Stanbridge, Bedfordshire

Church of St John the Baptist is a Grade I listed church in Stanbridge, Bedfordshire, England. It became a listed building on 3 February 1967.

Stanbridgeford railway station on the London and North Western Railway's branch line to Dunstable served the Bedfordshire villages of Stanbridge, Totternhoe, Eaton Bray and Tilsworth from 1849 to 1964. Once popular with visitors to the nearby Totternhoe Knolls and ramblers, the station closed against a background of falling passenger numbers and declining freight returns. The station building has survived into private ownership, but a section of the alignment to the east and west of the site has been taken into the A505 Leighton Southern Bypass. National Cycle Network route 6 runs to the east over the bypass as far as the outskirts of Dunstable.

Egginton – or Eggington as it is now known – is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about three miles east of Leighton Buzzard. Apart from the village itself, the parish also includes the hamlet of Briggington on the road to Leighton Buzzard, and the hamlet of Clipstone to the north of Clipstone Brook. The hamlet of Leedon was in Eggington parish, but became part of Leighton Buzzard when the parish boundary was redrawn in the early 1980s. The village itself is relatively small – with some 190 residents living in 94 houses. It now has an Indian restaurant, a church and a village hall, formerly the village school (which closed in 1984). The Congregational chapel was pulled down in the 1970s: the village shop also closed in that era, and the old Methodist chapel was converted to a dwelling in 1988. Nearby places are Leighton Buzzard, to the west, Hockliffe, to the east and Stanbridge to the south. At the eastern end of the village is Eggington House built in 1696. In the 1960s this was the home of Sir Gilbert Inglefield (a former Lord Mayor of London), then in 1978 it became the home of Lord Slynn of Hadley, the first English judge to move from the Queen's Bench Division to the Court of Justice of the European Community in Luxembourg, where he was one of six Advocates General. It is now in the private ownership of the Garrigue family and can be hired as a venue for wedding receptions, events and conferences. The White House – a former parsonage in the village – was used to house the elderly blind who were evacuated from London for the duration of the Second World War. It was subsequently purchased by Bedfordshire County Council and became Children's Home between 1952 and 1983, since when it has become a private Care Home for the elderly. The Three Horseshoes pub was eventually taken over by Louis Appert, who ran it as a rural French restaurant. This was replaced by Lavang – an Indian restaurant – in 2007. It was then purchased by Mr B. Choudhury who extensively renovated the property in 2011, adding an extension/function room to the property.South of the village runs Eggington Brook, approximately three miles east of Leighton Buzzard. In August 2021, the brook flood defences were upgraded by ECL Civil Engineering and Dr Andy Hughes, the reservoir dam consultant, to withstand a 1 in 100,000 projected annual flood with the new embankment dam to achieve an official Dam/Reservoir status.Flood Protection is now in place for Leighton Buzzard and the surrounding area under the Reservoirs Act 1975.Eggington is part of the political ward of 'Heath and Reach' which sends a Councillor to Central Bedfordshire Council. The ward includes the villages of Heath and Reach, Hockliffe, Eggington, Stanbridge, Tilsworth, Tebworth and Wingrave. The ward was created in 2011 and has since been represented by Councillor Mark Versallion.Eggington was the home village of the British comedian and gameshow host Bob Monkhouse OBE (1928–2003).

Tilsworth Castle refers to both "Warren Knoll Motte" and "Tilsworth Manor", both built in the same general area, located in the civil parish of Tilsworth, in the county of Bedfordshire, England.

Church of All Saints is a Grade I listed church in Tilsworth, Bedfordshire, England. It became a listed building on 3 February 1967.

Eggington House is the manor house of the village of Eggington situated near Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, England. The house is regarded as a very fine example of late 17th century domestic architecture, and is a Grade II* listed building. At the time of its construction in 1696 it was completely up to date and innovative in its design - which was unusual in the provinces, where architectural styles usually lagged behind that of the larger cities. This small mansion, built for a Huguenot from Montauban in France, a Merchant taylor John Renouille who became Sheriff of Bedfordshire. The house is of red brick. The main facade is of seven bays of classical sash windows and three storeys high. The roof line is concealed by a panelled parapet decorated with urns. The interior contains a staircase with twisted balusters. The house has had a varied ownership, the Renouille family anglicised their name to Reynal moved to nearby Hockliffe Grange and let Eggington. The last of the Reynal's predeceased his wife, who remarried which caused to the property to pass to her new husband named Francis Moore. By 1840 Eggington House belonged to a family called Adams. Later, circa 1900, it belonged to a family called Hodgson who frequently entertained the suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst. During World War I the house was requisitioned by the Army. From 1950 to 1976 it was the home of Sir Gilbert Inglefield, the 1967 Lord Mayor of London, and his wife. It was then the residence of Lord Slynn of Hadley and his wife. Today, the house remains in private ownership.

