Abingdon-on-Thames - Leisure and Media

Leisure and Media

For a town of its size, Abingdon could be considered to be somewhat bereft of leisure facilities. The Regal Cinema closed in the 1980s and has never been replaced — as with many other parts of the town centre it has now been demolished and the site redeveloped into housing. However, sports and recreation are well catered for in the town, with the purpose-built White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre, Tilsley Park and the Southern Town Park providing adequate facilities.

The local newspapers are the Oxford Mail, The Oxford Times and the Abingdon Herald. The Oxfordshire Guardian, a free newspaper, has been based in Abingdon for many years and was founded as the South Oxfordshire Courier. Local radio and television stations are shared with Oxford, although ITV retains a ‘news gathering’ centre in the town, formerly a broadcasting studio, for ITV Meridian. Traditionally, the ITV franchise was ITV Central. Local radio is provided by BBC Radio Oxford, Jack FM, Glide FM and Heart Thames Valley. There was also a SIX TV local TV channel until 2009.

Shopping in Abingdon fares poorly in comparison to developments in nearby Didcot, Wantage and Witney. The Tesco Extra store to the west of the town is the largest supermarket in Abingdon and one of the most profitable Tesco stores in the country. Nearby is the Fairacres Retail Park, recently redeveloped, which includes Homebase, Argos, Subway, Dreams, Beales and Pets at Home stores as well as an AHF furniture store which is part of Anglia Regional Co-operative Society. It was originally home to two long established Abingdon retailers — Vineys Home Furnishings (now part of the Lee Longlands chain) and Mays Carpets (now part of the Carpetright chain and has re-branded accordingly). In the town centre, many independent stores, estate agents and charity shops make up the Bury Street shopping precinct as major high street names have chosen to go to other towns. However, this may change following earmarked redevelopment here.

The town centre of Abingdon was refurbished in 2007 as part of the council's redevelopment plan. The roads around the area have been changed: notably the one-way system around the centre has been partially changed to two-way. While this has slightly reduced traffic within the historic town centre, congestion has greatly increased elsewhere. Local businesses have also complained that the increased traffic has driven shoppers away. Also planned for the town centre is a roof over the pre-1970s shopping precinct and the removal of two kiosks. The market square was repaved and a new tourist information centre is planned.

In 2012, further refurbishment is underway; the Bury Street Precinct has a new owner/landlord, its name has been changed to Abbey Shopping Centre and it is to get another "facelift" plan: instead of a roof (always promised), the covered walkways are to be removed and the flat roofs replaced. A few shops have been knocked together for larger shops; W H Smith have moved in. When Woolworths went into administration, the shop was empty for a while, then Cargo returned to Abingdon on a short-term lease. The current occupants of the former Woolworths store are Poundland. Proposed plans show demolition of the buildings in the Charters. The GP practice and public library are to be relocated, with the latest plans being to move them into the second floor of the building where Woolworths used to be.

The Old Gaol redevelopment has started; the first stage was demolishing the 1970s additions and swimming pool extension. The Gaol is to become luxury flats, shops and restaurants, with promised access to the riverside. Part of the old Police Station will be demolished to access the older building of the Old Gaol.

Abingdon is one of the few towns in the UK to have its own annual air display — the Abingdon Air & Country Show, which takes place every May at Dalton Barracks, the former RAF Abingdon (see below).