The hard-to-pronounce village with picturesque countryside walks but has a dark past

There is also beautiful countryside with picturesque walks waiting to be discovered

Cambridgeshire is a historic place, filled with many stories of the past. Some of these stories are light hearted and seem mythical, yet some stories are dark.

In the village of Babraham, there is one dark story about a former vicar. At the centre of Babraham is St Peter’s Church.

This has been on the same site since the 12th century. Babraham was a wealthy village, however in 1445 the vicarage was exempt from paying tax due to its poverty. In 1535, the village was reported to be one of the poorest.

From 1549, John Hullier served as vicar and remained vicar for six years. Before he became a vicar in Babraham, he was a chorister at Cambridge’s King’s College and also attended Eton.

During his vicarage in Babraham, John refused to renounce the Protestant faith. By doing this, it resulted in his death.

On April 16, 1556 – which was Maundy Thursday – John was burned at the stake on Jesus Green in Cambridge.

The village itself, like many other names in Cambridgeshire, has a name that is hard to pronounce. Some may think it’s pronounced like Bab-ra-ham, but its correct pronunciation is Bay-rum.

Despite being a tiny village, the ancient location has much on offer. It is home to the world-famous Babraham Institute and Babraham Research Campus, considered one of the UK’s major bioscience research hubs.

There is also lots of surrounding countryside that provide scenic places to walk. A hidden nature spot to visit is Babraham Pocket Park.

This is a community-run green space in the village, and it offers visitors a serene place to walk around.

Also amongst the surrounding countryside is wildlife including sheep, so it’s a great way for animal lovers to get closer to nature.