Tilsworth is a small village and civil parish in Bedfordshire. It lies to the north west of Dunstable, and the Roman Watling Street (A5) forms the north east boundary of the parish of 1,200 acres (4.8 km2). The village lies on the gault clay, where springs well up just south of a gentle gravelly ridge. A large proportion of the area is still farmland. The Domesday Book calls the place "Pileworde" because of a misunderstanding of the symbol for "th", and the name probably means "Thyfel's homestead". A further alternative spelling is "Tyllesworth", in a legal record, dated 1470, mentioning Thomas Carter, a husbandman of the village.Stanbridge, a larger village, is a close neighbour to the west and some organisations, such as the Women's Institute, are combined.The medieval All Saints' Church, built of Totternhoe stone, stands in a prominent position on the hillside, and can be seen from a distance when floodlit at night. It has shared a vicar with Stanbridge since the 19th century, and the combined benefice now also includes Totternhoe. The Church House acts as a centre for many local organisations and there is an active community life in the village. The Methodist Church, faced with the need for expensive repairs, was closed in 1990 and demolished.Across the road from the church, on lower ground, is the ancient moated site of Tilsworth Manor (now a private house). The house itself has been much altered in modern times, but retains a picturesque 15th century gate tower. Tilsworth fête is held in the grounds each June. The manor was owned in the 16th century by the Fowler family. In 1600 a notorious trial followed a quarrel between Richard Fowler and his young wife. Richard was imprisoned in the Tower of London as the result of a forged letter implicating him in a plot to poison Queen Elizabeth I. His wife, her brother and her lover were convicted of the forgery.A gravestone in the churchyard, bearing a verse inscription about a "female unknown" found murdered in the nearby woods in 1821, arouses much interest.Several old farmhouses, two of them thatched, survive in Tilsworth. There are new houses and bungalows, but the village has not yet increased greatly in size. One farmhouse in the north corner of the parish was lost to Hockliffe, to which it was adjacent, in the 20th century. The "Little Chef" restaurant and Travelodge on the A5 are called "Hockliffe", though in fact they lie in Tilsworth. A public house, the Anchor, with restaurant and garden, stands next to one of the small greens, and there is a golf and conference centre. Tilsworth is part of the political ward of 'Heath and Reach' which sends a Councillor to Central Bedfordshire Council. The ward includes the villages of Heath and Reach, Hockliffe, Eggington, Stanbridge, Tilsworth, Tebworth and Wingrave. The ward was created in 2011 and has since been represented by Councillor Mark Versallion.

Totternhoe Castle was a Norman castle in Totternhoe. Bedfordshire. Only earthworks survive. It is a Scheduled Monument, and part of Totternhoe Knolls Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Hockliffe is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire on the crossroads of the A5 road which lies upon the course of the Roman road known as Watling Street and the A4012 and B5704 roads. It is about four miles east of Leighton Buzzard. Nearby places are Heath and Reach, Eggington, Stanbridge, Battlesden, Toddington, Tebworth and Tilsworth. Hockliffe is in Heath and Reach ward which sends a councillor to Central Bedfordshire Council. The ward includes the villages of Heath and Reach, Hockliffe, Eggington, Stanbridge, Tilsworth, Tebworth and Wingrave. The ward was created in 2011 and has since been represented by Councillor Mark Versallion.

Totternhoe nature reserve is managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (WTBCN). The 31-hectare (77-acre) site is in Totternhoe in Bedfordshire, and it includes parts of three Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). Totternhoe Knolls is a biological SSSI owned by Central Bedfordshire Council and leased to the National Trust. Most of it is managed jointly by the National Trust and the WTBCN, excluding Totternhoe Castle, the earthworks of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle which is part of the SSSI but not of WTBCN's nature reserve. Totternhoe nature reserve also includes the geological SSSI, Totternhoe Stone Pit, which is not open to the public, and other areas owned by WTBCN, including part of Totternhoe Chalk Quarry, another biological SSSI.Much of the site is former quarries for Totternhoe stone, a durable chalk which was used in building Westminster Abbey. This has left steeply sloping spoil heaps now grasslands which are rich in flowers, including many species of orchids, such as Cowslips, which are the favourite food of the caterpillars of the rare Duke of Burgundy butterfly. The site is also the best place in Bedfordshire to see the scarce small blue butterfly.The site has a National Trust car park off Castle Hill Road. There is also access to Totternhoe Chalk Quarry by a footpath from Sewell Cutting in Houghton Regis.

Totternhoe Stone Pit is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Totternhoe in Bedfordshire, England. It is also a Geological Conservation Review site, and the local planning authority is Central Bedfordshire Council.The site displays the base of the Totternhoe Stone. It is a lime mud with an extensive deposit of late Cretaceous shark teeth, some of species which have not been fully described, so it will be an important resource for further research. The lower levels contain larger teeth, and in upper ones there are some small rays.The site is part of the Totternhoe nature reserve, managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire, but there is no public access to the Stone Pit.

The Cross Keys is a Grade II listed pub in Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, England It is a 17th-century thatched building and the first floor is timber-framed.