Visiting Northampton For The FIRST Time

[@no-oneinparticular7264]

Just watched this, I live in the better looked after part of Abington district . Our town centre has been neglected for far too long, although the Market Square was being renovated last time I went in. The river is pronounced Nen, not Neen. Thankyou, for showing the scenic parts of a very neglected town centre. St Giles street is very nice though .

[@lordbungle6235]

Was lovely to hear what you thought of Northampton, I think you need to do another visit, to see more of the area. A lot of the locals have a massive down on the place, so its good to hear someone with fresh eyes being nice. If you had headed up towards Northampton General Hospital from Beckets Park you would have discovered Beckets Well, where Thomas Becket (Never Thomas A Becket) stopped to have a drink after fleeing the castle after upsetting Henry II. When you were near the University you should have visited the Student Union, their building is a converted engine shed on the St Johns Station Line. (Quite a bit of track left in the area as well.) And you may have noticed the "Snooty Chickens" and Bees painted on various walls, buildings Bridges on your walk, Often with a positive message, these are the work of local artist Binty Bint (And there is a Binty Bink Walk to visit sites around the town where her art appears) Shout if you wish to visit again and I am happy to give some info as a now local exile from London.

[@94granny]

It was interesting to see our county town, and my home town, through someone else's eyes. There is a lot history attached to Northampton and we are lucky to have access to the walks that you took. The Express lift tower is no longer in use as the company closed some time ago and it now stands in the middle of a housing development. It is a listed building, so couldn't be demolished when the developers moved in. Local pronunciations aren't always known to visitors so you're let off saying Neen instead of Nen, although that is the logical way to say it, but it did grate a bit. I hope that members of the current and previous council have also watched this video and taken note of your comments regarding the town centre.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

@@94granny Thanks for your comments, glad you enjoyed watching

[@DandyT1990]

I was going to comment about the local pronunciation of the Nene, as I know it's pronounced differently up and down the river 😅 But yes, a Northamptonion hearing Neen is very grating 😂

[@pearofgeeksii8156]

Though I can understand finding the centre a bit drab, you did miss the cultural quarter by 1 road, and had you entered would have found a few nice museums and a bit of a nicer vibe for visitors, you came so close to seeing the Guild Hall too which is a lovely building. The big chimney was actually lift tower for testing lifts; it was later used by the fire service for training, and now is privately owned and I don't think anything much is happening with it, the grounds around it have been turned into homes; I believe the tower is a listed building so remains on the site. The marketplace excavation is what it is, I understand the archeology delayed putting things back together because of the finds - something (unsuprisingly) about shoes so it got the cobblers all very excited for a bit and delayed the rennovation.

[@mrmouse7642]

Sorry to be a geek but in Northampton it's quite a big thing: the river Nene is pronounced "Nen". Go to Peterborough and have an argument about it - they call the river the "Neen". Glad you enjoy our town and the area around it. God's own country!

[@andrewgilbertson5356]

Thank you. I lived for 30+ years in a flat near the station, opposite the BP petrol station. All of your walk I’ve done many a time, in parts. I walked to work at Brackmills a bit pass the White water centre. Canal walking is very restful. My wife and I have walked from Gas street basin all the way to Little Venice . You are right about the Town centre not being the best.

[@MoreLaterDude]

The chimney you saw is a lift testing tower for 'Express Lifts'... I was born in Northampton in 1971 so was nice to see it through your eyes... I am now living in Finland.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Ah nice fact, I didn't actually know what it was used for

[@greglewis7009]

@@GeorgeArrigoni I believe the late Terry Wogan always referred to it as the Northampton lighthouse!

