Henley-on-Thames is a town on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England. The town was established in the 12th century when it developed as an inland port for shipping timber, grain, and firewood to the rapidly growing city of London. More recently the town has become known as an international centre for the sport of rowing. The annual Henley Royal Regatta began in 1839 and gained royal patronage from Prince Albert in 1851.
A cross-section full-sized model of an Ancient Greek trireme. These wooden ships, developed from 650BC, were propelled by oars on three levels. They were designed for power, speed and agility and could outpace and out-manoeuvre all other ships of their time. The model is at the River and Rowing Museum at Henley-on-Thames.
The River and Rowing Museum at Henley-on-Thames opened in 1998. It is located at Mill Meadows next to the River Thames. The main themes covered are the non-tidal River Thames, the international sport of rowing and the local town of Henley-on-Thames.
A gallery about the international sport of rowing at the River and Rowing Museum. A selection of rowing boats are on display including some suspended from the ceiling. There are displays around the walls of the room covering themes including ‘Coaching and training’, ‘Boats and equipment’ and the ‘Henley Royal Regatta’.Tony in the rowing gallery at the River and Rowing Museum. Behind, in the centre of the gallery, is the ‘Unbeaten Boat’ rowed by Helen Glover and Heather Stanning at both the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio Olympics without losing a single race in five years.Looking up at boats suspended from the ceiling of the rowing gallery. Directly above is the boat used by Ran Laurie and Jack Wilson to win gold at the 1948 London Olympics. The rowing events in 1948 took place at Henley-on-Thames. This boat was designed by George Sims of Putney. To the right is the white and blue boat used by Steve Redgrave, Matthew Pinsent, James Cracknell and Tim Foster to win gold in the coxless four at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. The win earned Sir Steve Redgrave his fifth Olympic gold medal, Sir Matthew Pinsent his third, and Tim Foster and James Cracknell their first.View out of a window at the River and Rowing Museum at Henley-on-Thames. Part of Mill Meadows can be seen with the River Thames beyond. Mills Meadow is public park forming part of the river’s flood plain.A steamboat called Eva displayed inside the River and Rowing Museum. Eva is one of the earliest examples of a Victorian fast steam launch dating from 1874. She was designed and built by John I Thronycroft of Chiswick. The boat was constructed from steel and had a top speed of 16.5 miles per hour.A Saxon log boat on display at the River and Rowing Museum. Carved from a single oak tree, this log boat has been carbon dated to between 405 and 530 AD. It was found in 1966 after being caught in the anchor of a dredger on the River Thames at Walton in Surrey. It has been preserved by slow drying over a number of years.Life-sized statues of rowers Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matthew Pinsent outside the River and Rowing Museum. These painted bronze statues were created by Sean Henry in 2002. Steve Redgrave is regarded as one of Britain’s greatest-ever Olympians having won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000. Matthew Pinsent also had a distinguished sporting career winning four consecutive Olympic gold medals and 10 world championship rowing golds.
Oxford
Oxford is an English city located 64 miles (103 km) north-west of London. It is most well-known for its university, which is the oldest in the English-speaking world, founded circa 1096. The city is located at a confluence where the River Cherwell flows into the River Thames. The population was 162,100 at the 2021 census.
In the centre of Oxford at Carfax, which is the junction of St Aldate’s (south), Cornmarket Street (north), Queen Street (west) and the High Street (east). In front is the 19th century Gateway of St Martin. This stone gateway includes a small bronze sculpture of St Martin of Tours on horseback cutting his cloak with a sword: it is said that St Martin cut his cloak in two and gave half to a beggar. The 12th century St Martin’s Tower adjoins the gate, but can’t be seen in the photo. A red telephone box and double postbox can be seen.Inside the Covered Market in Oxford. On the left is a fruit and vegetable stall and on the right is a stall selling sushi. The market opened in 1774 and was designed by architect John Gwynn (1713 – 1786) who also designed Oxford’s Magdalen Bridge. The market originally contained 20 butchers’ shops while today there are around 60 shops and stalls.Close-up of Tony inside the Covered Market. The market’s pitched roof can be seen above.View along Cornmarket Street in Oxford from outside an entrance into the Covered Market. This pedestrian street is lined with shops.Tony in the reception of the Randolph Hotel in Oxford. This five star hotel is located on Beaumont Street.Another view of the reception area of the Randolph Hotel. The hotel is Victorian Gothic in style and was designed by architect William Wilkinson.A lounge area with chairs and tables inside the Randolph Hotel. On one of the wooden clad walls is a photo of John Thaw appearing as Inspector Morse in the television series which ran in the UK from 1987 to 2000. The hotel appeared in the series several times, in particular in the episode “The Wolvercote Tongue”. The cast stayed at the hotel during filming in 1987 and there is now a Morse Bar. The hotel also appeared in the follow-up series, Lewis.View of the Randolph Hotel’s main entrance with a red mat in front of the doorway. External decoration in view includes a stone column topped with floral carving and above this a sculpture of a dog looking down.Tony outside the Randolph Hotel.
