Often called the ‘Heart of the Midlands’, Nottingham has given the world Robin Hood, Raleigh bikes, John Player cigarettes and Boots the chemists - and it was here that Ibuprofen first saw the light of a petri dish to the benefit of a million hangovers. As if that wasn’t enough, Alan Sillitoe and D. H. Lawrence went to school here, Lord Byron’s ancestral pile is just on the city’s outskirts, and it was here that King Charles I raised his battle standard at the start of the English Civil War – though precious few rallied to the cause. Local heroes include the cantankerous Brian Clough, who led Nottingham Forest Football Club to a pair of European Cups, the fast bowler Harold Larwood, who famously bowled Donald Bradman during the Body Line Ashes of the 1930s, and the charismatic William Booth, who founded a worldwide movement, the Salvation Army.

Despite all this and much more, Nottingham wears its charms lightly, avoiding the tourist crowds, but this fascinating city has much to offer – and we have selected 111 Places to intrigue, amuse and illuminate.   

Phil Lee was born and raised in Nottingham and he just couldn’t escape the clutches of his home city, returning after a spell as a merchant seaman in the Danish navy. He lives there still, very happily, and has carved out a varied career as a travel writer.