Teddington Hands

Teddington is a village and parish in Gloucestershire, England.

The village is fortunate to have an ancient church that is thought to date from the 12th Century. The interior wall has a partially faded mural of the Lion and the Unicorn that dates from the second half of the 17th century. It also contains an arch sourced from Hailes Abbey after the latter was destroyed following the dissolution of the monasteries.

The village has a population of less than 300, of which the majority are professional commuters and elderly pensioners. The population increased to 393 at the 2011 census. It has an archaic water pump, a village hall and some property dating from the 18th century and earlier. Nearby is the "Teddington Hands" pub, the name of which refers to the crossroads sign that was renovated as part of the 2000 Millennium celebrations. Opposite the pub and outside a Texaco service station is a standing stone of purportedly mystical significance and is believed to be over 2,000 years old.

In recent years, the village has been host to a murder in 1993 where a male resident, who worked as a computer analyst, killed his wife and two children, before killing himself two days later. The victims are buried in St Nicholas's church graveyard and a bench commemorates their lives.

The village dates from the 8th Century. The Teddington Hands Inn (nearby but not in the village) was originally known as the Cross Hands Inn and the name change only took place in the late 1980s after construction of the Teddington Hands Roundabout which realigned the Stow road away from the side of the premises due to a high volume of serious road traffic accidents. The area gets its name from the historic fingerpost which formerly stood at the crossroads but now stands adjacent to the entrance to the pub. The finger post is a listed structure.

During the Second World War an American military base was in the field to the rear of the pub and Joe Louis the heavyweight boxer fought an exhibition match in the field and all the surrounding villagers were invited. Glenn Miller also entertained troops in an adjacent field and visited the pub for refreshments prior to going to Cheltenham to perform a further concert. The following day he left from a nearby airfield for France. He and the plane he was travelling in was never seen again. The current theory being is small plane was hit by bombs discharged from returning allied bombers over the channel. So the Teddington Hands Inn is possibly the last pub Glenn Miller ever visited.

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