VENUE

Birmingham/Coventry

Birmingham

The second-largest city in Britain - commonly referred to as the second city of the United Kingdom

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in Britain - commonly referred to as the second city of the United Kingdom - with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper. Birmingham borders the Black Country to its west and together with its city of Wolverhampton and towns including Dudley and Solihull to the south-east, forms the West Midlands conurbation. The wider metropolitan area has a population of 4.3 million, making it the largest outside of London. Located in the West Midlands region of England, approximately 100 miles (160 km) from London, Birmingham is considered to be the social, cultural, financial and commercial centre of the Midlands. It is just west of the traditional centre point of England at Meriden, and is the most inland major city in the country, and lying north of the Cotswolds and east of the Shropshire Hills.

Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery

Address: Chamberlain Sq, Birmingham B3 3DH
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BM&AG) is a museum and art gallery in Birmingham, England. It has a collection of international importance covering fine art, ceramics, metalwork, jewellery, natural history, archaeology, ethnography, local history and industrial history. The museum/gallery is run by Birmingham Museums Trust, the largest independent museums trust in the United Kingdom, which also runs eight other museums around the city. Entrance to the Museum and Art Gallery is free, but some major exhibitions in the Gas Hall incur an entrance fee.

Cadbury World

Address: 69 Linden Rd, Birmingham B30 1JR
Cadbury World is a visitor attraction in Bournville, Birmingham, England, featuring a self-guided exhibition tour, created and run by the Cadbury Company. The tour tells the history of chocolate, and of the Cadbury business. Cadbury World has gone on to become one of Birmingham's largest leisure attractions. Over 500,000 people visit there each year especially children and students. The estate features a respected education programme (linking back directly to the educational advancements and interests of the company's original founders). Cadbury World provides a Chocolate afternoon tea.

Villa Park

Address: Trinity Rd, Birmingham B6 6HE
Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, with a seating capacity of 42,657. It has been the home of Premier League giants Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway stations and has hosted sixteen England internationals at senior level, the first in 1899 and the most recent in 2005. Villa Park has hosted 55 FA Cup semi-finals, more than any other stadium, and it is the 10th largest in England.

Coventry

A major centre of the British motor industry

Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed by Coventry City Council. Coventry is 19 miles (31 km) east-south-east of Birmingham, 24 miles (39 km) south-west of Leicester, 10 miles (16 km) north of Warwick and 94 miles (151 km) north-west of London. Coventry is also the most central city in England, being only 12 miles (19 km) south-west of the country's geographical centre in Leicestershire.

Warwick Castle

Address: Warwick Castle, Warwick, Warwickshire, CV34 6AH
Warwick Castle is a medieval castle developed from a wooden fort, originally built by William the Conqueror during 1068. Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England, situated on a meander of the River Avon. The original wooden motte-and-bailey castle was rebuilt in stone during the 12th century. During the Hundred Years War, the facade opposite the town was refortified, resulting in one of the most recognisable examples of 14th-century military architecture. It was used as a stronghold until the early 17th century, when it was granted to Sir Fulke Greville by James I in 1604. Greville converted it to a country house, and it was owned by the Greville family (who became Earls of Warwick in 1759) until 1978, when it was bought by the Tussauds Group.

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum

Address: Jordan Wl, Coventry CV1 5QP
Herbert Art Gallery & Museum (also known as the Herbert) is a museum, art gallery, records archive, learning centre, media studio and creative arts facility on Jordan Well, Coventry, England. The museum is named after Sir Alfred Herbert, a Coventry industrialist and philanthropist whose gifts enabled the original building to be opened in 1960. Building began in 1939, with an interruption by the Second World War, and the Herbert opened in 1960. In 2008, it reopened after a £14 million refurbishment. The Herbert is run by Culture Coventry, a registered charity, and admission is free. It derives financial support from donations, sales at the museum shop, and hiring the buildings out. In 2010, the museum and gallery received more than 300,000 visitors, making it one of the most popular free tourist attractions in the West Midlands.

Coventry Cathedral

Address: Priory St, Coventry CV1 5AB
The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is Christopher Cocksworth and the current dean is John Witcombe. The city has had three cathedrals. The first was St Mary's, a monastic building, from 1102-1539, of which only a few ruins remain. The second was St Michael's, a 14th-century Gothic church designated as a cathedral in 1918, which remains a ruined shell after its bombing during the Second World War. The third is the new St Michael's Cathedral, built immediately adjacent after the destruction of the former, consecrated in 1962.