Metroland

John Betjemin used the term to describe those areas made accessible to London by the building of the extensions to the London Underground. For me it also describes those areas just outside and to the north of the Thames in what were in my childhood referred to as the Home Counties. The image is of a model of a tube station at Bekonscot in Beaconsfield.

Luton

Where Vauxhall moved from south London; in the Second World War, they manufactured Churchill tanks here. Commer trucks were made here and later became part of the Rootes Group. Also Lucas Aerospace had a presence along with a former English Electric factory beside Luton Airport. The town’s origin was in hat making. You can read more in this blog piece.

Dunstable

Home of Bedford, the commercial vehicle arm of Vauxhall with a main base at nearby Luton.

Hertford and Ware

Glaxo bought Allen & Hanbury which had its main manufacturing facility at nearby Ware having moved from Bethnal Green . Follow this link to find out more.

Letchworth

The first Garden City before the First World War. You can read more by following this link

Baldock

A town founded by the Knights Templar with the intention of making it the English Baghdad. Nonetheless it was a busy market town known for its malting and brewing.

Royston

The world’s first catalysts to control vehicle pollution were produced at Johnson Matthey’s Royston plant

Hitchin

A town, the product of its soil. Read more by following this link.

Stevenage

One of the new towns designated after the Second World War. Now home to GSK, Airbus and MBDA the missile joint venture between BAE Systems, Airbus and Leonardo. Stevenage has been given the nickname Space City recognising its role in satellite manufacture. You can read more by following this link.

Radlett

EMI set up a factory to manufacture its CAT scanner. Handley Page aircraft moved to nearby Radlett Aerodrome from Cricklewood and manufactured many great aircraft before falling into voluntary liquidation in 1969.

Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield

One of the first designated new towns which became home to Shredded Wheat, Murphy television and a Unilever research laboratory for food stuffs. Nearby Hatfield was home to de Havilland aircraft which later became part of Hawker Siddeley and then BAE Systems; production ceased in 1992. Read more by following this link.

Harlow

One of the new towns designated after the Second World War, former home to the Edison Swan Laboratory as a legacy of their joint venture in incandescent bulbs. In the sixties Gilbey’s Gin built a striking new factory moving its production from London. Follow this link to find out more.

Hemel Hempstead

This was one of the new towns designated after the Second World War building on the substantial and long standing John Dickinson paper mill at nearby Aspley Mill You can find more by following this link.

Watford

The home of printing. You can read more by following this link.

St Albans

Before the Roman invasion, Verulamium (St Albans) was capital of Catuvellauni under king Cunobelinus (brought to life for us by Shakespeare in his play Cymbeline). It was occupied by the Romans and destroyed by Bodeca.

Waltham Abbey

The Royal Gunpowder Factory was here.

Borehamwood

During the Second World War the Admiralty enabled Elliott Brothers to take a redundant fuse factory in order to increase their production of fire control systems. Elliott Automation, as it became following a merger, was in 1957 the largest automation and instrumentation company in Europe, with some 35,000 employees. They are one of the few companies still active in the fifties who exhibited at the Great Exhibition; then they offered drawing instruments, theodolites, transit instruments, slide-rule, azimuth and altitude instruments. During the war, Elliott had worked with the navy on fire control and had developed electro-mechanical devices. In 1947, Elliott created their Borehamwood Research Laboratory and there pursued an advanced digital system building on their earlier naval work. They became part of GEC Avionics. Ugo Foods, manufacturers of pasta, moved from Holloway in 1998 where the company moved in 1952 having set up in Soho in 1929.

Slough

Home to light industry and much inward investment. Read more by following this link.

High Wycombe

Home of furniture making including Gomme with their famous G Plan, and William Hands. You can read more by following this link.

Princess Risborough

Ercol furniture moved their offices, design and factory here from High Wycombe in 2002.

Denham

Home to Martin-Baker ejector seats for aircraft and Bosch UK.

Beaconsfield

Rotax (part of Lucas) moved magneto production here after its Willesden factory was bombed in the Second World War. Wiggins Teape research centre was founded at Butlers Court. Perkin Elmer made instruments in the town.

Amersham

Home to the nuclear diagnostic company that bore the towns name and which became part of GE Healthcare whose UK HQ is at nearby Chalfont St Giles.

Hayes

Fairey Aviation was founded here in 1915. The Gramophone company set up in 1906 and would become part of EMI. You can read more by following this link.

Uxbridge

The town that made the flour for London’s bakers. You can read more by following this link.