[@LEGOMadness]

"The chimney in the distance" is the National Lift Tower. Once used to test lifts. The main railway station you see at 23:20 was opened in early 2015 and is a marked improvement from the last one. Seems like you had a great walk and I would suggest you go east one day, there is some amazing things to see around. There is, near Delapré Lake and Brackmill's Industrial Estate some rails still visible from either the Northampton-Bedford or Northampton-Peterborough lines, possibly both! Worth a look, great video.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Thanks for the information, just scanned maps and found the rails you mentioned, would like to do another walk around there one day

[@PeteRoberts1966]

Great Video George. I've lived in Northamptonshire all my life (57yo) & recognise most of the sites you visited but found it very intersting. I have to admit I haven't visited the Hunsbury Iron Stone Railway & I will explore that in the future. I live just on the outskirts of Northampton & usually cycle along the Canal & River paths to get into Northampton. BTW the locals say Nene rhyming with Men not Nene rhyming with Mean. I totally agree with your opinion of the Town centre. It's very run down & I very rarely visir into the centre. Such a shame & quite embarrassing. ☹️ Keep up the good work 👍🏻

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Thank you for watching, it's interesting for me to hear a local's point of view on places I've visited

[@martinnelson8382]

To call it the Nene is considered obscene amongst civilised men, who call it the Nene.

[@morestupidforms]

The trouble with Northampton, and probably a lot of towns, is that we forget what we have. Our council do absolutely nothing with our history, and shopping is very poor, there is little reason to visit it for locals, let alone tourists.

[@thathurt]

Could have shortened that to "The trouble with Northampton is the Councils". Covers every aspect of the issues here.

[@minixtvbox]

​@@thathurttory northmpton. 11 million stolen and they let them keep the money.

[@JH-su9vl]

Why don’t you stand next year for the local elections as a councillor mate?

[@DandyT1990]

If you are around Northamptonshire again, visit the canal at Blisworth, they have a canal festival every year where I think they offer boat rides through the 2800m tunnel

[@TouchGrassFr]

I live in Northampton and some of these places you shown I didn't even know existed. I'm probably going to go on a walk through some places you have been in the video. Amazing video.

[@LEWISTKENDALL]

George, thank you for this - interesting. Do not beat yourself up about the name of the river - it is the Nenn in Northampton and the Neen in Peterborough. It seems to change somewhere between Oundle and Peterborough.

[@kattail7432]

We really like your video of Northampton George! Glad you enjoyed it there. My family and I used to live in Northamptonshire. Another great place there is Northampton College- 2 of the best years of my life.

[@anthonykilgannon3443]

The town centre became dire when the football club moved out to sixfields. Used to meet a lot off home/ away fans who would have a drink on the way to the county ground. Better atmosphere 80s/90s

[@simon_may]

On another visit, I highly recommend a visit to the church of the Holy Sepulchre - one of only 4 'round' churches in England.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

@simon_may thanks for the suggestion

[@fmcb269]

That ticket display in the station is rather good, isn't it? Saw it for the first time last week when I went up to Northampton to buy some shoes. [Magnus at Harpole. Mens and womens outsize footwear.] I lived in and around Northampton from '81-'98. Part of that time on Kingsley Rd, only about 100 yards from where you were standing on the Racecourse. BTW: I might be wrong, but I think that little church by Abington Park is the one that features fairly regularly in Keeping up Appearances.

[@christero2904]

The express lift tower in the background

[@bangkokcommercialrentals]

Well done George! Calming and inspiring influence on young people to get some "fresh" air and learn a bit of history along the way. Keep doing what you're doing and enjoy yourself. 👍

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Thank you, that's a nice comment

[@pauledwards5573]

I lived in Northampton for about 10 years I met my second wife there. We lived near the ironstone railway camp otherwise known as camp hill.

[@kassendek4777]

In Northampton we call it the river 'Nenn'

[@kassendek4777]

A great video as well. Does justice to Northampton

[@greggordon120749]

And it’s spelt Nene

[@tonyskinner1643]

It was originally spelt nen, hence the northampton pronunciation excluding the 2nd 'e'

[@neildee9834]

On a map from 1680 it was spelt Nenn, so you can see the confusion, where it is both spelt and pronounced differently in different areas and at different times throughout history. Add to this the Northampton accent, where a few random 'y's are dropped in....like Teyn for town, and Neyn for Nene. Hence the difference in pronunciation the closer you get to Northampton. Chaos! 😂

[@chanybaro]

Great video mate. Just to clarify, the Nene, rhymes with men in Northamptonshire, is pronounced 'Neen' from Cambridgeshire onwards to The Wash. I'm sure locals will agree that your wonderful naivety took you through a few areas where it's best to not walk alone, or indeed at all. And yes, our rabbits are friendly/borderline cocky as they're accustomed to people. Bit like the squirrels at Abington Park, who act like they own the place.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Ah, wasn't aware the Nene was pronounced differently according to location. Had never come across a rabbit that friendly before

[@favesongslist]

Good video TY. BTW That "chimney" is actually an old National lift testing tower. The history in and around Northampton is amazing, sadly the town centre not so.

