Nailsworth

In ancient times it was a settlement at the confluence of the Avening Valley and the Woodchester Valley, on the Nailsworth Stream; in the modern era it was a small mill town and centre for brewing; these days it is sleepy and tranquil, visited in the summer by walkers, and holding a market every couple of weekends.

Over the past decade the small town centre has been reinvigorated, and a number of unusual and high-quality shops now mark out an identity which is quite separate from the tedious mainstream of standard-issue English small-town high streets: you'll find a wonderful baker, delicatessen, hardware stores, butchers, craft shops, bookshops, an art gallery and a gardening shop, but not one of the "big names" you see everywhere else. Nailsworth is a Fair Trade town, and very proud of it. Meanwhile, bizarrely enough, the local football team, Forest Green FC, has been in the top flight of the country's amateur leagues, the "Conference".

Every Spring, the town hosts the Nailsworth Festival, during which local artists exhibit in the windows of all the high street shops, there are numerous cultural and street events, and a free rock festival ("Nailstock") takes place on the fields outside the town, showcasing local musical talent. Or at least, some of the local bands.

Nailsworth is close to the Cotswold towns of Minchinhampton and Stroud, but has a quite different identity from the stolid, bourgeois Minch or the miniature urban centre of Stroud. Yet, dspite its right-on, fairtrade world view, Naily is twinned with Lèves, a suburb of Chartres, near Paris, whereas Minch is twinned with a town in Tanzania called Nkokoto. Just goes to show you can't make generalisations in this weird old world, doesn't it?

For some more information about this beautiful and curious piece of thriving Cotswold life, have a look at Nailsworth.com.