Banbury is the largest town in the Cherwell district and is located on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire. A significant commercial and retail center for the surrounding area, it has one of the regions largest shopping centers, Castle Quay. The town is famed for Banbury cakes, similar to Eccles cakes but more oval. Banbury also boasts good industry and is home to the worlds largest coffee producing facility, Kraft Foods Banbury. Banbury is considered the commercial centre of the northern half of Oxfordshire. The surrounding area, known informally as Banburyshire, includes parts of Northamptonshire and Warwickshire. Banbury developed during the Anglo-Saxon period and the origins of its name appear in the Domesday Book. Oliver Cromwell planned the Battle of Edge Hill in the back room of the Reindeer Inn. Communications have always been important to the town and prevented it from being just a quiet rural market town. It was a notable stagecoach stop and both the Red Lion and White Lion were coaching inns of note
The famous nursery rhyme Ride a Rock Horse to Banbury Cross refers to a cross destroyed by Puritans in 1602. The current Banbury Cross is a stone, spire-shaped monument decorated in Gothic form. The identity of the fine lady mentioned in the rhyme has been the subject of numerous suggestions including Lady Godiva and Queen Elizabeth I. A bronze statue representing the Fine Lady upon a White Horse was unveiled by Princess Anne in 2005. Both the Banbury Cross and statue can be found in the town centre. Banbury also has musuem with free admission, a thursday and saturday market, and a number of specialist Polish shops to cater for the recent influx from Eastern Europe
Suburbs include Bretchill, Calthorpe, Cherwell Heights, College Fields, Easington, Grimsbury, Hardwick, Hanwell Fields, Neithrope, Poets Corner, Ruscote, Timms Estate and Queensway
Banbury Hotel, Banbury Bed and Breakfast, Banbury Cheap Hotel accommodation suitable for a Banbury Weekend Break, a Banbury City Break, Banbury Wedding Accommodation, Banbury Guys Night out, Banbury Girls Night out or even a Banbury Stag Night or a Banbury Hen Night