Though quite secluded within a swathe of meadows and neat gardens, Berkeley Castle (April & May Tues-Sun 2-5pm; June & Sept Tues-Sat 11am-5pm, Sun 2-5pm; July & Aug Mon-Sat 11am-5pm, Sun 2-5pm; Oct Sun 2-5pm; £5.70; grounds only £2) dominates the little village of BERKELEY , five miles southwest of Slimbridge on the A38. The fortress has an agreeably turreted medieval look, the robust twelfth-century walls softened by later accretions acquired in its gradual transformation into a family home. The interior is packed with mementoes of its long history, including its grisliest moment in 1327, when Edward II was murdered here - apparently by a red-hot iron thrust into his bowels. You can view the cell where the event took place, along with dungeons, dining room, kitchen, picture gallery and the Great Hall. Outside, the grounds include an Elizabethan terraced garden and a Butterfly Farm (£2), and within easy walking distance, in the village itself, is the Jenner Museum (April-Sept Tues-Sat 12.30-5.30pm, Sun 1-5.30pm; Oct Sun 1-5.30pm; £2.80), dedicated to Edward Jenner, discoverer of the principle of vaccination.

Berkeley is fiendishly difficult to reach by public transport, connected only by coaches from Gloucester operated by Beaumont Travel (Mon-Sat 5 daily, none on Sun; tel 01452/309770). For a lunchtime stop near Berkeley, follow the narrow High Street out of the centre of the village for about a mile to reach the Salutation , an unpretentious country pub with a garden; it serves up bacon sandwiches and suchlike at lunchtimes.