Five Chester Curiosities

The county town of Cheshire is situated on England's border with Wales.

1. The origin of the Rows - public galleries that run uninterrupted through the front of buildings at street level in the centre of Chester - is contentious. Research suggests that the Rows have existed in something resembling their current form since the mid thirteenth century.

From the beginning, the word 'row' was applied to small assemblies of shops connected by a single trade and sometimes owned by one merchant. Visitors to the city can go walk about on the Rows with the Chester Revealed audio tour guide.

2. The area of the city known as the Roodee is the site for Chester Racecourse, the oldest racecourse in Britain and the longest continuous sporting venue in the country, too.

3. The Deva Stadium, home of Chester City Football Club, is located on the border between England and Wales. Most of the stadium - bar the club's offices and half the East Stand - is located in Wales.

4. Chester's city walls form the most complete continuous circuit of Roman and medieval walls in Britain. Enjoy a stroll along part of the Walls with the Walk Talk Tour of Chester. The tour is narrated by actor and broadcaster, Jonathan Keeble. To hear an audio sample from the tour please click here.

5. The Kaleyards Gate (pictured above)originally dates from the late thirteenth century, when the then Abbot of St Werbergh was granted permission to have a gate installed in the city walls so that the Abbey’s monks could access their vegetable garden more easily and safely. Kaleyards Gate is much smaller than the other gates that provided access in and out of the city.

Every day, in keeping with tradition, a curfew bell is rung at 8.45pm. This used to signal that the Kaleyards Gate would be closed at 9.00pm (it would then be reopened at daybreak the following day). Sadly, the tradition of locking the Gate has been discontinued.

The picture above shows the entrance to the Grosvenor Shopping Centre. The Grosvenor family - headed by the Duke of Westminster - have long been influential in the city as listeners to the Chester Revealed audio tour will discover.