Gary Parkinson enjoys the poet-pleasing, history-stuffed market town on the English/Welsh borders 

You know you’re onto something good when a man as wise as Sir John Betjeman heralds “probably the loveliest town in England”. Studying its near-500 listed buildings, medieval walled centre and ideal position, sheltered between two rivers below the Clee Hills and Mortimer Forest, you can see why it delighted the conservationist poet.

Ludlow’s position was also attractive to another figure interested in history and permanence - William the Conqueror. Ludlow Castle was constructed from 1075 at the edge of William’s freshly-procured English lands; the modern town is about 10 miles from the Welsh border.

Ludlow prospered as a market town, mainly for wool but later hosting various merchants and trades; it still does. Having hung onto its history – part-medieval, part-Tudor, part-Georgian – it’s an attractive place to amble, with a growing trade in antiques and artsy shops. 

It helps that the busy A49 trunk route, which paces north-south along the Welsh Marches border like wary sentries atop Offa’s Dyke, was long since diverted: opened by Ken Clarke at the dawn of Thatcherism, the bypass crescents around the town a mile to the east, creating space for newbuild developments in its lee – and leaving Ludlow blissfully unbothered by through traffic.  

The result is a time-capsule town centre that delights historians and locals alike, welcoming without being too touristy, historic without being a theme park. Betjeman would be delighted.

Starting out Many one-beds are retirement properties but for £104,995 there’s a third-floor flat in a Grade II-listed Georgian right on Castle Square, bang in the heart of things. 

Great for families....  Newbuilds abound in the last half-mile before the bypass, like the £229,995 three-bed semi on Baker Close. Older means more money and usually more central, but just outside the centre on Julian Road is a large-gardened Edwardian four-bed detached for £550,000. 

Just won the lottery? Splash out and stretch out with gorgeous Georgian Grade II-listed Gravel Hill House: seven bedrooms (one via a secret staircase), mature walled garden and plenty of original features, for £975,000.

THE COST OF LIVING

Average rent: Rent averages around £725 pcm, ranging from £375 for a one-bed over a town-centre shop to £1,400 for a three-bed in Grade II-listed Ludford House – but there’s a fascinating Grade II-listed four-bed half-timbered conversion for £1,000 in Dinham, near the castle.

Average house price: One-beds average £117,000 but there’s a town-centre studio in the eaves of Grade II-listed Drapers House for £69,995. 

Four-beds average £355,000 and are frequently newbuild but there’s a converted church hall near the river Teme for £400,000.

Average rental yield: Solid rather than spectacular: at the average £458 rent for a one-bed, a £117,000 purchase would yield 4.70 percent. 

Average house price rise: The current £299,808 is up 4.68 percent on a year ago.

Average salary: The cross-Shropshire average of £28,225 is £50 a week below the UK average of £30,629 and comparable with Stroud, Stevenage and Staffordshire. With 15.5 percent of Ludlow’s population being retired, the town’s 63.1 percent employment rate is way below the UK average of 76.3 percent.

Average price of a pint: £3.40.

Council tax: £1,242.83 to £3,728.50.

LUDLOW AT A GLANCE

Connections: Ludlow is an hour off the motorway network. By car, Birmingham is 90 minutes, Cardiff two hours, London three; trains are similar but 30 minutes quicker to Cardiff. 

Amenities: 3/5 By council decree, shops are more boutique than High Street; similarly, delightful old pubs abound. Castle Square market. Assembly Rooms for shows. Strong foodie history - at one point, Ludlow had three Michelin-starred restaurants.

Festivals and events: English Song Weekend (Apr), Marches Transport Festival (May), spring festival (food, music and classic cars, May), Ludlow Fringe (Jun), Magnalonga food walk (Aug), food festival (Sep), Medieval Christmas Fayre (Nov).

Open space: 4/5 Linney riverside park, Whitcliffe Common nature reserve, Gallow’s Bank; the Shropshire Hills AONB starts literally two miles from the castle, the Brecon Beacons national park is a pleasant hour’s drive.

Landmarks: For a millennium, Ludlow has looked up to the landlords and Our Lord. Ludlow Castle was one of England’s first stone castles, while the 135ft Perpendicular tower of St Laurence’s Church is visible nearly everywhere.

Schools: 3/5 Six primaries within five miles, plus Ludlow C of E secondary, are all Ofsted-rated Good.

Crime: 4/5 Shropshire averages 56.17 crimes per thousand, way below the 89.3 average for England and Wales. 

Famous faces: Among those to have moved round here are actors Pete Postlethwaite and John ‘Boycie’ Challis.

HEAD FOR RURAL BLISS IN…

Clun

With its 15th-century packhorse bridge over a burbling river, Clun – 30 minutes west into the Shropshire Hills AONB – has been described by the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England as one of the nation’s most tranquil places. It’s the only Shropshire town never to have had a train station.

Bishop’s Castle

An artsy enclave 20 miles north-west in the Shropshire Hills, Bishop’s Castle is designated walker-friendly – Bronze Age drovers’ track the Kerry Ridgeway starts here – and has plenty of boutique shops and boozers, including Britain’s oldest licensed brewing site, dating back to 1642.

Church Stretton

The Victorians who made this market town a holiday resort nicknamed it Little Switzerland for its sharp peaks and rolling meadows, not to mention the spa retreats. Tourists still flock to climb hills like the Long Mynd, enjoying the resultant views along the Carding Mill Valley. 

Originally published in the Metro newspaper, 17 Mar 2020