This is a rare open space in the heart of the city. From City Road you walk in along a pathway, paved in stone, between the fenced off graves. Further back there’s a large open area with benches around, great as a place to eat your lunch in the open air. There’s some lovely trees, and some of the graves are worth a look…

In fact its also historically significant. The name is thought to originally mean ‘bone hill’, and it’s been a burial site for over a thousand years. It’s always been a non-conformist burial site, and has connections with the nearby Wesley Chapel and Quaker Gardens. Several notable non-conformists are buried there: artist William Blake, and authors Daniel Defoe and John Bunyan among them.

As I mentioned most of the graves are fenced off. The graves I’ve mentioned are in the open areas. A leaflet with a map of graves is available from the attendant’s hut in the middle of the grounds. They are also starting guided walks soon: every Wednesday at 12.30 from 7th May to 21st August, charge £5.