[@svartmetall48]

The river and canal were where i spent most of ny time as a teenager cycling around them. The town itself has always been a bit dire.

[@p24hrsmith]

One of the odd things with Northampton is it does have a Cathedral which normally would make it a city but its a catholic one and I think it has to be a Church of England one to make it a city.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

It's a common misconception that it has to do with a cathedral, as some places that have one aren't a city, whilst some cities don't even have one

[@ArifGhostwriter]

​@@GeorgeArrigoniYup indeed - 'city' status would in fact seem to be quite arbitrary, & not contingent on any particular parameter/s.

[@TheManWithNoName.]

I agree with your sentiments about walking the canal towpath, you can just enjoy the scenery without having to concern yourself with checking the explorer map in fear of getting lost ..... canals are such peaceful places, and feel the same about going under busy dual carriageways or motorways, its always one of the highlights of a walk 👍🏻💪🏻

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

@@TheManWithNoName. Canal walking is always one of my favourites to do.. in fact, I actually did some yesterday

[@PeterUKTV]

hello fellow walker, nice video!

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

Thank you!

[@fionamckenzie8218]

Please note River Nene is pronounced NEN in Northampton but NEEN in Peterborough. I enjoyed your walk!

[@stevepierrpoint7385]

Good video George

[@thathurt]

That must have been a disappointment in places. The town centre is so awful.😟. I live near the non existent castle. I wish there was less litter. The council need to look after the town more. 💩 Canal paths unlimited for walkers. The cafe at Hunsbury country park is nice, Drovers return. Yeah we have rabbits. 😆.

[@JamesClark-lc2xw]

You have pronounced nene wrong. Also u should take a look at tbe brampton halt there is a train. Runs Sunday and bank holiday

[@matthewlaw4004]

The chimney you speak of was introduced in 1786 as a way to inform the Roman Catholics of when a new pope had been chosen, it was simultaneously done with the Vaticans chimney as Northamptons chimney was the epitaph of the uk. 4:42

[@neildee9834]

Can you time stamp whee you an see this please?

[@favesongslist]

What?? its a lift testing shaft

[@MtbinMtbin]

Northampton light house as the late Terry wogan called it

[@bjoe385]

Lol.

[@JamesClark-lc2xw]

Its not a chimley its a lift tower

[@thomastaylor9632]

Hi George, it’s nene as in ten, not neene

[@willalm830]

neane River NEN

[@mickwillis6981]

It’s NEN. Not Neen!

[@willalm830]

NEN not Neene

[@davidcadden6097]

You missed out Guildhall, Derngate the Mounts and Wellingbourough rd...Which makes up a large part of central Northampton. Never mind.

[@GeorgeArrigoni]

It's difficult to include everything because there's so much to see. Perhaps if I ever go back, I'll take into consideration visiting them places

[@pearofgeeksii8156]

@@GeorgeArrigoni Well I wouldn't get too excited over Wellingborough Road, unless you like lad lad beer more beer neanderthal growl lad lad lad beer. I don't know if its the London village architecture, the unrelenting traffic and car horns, the constant stream of traffic wardens, the tent derived housing or the repetition of pub then takeaway rince repeat, but Welly Road is about as welcoming to a tourist as a punch in the face. I'm local and a couple of my favourite shops are on the welly road but I hate the place, don't feel safe after sundown, and typically wear ear defenders when i'm there just to isolate myself from having to deal with the kind of people who think its a place to highlight to outsiders. If Welly Road was a first date, then it would be like showing your date where you injected heroin before coming out tonight, except this is Northampton so it'd actually be coccaine and you snorted, which was always obvious because of the fraser nose and you didn't need to show it but you stripped off anyway and are you sure you have the right person because your date is running away.

[@iainbonnar8864]

River nene pronounced nen

[@DavidShortland-p1d]

To many other people

[@DanielJewel-e2t]

Za true dusty dirty true blue broke Tory string hold dump avoid at all costs