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We've
added some interesting stuff about Bristol and placed some extra
dating links at the top of the page. It is a little confusing as to
which UK county singles in Bristol believe they reside. So to assist
we've added links to our other dating sites: Gloucestershire Dating,
Somerset Dating and Avon Dating. The 'search button above will take
you straight to Bristol single men and women looking for an Avon
date, so if you'd prefer to date in Gloucestershire or find a
Somerset date, then use the links above.
Bristol
is a city, unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West
England, 105 miles (169 km) west of London, and 44 miles (71 km)
east of Cardiff.
With an approximate population of 410,950, and urban area of
550,200, it is England's sixth, and the United Kingdom's ninth most
populous city, one of England's core cities and the most populous
city in South West England. It received a royal charter in 1155 and
was granted county status in 1373. For half a millennium it was the
second or third largest English city, until the rapid rise of
Liverpool, Birmingham and Manchester in the Industrial Revolution
during the latter part of the 18th century. It borders the counties
of Somerset and Gloucestershire, lying between the cities of Bath,
Gloucester and Newport, and has a short coastline on the estuary of
the River Severn, which flows into the Bristol Channel.
Bristol is one of the centres of culture, employment and education
in the region. From its earliest days, its prosperity has been
linked to that of the Port of Bristol, the commercial port, which
was in the city centre but has now moved to the Severn Estuary coast
at Avonmouth and Portbury. In more recent years the economy has been
built on the aerospace industry, and the city centre docks have been
regenerated as a centre of heritage and culture.[
There are a number of different ways in which Bristol's boundaries
are defined, depending on whether the boundaries attempt to define
the city, the built-up area, or the wider "Greater Bristol". The
narrowest definition of the city is the city council boundary;
although this definition does include a large portion of the Severn
Estuary, west as far as the islands of Steep Holm and Flat Holm.[3]
A slightly less narrow definition is used by the Office for National
Statistics; this includes built-up areas which adjoin Bristol but
are not within the city council boundary, such as Whitchurch
village, Filton, Patchway, Bradley Stoke, and excludes non-built-up
areas within the city council boundary.[4] The ONS has also defined
an area which it calls the "Bristol Urban Area" which includes
Kingswood, Mangotsfield, Stoke Gifford, Winterbourne, Frampton
Cotterell, Almondsbury and Easton-in-Gordano.[5] The term "Greater
Bristol" (used for example by the Government Office of the South
West [6] is most usually used to refer to the area covered by the
city and its three neighbouring local authorities
The city has two League football clubs: Bristol City and Bristol
Rovers, as well as a number of non-league clubs, most notably
Bristol Manor Farm. Bristol City are the most popular team in the
city and were promoted to the second tier of English football in
2007. City recently lost in the play-off final of the Championship
to Hull City (2007/2008 season). City announced plans for a new
30,000 all seater stadium to replace their home, Ashton Gate.
Bristol Rovers, are the oldest professional football team in
Bristol, formed in 1883. Rovers are just below mid-table in League
One, and reached the Quarter-Final stage of the FA Cup. During their
history, Rovers have been Champions of the (old) division Three
(1952/53, 1989/90), Watney Cup Winners (1972, 2006/07), and
runners-up in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy. The Club have planning
permission to re-develop the Memorial Stadium into an 18,500 All-seater
Stadium to be completed by December 2010.
The County Ground, Ashley DownThe city is also home to Bristol Rugby
rugby union club, a first-class cricket side, Gloucestershire C.C.C.
and a Rugby League Conference side, the Bristol Sonics. The city
also stages an annual half marathon, and in 2001 played host to the
World Half Marathon Championships. There are several athletics clubs
in Bristol, including Bristol and West AC, Bitton Road Runners and
Westbury Harriers. Speedway racing was staged, with breaks, at the
Knowle Stadium from 1928 to 1960, when it was closed and the site
redeveloped. The sport briefly returned to the City in the 1970s
when the Bulldogs raced at Eastville Stadium.
In summer the grounds of Ashton Court to the west of the city play
host to the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, a major event for
hot-air ballooning in the UK. The Fiesta draws a substantial crowd
even for the early morning lift that typically begins at about 6.30
am. Events and a fairground entertain the crowds during the day. A
second mass ascent is then made in the early evening, again taking
advantage of lower wind speeds. Ashton Court also plays host to the
Ashton Court festival each summer, an outdoors music festival which
used to be known as the Bristol Community Festival.
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