大象传媒

Broadcast in the local region in November 1978 was a charming half-hour television programme which took a look round Swindon during that summer.

As part of the 大象传媒 West 'Day Out' series - which visited a different Wiltshire and West Country locale every week - presenter Gwyn Richards is shown exploring the town and the surrounding area.听

Presenter Gwyn Richards on Old Town High Street

His journey begins at Liddington Clump, site of the famous cluster of trees on the hill overlooking Swindon which signal to any Swindonian driving back on the M4 that home is only a few miles away.

Once he ventures into the town, the personable Richards offers a potted history of Swindon.

The work of Victorian nature writer Richard Jeffries who was born and lived near Coate Water is quoted, and Richards takes a boat out on Coate Lake and pays a visit to the museum founded in Jeffries' honour situated nearby.

On Havelock Street

Swindon's then-thriving railway works is shown, and its long history touched upon. In 1978 - eight years prior to the closure of the works - Swindon was still very much synonymous with the railways.

Richards also takes a walk round the Railway Village, which at that time 30 years ago, had just received a substantial restoration.

A large proportion of the programme focuses on Swindon's Old Town, as Richards explore the history of the High Street and Victoria Road.

The Brunel Shopping Centre in 1978

He also pays a visit to the ruins of the Goddard mansion in The Lawns and wanders around Old Town Gardens.

Perhaps the most interesting part comes in the latter segment of the programme when Richards finally reaches the town centre. Starting in Havelock Street, he guides the audience to the "brand new, space-age Brunel Shopping Centre" as he describes it.

It seems hard to believe now but following its completion in the mid-late 1970s, people were awestruck by the shopping complex.

Gwyn Richards frolicing at The Oasis

The programme finally ends with Richards taking a dip in the pool at Swindon's Oasis Leisure Centre.

As with the Brunel Centre, it had recently been built and people travelled from miles around to enjoy the pleasures of the swimming pool designed to mimic a beautiful tropical lagoon.听

'Day Out: Swindon' is a fascinating visual record of the town as it stood 30 years ago, and is interesting to see how it was then perceived as a trend-setting, up-and-coming town with a rich historical heritage, which seems in marked contrast to how it can often unfortunately be considered all these years later.