Sonning Common

Sonning Common isn't in Sonning, and it stopped being a common a long time ago, so the name has been misleading people since the 1640s. What grew on the old grazing land is a post-war village with plenty of bungalows, perched on the edge of the Chilterns. It's close enough to Reading to use it and far enough away to pretend it doesn't. Its big moment in history is Charles I being walked past under armed guard, as a prisoner, on his way to play bowls at a pub, and the village has been perfecting supervised leisure ever since.