The fantastic playground testers (friends of us and their kids) have done a really thorough review of Luton playgrounds.
You can find their reviews and recommendations at: Playgroundtesters.wordpress.com
Have fun!
Things to do and visit
Parks, museums, curiosities and other things to do in the Luton area
Stopsley Chen Tai Chi
Stopsley Chen Tai Chi is run by experienced martial arts practitioner Matthew Caitlin. He offers indoor and outdoor classes, at locations across Luton and Bedfordshire, including at the High Town Methodist Church hall and in Wardown Park.
He teaches Chen style Tai chi. He is a BCCMA and CIAA practitioner, a 4th Dan Black Belt in Karate and has experience in teaching Kyusho Jitsu.
From time to time, we run free Qui Gong sessions in the High Town Peace Garden (behind the Methodist Church), come and join us if you’d like to try. Dates and times are advertised on the signs by the gate.
Find out more on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Stopsley-Chen-Tai-Chi-388068504873830/
The Well – pub on High Town Road
After a long time in the making, The Well pub opened just before Christmas last year.
We’ve been a couple of times, and the experience has been good. Landlady Victoria comes with armed with decades of experience under her belt, and we’re hoping that she’ll make it a big success of it.
It’s been really welcoming, with two snuggly seating areas at the very front, that let you watch the life go by through the big windows. I’d been hoping for a pub with a vista like this since I’ve arrived here!
Further along, there’s the bar, more seating and a stage/dance floor area. Live music is on the cards, and there’s certainly plenty of space for it, which is welcome in High Town.
We’re looking forward to see things develop.
Wardown Park Single Suspension Bridge
Looks like the historic footbridge in Wardown park has had a narrow escape.
Wardown Parks single suspension bridge is apparently, the country’s smallest of its kind, and it had been closed in 2012 over safety concerns.
You can follow the whole story unfold in a few local news articles:
Local people complained and petitioned:
April 2013: Luton and Dunstable section of Luton on Sunday
Luton Today’s spin on the suspended works at the suspension bridge
A year later, the cost question:
April 2014: Luton Today – Bridge repairs
In 2014, The council did find the needed funding to get it repaired and re-opened, after it apparently discovered a 4 Million underspend in their budget.
September 2014: Luton Today – Suspension bridge on path to recovery
At the time of writing, the decision on the planning application is still outstanding.
The Bear Club – Mill Yard Jazz and Blues
“If you build it, he will come” that’s the motto of Luton’s very own Jazz Club.
Well, we built, and it came. Very much so, opening on 12 September 2014 with a bang right into the middle of Luton, downtown just south of the railway station, housed in what was once a Victorian industrial building and then a photo studio for Vauxhall.
Open every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, this fantastic venue with a capacity of around 100 people offers a broad spectrum of Jazz music and Blues acts, spoken word events and more.
The bar is well stocked with an ever changing array of novelty beers and the cocktails are mixed with love.
The interior is an eclectic display of found objects, vintage furniture and skilled DIY solutions: check out the loo with the sink on top.
A must visit, whether you’re a Luton newbie or a seasoned connoisseur.
The Bear Club – Mill Yard Jazz and Blues
Party at The Bear – as usual
Luton Central Library
This is a stub.
It looks like someone was inspired by the Royal Festival Hall in London when they designed the building, which is not a bad thing.
Whilst it may not be a ‘palace for the people’, it does have its own theatre space, as well as everything else you would expect from a main library.
Art Deco house – Old Bedford Road
This is a stub.
Bustin’ Loose – for real jazz dance
If you think this means ‘jazz hands’, then think again.
Bustin’ Loose is an occasional club night put on in Luton by the town’s own jazz dancers, Perry Louis and Christiane Hennecke. It’s all about freestyle dancing to different forms of uptempo jazz, soul and funk – think a mix of spins, knee drops, splits, breakdance, Salsa, tap and more.
Although the technical level of some of the dancers is very high, it is an extremely friendly scene, with anyone welcome to shuffle their feat, try and compete with the best or simply watch in awe from the sidelines.
It has most recently been on at The Hat Factory on Bute Street and Deja Vu on High Town Road.
Eagerly awaiting the next one, whenever it is. Keep an eye on this web page: http://www.jazzcotech.com/whatson.htm
In the meantime, there are some shots of one of The Hat Factory nights in the middle of this video.
St Andrew’s Church – the style looks familiar…
…because this building in the Biscot area of Luton was built by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, who also designed Liverpool Cathedral, as well as Battersea Power Station and Bankside Power Station on the banks of the River Thames in London. You may be more familiar with the latter in its new guise as the Tate Modern art gallery.
He was a clever chappy really – being behind the design of the iconic British red telephone box too.
St Andrew's Church, Biscot, Luton
St Mary’s Church – chequerboard walls
This is a stub about St Mary’s church in the centre of Luton, it is the only Grade 1 listed building in town.