Woodbridge, Suffolk, England: An Appraisal

This is a lovely little East Anglian town but not as lovely as a regional magazine led me to believe. This town (of according to Wikipedia) only 7,000 odd people is what this part of England does best: that slow, untouched feel, in the nicest way. The low rise streets are of red brick, often Georgian houses, and plastered colourful earlier ones. Although the 18th C weatherboarded white tide mill is what Woodbridge claims is its most famous sight, I always think of the Shire Hall. Although always claimed that it dates from the 16th C, this two storeyed redbrick former town hall has been added to significantly since its Elizabethan origins. The overhanging hipped roof, windows and double staircase at either end are of two centuries later; but this makes for a distinctive slightly Dutch (because if its gables) building, and a justly focal point for the little square in which it stands.

Articles I read celebrated the town's independent shops, such as its two bookstores and Moshulu selling bright but expensive slippers. Yet sandwiched between these were the usual lower end high street chains that are the bane of every British small town; and the Thoroughfare itself is only of the scale of an interesting street: its buildings are largely quite drab architecturally. The Turban Centre sounded exotic but is a little shopping enclave of even duller quality.

I was disappointed in the food and drink too. Woodbridge seem to have several traditional pubs and smart restaurants, such the Galley on Market Hill - an offshoot of the well established Ipswich Turkish restaurant twelve miles away, or at the Tide Mill. But it has little inbetween. Its rather ordinary cafes did not entice me, and I saw no wine or café bars for relaxing in the evening. Some may rejoice that the only restaurant chain I saw was Prezzo (which I have always been impressed by), but this was the only Italian I found.

I began to think that the pictures for the feature I read were very carefully chosen to suggest a more vibrant and attractive town than Woodbridge actually is - but then, considering its size, it already does well for facilities.

There's several streets to wander, some just residential - but this must be a great attraction to those living in Woodbridge - to live in a street which is central and characterful but not full of other people's evenings or early morning deliveries. There's just the Tide mill, Windmill, Town Museum and the seasonally open Shire Horse museum to visit, but the real tourist pull is Sutton Hoo Anglo Saxon treasure. According to the ubiquitous 3D hand drawn map, this appears just over the river from the railway station. I should pause to say how much the river is part of Woodbridge and what a pleasant walk this makes. I wished for a ferry crossing from the town station to the other bank where the National Trust Visitor Centre and burial mounds lie. Alas, one has to walk 3 miles through the adjoining village of Melton (train users are advised to stay on one more stop to this station) and still need to walk a mile. It's further though than the 3D map suggests from the Tide Mill - the ferry isn't as useful as its seems. Sutton Hoo is featured on the seasonal Tour Buses which also stops by all the above. With such irregular trains (only every two hours between Ipswich and Lowestoft), I wasn't able to arrive in time to factor in a 2 hour round trip walk to this c£6 attraction, which sounds very exciting - but the Tourist Information Centre couldn't even give me a proper leaflet on this vast ship burial of kings of the Wuffinga dynasty.

The cinema was a nice way to round off the day. This is an old fashioned family feeling community theatre. The auditorium looks Edwardian, with an apparently unused balcony, and two seaters on the back row. An adjoining restaurant has a small bar area serving coffees and during the day, outdoor coffees and ice creams. Its proximity to the station is useful if like me you have to make a dash for one of the infrequent trains - but beware: the bridge is in two parts. In your hurry, don't do what I nearly did and ascend the steps outside of the station, as this only leads across the river and there is no access onto the opposite platform. If you're heading towards Ipswich ad London, go into the station and take the stairs from there.

The cinema also has live shows, but its film offerings are perhaps understandably mainstream fare. It is one of three nearby independents (also at Aldeburgh and Leiston). I found Woodridge a charming afternoon to and a change of an evening, although one can't expect it to offer the choice of a city. And being a city person, I guess I inevitably came away feeling a little in want.