Kings Langley

Kings Langley once had a royal palace, a priory full of dead royalty and a king hiding from the Black Death. Six centuries later its proudest building is the front of an Ovaltine factory, now converted into flats. Richard II was buried here for twelve years before someone decided Westminster Abbey suited him better, and that is still how the place works: lovely spot, everyone ends up somewhere more famous. The village is split down the River Gade between two councils, so even the bin collection crosses a border, and it all happens under the motorway that strides over the valley on a viaduct without stopping.