Bedale
North Yorkshire
Bedale is a mile from junction 51 of the
The town has held a market since it was granted a charter by King Henry III in 1251. The town's long and wide main street is its Market Place continuing beyond its market cross to North End, while the opposite end is South End. Market day in the town is now Tuesday.
Bedale Hall, at North End, is a grade I listed manor house at the edge of the town. It owes much of its Palladian style to its extension in the early 18th century, although its origins are much earlier. The manor was bought by the Bedale Rural District Council in 1951 and is today operated by a charitable trust as a community hall and venue for business meetings and weddings.
Bedale has a station on the Wensleydale Railway, a former railway now partly restored as a tourist and heritage line to the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. More information about the line can be found below. Bedale station is just across the Bedale Beck, where begins the adjoining village of Aiskew.
In 2019, Bedale will be one of the host towns of the Tour de Yorkshire.
Town features
Bedale has a historic house.
Bedale has an old parish church.
Bedale has a station on one of Yorkshire's heritage railways.
Bedale has a choice of pubs.
Bedale has takeaways and sandwich shops.
A choice of cafes can be found in Bedale.
Restaurant dining can be found in Bedale.
The town has a rich variety of traditional shops.
Bedale holds a traditional outdoor market - (Tuesday is market day and Saturday car boot sales).
The town has a Post Office.
Bedale has bank and building society branches.
The town has pharmacies.
Bedale has a community hall - Bedale Hall.
The town has a library. 
Bedale has a museum - Bedale Museum.
There are public toilets in the town.
Places to stay in Bedale include guest house, inn, holiday home, caravan, camping accommodation.
Bedale has schools.
Places of worship: Anglican, Methodist - Catholic in adjoining village of Aiskew.
Travel
Bus travel
The town has buses to neighbouring towns and villages. Bedale
Bedale has a station on the Wensleydale Railway, one of Yorkshire's heritage railways.See 'Places to visit' below.
Road travel
Bedale can be reached via the A1(M) A684 B2285 Places to visit
The Wensleydale Railway
A railway service into the Yorkshire Dales running from Leeming Bar, near the A1(M) towards Bedale, Finghall, Leyburn and Redmire, at the edge of the
Further information at the
Wensleydale Railway
Middleham Castle
Castle Hill, Middleham, North YorkshireMiddleham has substantial remains of a castle built in stages between the 12th and 15th centuries, including a late 12th century keep which is one of the largest hall keeps in the country. Ditch and timber defences were not replaced with the low stone curtain wall until the early 14th century. It is notable as the place where, in the 1460s, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who later became King Richard III, spent several years of his youth under the guardianship of his cousin Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. During the War of the Roses, King Edward IV was imprisoned at Middleham Castle for a short time in 1469. The castle is managed by English Heritage.
More information at these
English Heritage - Middleham CastleFind on map:
Middleham Castle Marmion Tower
West TanfieldAn impressive stone gatehouse to a lost manor house beside the River Ure which was once the manor of Elizabeth Parr, grandmother of Queen Katherine Parr, the sixth and last wife of King Henry VIII. The manor passed to Elizabeth Parr in 1513, but the gatehouse is now its only significant remains. The gatehouse was originally built during the latter part of the 14th century but has been remodelled several times. Its first floor has a splendid projecting oriel window. The 69 spiral steps of the tower can be climbed during its daily opening times. The tower is managed by English Heritage and there is no admission charge.
More information at the
English Heritage - Marmion Tower
Jervaulx Abbey
Jervaulx, near East Witton, North YorkshireJervaulx Abbey is the ruins of a Cistercian monastery dedicated in 1156. They are set in tranquil and beautiful parkland in Wensleydale, the valley of the River Ure. The abbey is privately-owned and became a visitor attraction, wedding venue and film and photography location after many years of conservation work at the end of the 20th century. A visitor centre displays a model of the abbey as it would have originally looked and the abbey also has tea rooms and offers accommodation. Jervaulx is located along the A6108 about 5 miles south-east of
MiddlehamFind out more at the
Jervaulx AbbeyFind on map:
Jervaulx Abbey
Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
From just beyond the south-west edge of the Hambleton district there extends the 232 square miles (603 sq km) of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Beauty. At its centre is the small town of 
Yorkshire Dales National Park
Just a few miles to the west of the Hambleton district is the Yorkshire Dales National Park. A drive or ride of around 13 miles from 
Sutton Bank National Park Visitor Centre and Kilburn White Horse
Top of Sutton Bank (A170)While the full figure of the Kilburn White Horse stands out from afar, it can also be reached by a 3-mile loop walk from the North York Moors National Park Visitor Centre at the top of Sutton Bank. The most northerly such figure in Britain, the horse was first created in 1857 when it was marked out by the Kilburn village schoolmaster and his pupils before the turf was cut from the limestone, now brightened with added chalk. The National Park centre also offers plenty of other walking and cycling opportunities, a fantastic viewpoint and is also a Dark Sky Discovery site.
Further information at this
North York Moors National Park - Sutton Bank
North York Moors National Park
Beyond the visitor centre are 554 square miles (1,435 square kilometres) of National Park with features including moorland and coast, historic stateley homes, remains of castles and abbeys, attractive villages and market towns and a historic railway. For more information see our page dedicated to the The World of James Herriot
23 Kirkgate, ThirskThis museum paying tribute to vet and author James Herriot offers a wealth of things to see at his original practice surgery. The writer, whose real name was James Alfred Wight, wrote a series of semi-autobiographical books through the 1970s which were adapted for two films and a popular BBC TV series. Alf Wight continued to write through the 1980s and early 1990s, focusing more on children's books later in his life. The museum presents the house as it would have been in the 1940s and has an air-raid shelter in the cellar. There is a big display of veterinary instruments from the past to the modern day, a farrier's workshop, a massive collection of James Herriot memorabilia and a behind the scenes look at TV's 'All Creatures Great and Small' including a restored vintage car used in the series.
Further information at
The World of James Herriot Find Thirsk on map
Emergency services
North Yorkshire Police North Yorkshire PoliceNorth Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue ServiceYorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Local government
Civil parish council
Bedale Town CouncilProvides some local services in the area.
Link to council website
Bedale Town CouncilDistrict authority
Hambleton District CouncilHambleton district council is one of the seven large district authorities within the county of North Yorkshire with its Civic Centre at Stone Cross, Northallerton.
It covers 506 square miles of the mainly rural area in the northern area of North Yorkshire adjoining the Hambleton Hills, after which the authority is named.
The council area includes
The council is made up of 28 councillors representing 17 wards, with between 1 and 3 representatives per ward. Councillors are elected every four years.
The district has extensive coverage of parish and town councils and parish meetings with 78 town and parish councils and 57 parish meetings.
Link to Hambleton District Council website.
Hambleton District CouncilThe political composition of the council after the May 2019 election was:
County authority
North Yorkshire County CouncilIncludes Hambleton and six other non-unitary districts of North Yorkshire.
North Yorkshire County CouncilPolice and Crime Commissioner
Police and Crime Commissioner North YorkshireCovers the county of North Yorkshire and City of York.
Police and Crime Commissioner North YorkshireFire Authority
The North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service was previously governed by the North Yorkshire Combined Fire Authority made up of elected members from across the broad areas of North Yorkshire and City of York councils which it serves. Following a ministerial announcement in June 2018 the governance of the fire service was transferred to the Police and Crime Commissioner for North Yorkshire from 15 November 2018.Further information at the
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service Police and Crime Commissioner North Yorkshire