Brockworth, Gloucestershire

Brockworth, in Gloucestershire, England is situated on the old Roman road that connects the City of Gloucester with Barnwood, Hucclecote and Cirencester. For the past 150 years Brockworth has been known locally for the annual rolling of Double Gloucester cheese down Cooper's Hill. During World War II its Gloster Aircraft Company produced the famous Hawker Hurricane fighter, and following the war it gained renewed fame for producing several famous aircraft including Britain's first jet aircraft which took off from its test runway. It is also the birth place of renowned actor, comedian and writer Simon Pegg.

History

Brockworth was the third in a series of rural villages located along an old Roman road following a more-or-less straight line to the inland port city of Gloucester. Its original semi-remote location made it ideal for the location of an aircraft factory (now the Gloucester Business Park) where planes could be built and tested without worry over noise. Land availability made the location ideal for the site of a test runway.

Gloster Aircraft Company

The Gloster Aircraft Company was formed at Hucclecote, Gloucestershire in 1915, as the Gloucestershire Aircraft Company. In 1926 the name of the company was abbreviated to Gloster because customers outside of the United Kingdom found the original name too difficult to pronounce. The company produced the Gloster Gladiator; Hawker Hurricane; Hawker Typhoon; Gloster Meteor and Gloster Javelin and its test runway became famous for the first flight of Sir Frank Whittle's turbo-jet aircraft^{[citation needed]}

Brockworth bombed

The Gloster Aircraft Company (known locally as GAC) drew upon an employment pool from the surrounding area and it was responsible for much of the growth in the development of housing estates which were halted by the outbreak of World War II. During the war Brockworth and the surrounding area was bombed by the Luftwaffe in an attempt to halt its production of vital war materials.

1939-45 WWII production

In 1939 the company built 1,000 Hawker Hurricanes in the first 12 months of World War II and it delivered its last of 2,750 Hurricanes in 1942. Production was then switched to building 3,330 Hawker Typhoons for the Royal Air Force. On April 8, 1941 the first test flight of the Gloster E28/39 with a turbo-jet engine invented by Sir Frank Whittle took off from company airfield at Brockworth. This formed the basis for the Gloster Meteor, the only jet to be used by the Allied Forces during World War II. In 1945 it gained a world speed record of 606 mph and it was eventually put into service by 12 nations.

Post-WWII developments

Following World War II it took the area many years to revive; but after the mid-1950s, renewed housing growth, the development of motorways and redistricting eventually changed the entire look of Brockworth and what were once adjoining villages. In 1952 the Brockworth factory produced the two seat, delta-winged Gloster Javelin which was developed as an all weather fighter that could fly above 50,000 feet at almost the speed of sound. In 1962 the Gloster Aircraft Company closed down and its once famous test runway fell victim of redistricting and it is now within the boundary of Hucclecote. The site of the airfield has now been redeveloped as the modern Gloucester Business Park, with additional housing developments continuing to grow around it.

Cooper's Hill

Cooper's Hill is a local landmark within the parish of Brockworth, and is known in Britain and beyond for its annual cheese rolling contest. A large round cheese is rolled down the steep slope of the hill and chased by a group of "runners", who in fact spend most of their brief descent to the bottom of the hill falling and tumbling. Two hundred years ago this was part of a larger mid-summer festival with other activities and competitions, but the event is now confined to the cheese-rolling and is held in May during the Spring Bank-holiday Monday. It is usually said to have originated as a pagan festival celebrating the arrival of summer, fertility, or both.

Sources

• Gloster Javelin pictures and story
• Cooper's Hill Annual Cheese Rolling and Wake
• BBC coverage of the 2004 Cheese Rolling event
• Injuries suffered at 2004 annual Cheese Rolling.
• Brockworth Albion AFC
• Brockworth Albion Golf Society
• More about Frank Whittle
• Royal Air Force History of the Gloster E28/39/Meteor
• Hucclecote Parish where the E28/39 aircraft, with a jet engine designed by Sir Frank Whittle, became airborne in taxiing runs for the first time.

Coordinates: 51°51′N 2°9′W / 51.85°N 2.15°W / 51.85; -2.15

External links

Media related to Brockworth, Gloucestershire at Wikimedia Commons