I visited 27 of Shropshire's uniquely wonderful towns and villages in 2025 - here are some of my favourites

It's a series we've called Love Your Neighbourhood and the feature has racked up 42 towns, villages and hamlets since it began in March 2025. 

I've personally had the pleasure of visiting 27 of them over the last nine months and have been blown away by the passion people have shown for their hometowns and the warm welcome they've been willing to show me.

From Telford's 'scenic suburbia' to a sleepy north Shropshire village with fewer than 1,000 people, it's never too much of a challenge to find friendly folks willing to take a moment to talk to a stranger with a microphone.

Back in March, my first trip out for this feature took me to the quintessentially English village of Much Wenlock. 

"We're usually lucky if people stop and say much to us when we're questioning them on the streets," I wrote.

"But in the charming town of Much Wenlock, I felt like I could have asked them for a tour of their homes and been welcomed in with tea and cake." 

A few weeks later, I received a similar welcome in Broseley. Then, I called it "a wholesome town full of wholesome people", noting that every single person I passed wished me a good morning.

"Letting Broseley residents talk about why they love Broseley might be my new favourite pastime," I noted.

Love Your Neighbourhood has also given me the opportunity to take a harder look at places I know well, with the feature taking me back to several of my former stomping grounds.

One week too me to a former hometown of Oakengates in Telford, a decision that earned a few scoffs after a few weeks that had included fan favourites like Church Stretton and Ironbridge.

"If you live nearby, I don't imagine Oakengates is the first place you take friends or family when they come to visit. It's not glitzy, it's not glamorous and - at the moment - it's not even home to the town's theatre," I wrote.

But even in Oakengates, I found passionate and friendly residents who spoke of close-knit community spirit and optimism about the future.

The series has also given me the opportunity to visit several places I had only known previously experienced from the inside of my car - including two that now sit firmly on my list of favourites.

I was bowled over by a recent small step over the border to Staffordshire to the charming village of Wheaton Aston - but that might have had something to do with my love of man's best friend.

There were two things I noted about the handful of residents I stopped to chat with: the first, how much they loved the town's two pubs (the Coach & Horses and The Hartley Arms); and the second, how many of them had dogs.

"We're very dog-friendly. A neighbouring town calls us the dog-walking village," said one of the landlords of The Hartley Arms, Faye Peace, who estimated that every other house had a four-legged friend. 

The other, Pontesbury, had my heart the moment I found out the local councillor is also the village's butcher/greengrocer/purveyor of baked goods. 

Nestled right on the edge of the Shropshire Hills National Landscape (the newish name for an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), the large village is popular with those looking for a quieter life with all the trimmings of a town.

"I was told that at one time it was the biggest village in England," said butcher/councillor Nick Hignett, who proceeded to reel off a long list of facilities (including two Chinese takeaways and a library!) that would have the rest of Shropshire's villages seething with envy.

With almost 30 stops under my belt and many more to come, Love Your Neighbourhood has become one of the most rewarding parts of my job.

It’s a reminder that behind every high street or village sign are friendly people willing to show kindness to a stranger.

And, if the series has proven anything so far, it’s that you don’t have to look far at all to find somewhere worth celebrating.