Hallowed ground for literary buffs and followers of the legendary bard, Stratford-upon-Avon is famed right across the globe as the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Its lingering specter seems to move still between the quaint, white-washed, timber-touched homes and cottages that coalesce around the city’s centre, the cosy coffee shops and Tudor residences that line the meandering banks of its eponymous river, and the hidden side-streets where the thatched roofs of Anne Hathaway’s cottage and the great man’s birthplace itself stand neatly lined-up between the verdant woodlands of the Warwickshire countryside.

Given the totemic figure who emerged from this charming village of Middle England, it’s hardly surprising that most Stratford-upon-Avon tour guides recommend a jaunt to the theatres of the Royal Shakespeare Company, where King Lear laments his losses and Hamlet wrestles with the human psyche right throughout the year. There’s also a darker side to this village, with ghost tours now weaving between its shady alleyways and creaky public houses after dark, revealing tales of the more macabre kind at spooky spots like the Shrieve's House on Sheep Street. Afterwards, be sure to case out the lively pubs, where hearty English fare is washed down with homebrewed ales.