcot-Oxford_EEH_Connecting_Economies_HR_final.pdf
  88. https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/articles/understandingtownsindustryanalysis/2021-12-13
  89. https://uk.linkedin.com/company/keit-industrial-analytics
  90. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/03/Q3-Corporate-Plan-Performance-report-South.pdf
  91. https://tradingeconomics.com/united-kingdom/unemployment-rate
  92. https://www.oxfordshirelsip.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/OxfordshireAnnexAFinal.pdf
  93. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/14327881.owners-didcot-power-station-npower-confirm-2-400-job-cuts-annual-loss-106-million/
  94. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/ELNA_Jan_2024.pdf
  95. https://eeh-prod-media.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/Swindon_-_Didcot_-_Oxford_Connectivity_Study_Final_Report_FINAL.pdf
  96. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/
  97. https://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/
  98. https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council/vale-of-white-horse
  99. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/south-oxfordshire-district-council/didcot-gateway-the-home-of-the-new-south-and-vale-district-council-offices/
  100. https://www.didcot.gov.uk/
  101. https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/body/didcot_town_council
  102. https://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/vale-of-white-horse-district-council/business-and-economy/garden-communities/didcot-garden-town/
  103. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/1436522.power-plant-rejects-nuclear-future/
  104. https://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2020/10/Delivery-Plan-Chapter-9-10th-October-2017-web-q-5.pdf
  105. https://democratic.southoxon.gov.uk/documents/s4506/CGR9-report%2520schedule-Council%2520July%252014.pdf
  106. https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/documents/s61364/Didcot%2520HIF1%2520Transport%2520Assessment%2520Part%25201.pdf
  107. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-66222611
  108. https://oxfordclarion.uk/must-new-houses-mean-new-roads/
  109. https://www.poetsplanningoxon.uk/poets-didcot-HIF1-scheme-planning-application-response-250123.pdf
  110. https://www.didcotgirls.oxon.sch.uk/348/performance-tables
  111. https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/138490/didcot-girls--school/secondary
  112. https://www.ridgewayeducationtrust.co.uk/2567/didcot-girls-school
  113. https://www.didcotsixthform.co.uk/15/results-and-ofsted
  114. https://www.aureusschool.org/
  115. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crlng7l4pzgo
  116. https://www.didcotprimaryacademy.org.uk/ofsted-and-performance-data/
  117. https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/find-a-school-in-england?keywords=Didcot%252C%2BOxfordshire&radius=1&searchtype=search-by-location&LocationCoordinates=51.60623%252C-1.24021
  118. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/residents/our-work-schools/new-schools-oxfordshire
  119. https://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/24148600.didcot-valley-park-school-funding-approved-council/
  120. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/24069972.didcot-14-4m-send-school-funding-approved-reaction/
  121. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/10433804.go-ahead-3-800-didcot-school-places/
  122. https://ww2talk.com/index.php?threads/didcot-oxfordshire.6779/
  123. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1961/feb/13/central-ordnance-depot-didcot-closure
  124. https://www.army.mod.uk/learn-and-explore/about-the-army/corps-regiments-and-units/royal-logistic-corps/regular-units/11-explosive-ordnance-disposal-and-search-regiment/11-eod-search-regiment-rlc-welfare-team/
  125. https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/council/armed-forces-oxfordshire/military-presence
  126. https://www.cornerstone-arts.org/
  127. https://theatresonline.com/theatres/didcot-theatres/cornerstone-arts-centre
  128. https://theoxfordmagazine.com/venue/cornerstone-arts-centre-didcot/
  129. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/south-oxfordshire-district-council/sports-and-activities/out-and-about/cornerstone-arts-centre/
  130. https://www.didcotchoralsociety.org/
  131. https://www.didcotchoralsociety.org/about-us/
  132. http://www.didcotconcertorchestra.org.uk/
  133. http://www.didcotconcertorchestra.org.uk/about.htm
  134. https://didcot-gospel.co.uk/
  135. https://www.vocalizechoir.co.uk/
  136. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/hsdidcotnews/
  137. https://www.britishpapers.co.uk/england-se/didcot-herald/
  138. https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/article.php/33/facilities-for-film-and-tv
  139. https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?locations=Didcot%252C%2BOxfordshire%252C%2BEngland%252C%2BUK
  140. https://www.locationoxfordshire.co.uk/location/rebellion-film-studios/
  141. https://thestudiomap.com/uk/listing/rebellion-film-studios/
  142. https://www.better.org.uk/leisure-centre/south-oxfordshire/didcot-leisure-centre/facilities
  143. https://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/didcot-wave
  144. https://willowbrookleisurecentre.wordpress.com/
  145. https://www.didcot.gov.uk/parks-and-open-spaces
  146. https://boundarypark.org/
  147. https://www.didcottownfc.co.uk/
  148. https://www.didcotcricketclub.com/
  149. https://www.didcotrunners.org.uk/
  150. https://harwellharriers.org/
  151. https://didcot-korfball.co.uk/
  152. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-29684205
  153. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/oct/20/didcot-b-power-station-blaze-oxfordshire
  154. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-35641766
  155. https://www.fieldfisher.com/en/injury-claims/insights/six-years-after-didcot-power-station-collapse-fami
  156. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-37371072
  157. https://www.itv.com/news/meridian/2025-02-23/didcot-power-station-investigation-in-final-stages-say-police-nine-years-on
  158. https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/sections/long-reads/features/didcot-collapse-investigation-in-latter-stages-after-nine-years-21-02-2025/
  159. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gllpnngrjo
  160. https://www.fieldfisher.com/en/injury-claims/insights/didcot-power-station-collapse-another-year-of-waiting
  161. https://constructionmanagement.co.uk/didcot-probe-making-meaningful-progress-nine-years-after-tragedy/
  162. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2006/nov/02/activists.energy
  163. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2006/nov/03/energy.activists
  164. https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/6114674.stm
  165. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/6642225.stm
  166. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/5074591.didcot-power-station-named-one-uks-worst-eyesores/
  167. https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/assets/documents/annualreport/air_pollution_uk_2008.pdf
  168. http://democratic.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?Id=776
  169. https://www.southoxon.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/Didcot-Green-Infrastructure-Strategy-May-2024-reduced.pdf
  170. https://www.transportfornewhomes.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/What-is-being-built-in-2025-In-search-of-the-station.pdf
  171. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/247551153/william-bradbery
  172. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-39428314
  173. https://www.ddahs.org.uk/history.php
  174. https://berksfhs.org/didcot/
  175. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-39428314
  176. https://oxinabox.co.uk/a-high-wattage-homecoming-why-didcot-comedian-matt-richardson-still-feels-like-an-imposter/
  177. https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/17009173.worst-witch-star-megan-nominated-childrens-baftas/
  178. https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/20612243.didcots-tom-webber-enjoys-summer-festival-mayhem/
  179. https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/article.php/437/film-and-tv-credits
  180. http://www.kulichki.com/moshkow/ADAMS/liff.txt
  181. https://choosewhere.com/didcot-visitor-guide
  182. https://www.oxfordpropertyconsulting.co.uk/resource-centre/oxfordshire-spots-for-the-commuter
  183. https://www.commuterguide.co.uk/counties/oxfordshire
Add your contribution
Related Hubs
Contribute something
User Avatar
No comments yet.