page_title: Brading
section_title: Features of the town
hierarchical_section_title: Brading / Features of the town
caption_attribution_description: Little Jane's Cottage, Brading This cottage retains its original appearance with thatched roof and diamond window-panes, traditional Isle of Wight cottage. The little forecourt and garden are well-kept. Plants covering the front, of great variety, from the yellow jessamine to the red fuchsia, with flowers under and around the windows. Jane the young cottager lived here when Rev. Legh Richmond was Vicar of Brading in the early part of last century. Her tombstone is at the back of Brading Church.
context_page_description: The ancient 'Kynges Towne' of Brading is the main town of the civil parish of the same name. The ecclesiastical parish of Brading used to cover about a tenth of the Isle of Wight. The civil parish now includes the town itself and Adgestone, Morton, Nunwell and other outlying areas between Ryde, St Helens, Bembridge, Sandown and Arreton. Alverstone was transferred to the Newchurch parish some thirty years ago.
context_section_description: The main street of Brading contains most of the facilities expected of a large village, or in Brading's case, small town.  There are four pubs; The Bugle Inn where the sea almost met the High Street when Brading Haven was a major port, the Wheatsheaf Inn which faces the Bull Ring, The Kynges Well (formerly the Dark Horse) which is on the High Street and one at nearby Yarbridge named the Yarbridge Inn (known for many years as the Anglers Inn) which is famous for its selection of real ales. St. Mary's Church, Brading is at the north end of the town and the Methodist chapel is near the centre.  There is a small supermarket, a post office, a newsagent, several other specialist shops,a hairdresser's and a fish and chip shop. In addition to these facilities, there is Brading Primary School.
  Brading has many attractions to tempt the visitor, quite apart from the natural beauty of the area.  These include the Lilliput Doll and Toy Museum; The Roman Villa at Morton with its protective cover (new in 2004) and interpretation centre.
  Another notable town attraction was the Brading Waxworks, a museum and waxworks exhibition housed in a Tudor pub (named the "Crown") built by Germaine Richardes who victualled the English fleet.  The waxworks first opened in 1965, under the ownership of Graham Osborn-smith. It was renamed 'Brading: The Experience' by new owners in 2005, and further alterations in the same year saw the construction of a new section entitled 'World of Wheels', which displayed an array of vintage and unusual vehicles.
  However, the attraction announced its closure in late 2009 as a result of falling visitor numbers and the increasing costs of running and maintaining the site. It was closed for good on 3 January 2010, and most of the vast collection of taxidermy pieces, historical artefacts and vehicles was auctioned off in April 2010.  Two of the waxworks tableaux: Valentine Grey, the little sweep and "The Skivvy" are on display in the building which is now a visitor centre with shops and food outlets.
  The railway station building, as well as remaining an operational railway station has been restored as a café, railway memorabilia shop and small rail museum. The non-operational signal box has been restored to the state it may have been in during the steam era. It is staffed by volunteers.
caption: Little Jane's Cottage, Brading, circa 1910 – alluded to by the Rev Legh Richmond
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