Workaday WANTAGE is an unassuming, somewhat care-worn market town, whose crowded Market Place is overseen by a statue of its most famous son, Alfred the Great (849-99), the most distinguished of England's Saxon kings. Unveiled in 1877, the statue doesn't do Alfred any favours - though he must have been very strong to stand any chance of lifting his over-large axe. From the south side of the Market Place, a couple of alleys lead through to Church Street, where the tourist offic... [More]