THE rich history of Warrington has been unpicked in a fascinating event which was hosted by local historian Bill Cooke.

Presented at Padgate Academy, a community lecture titled ‘The Story of Warrington: The Athens of the North’ was given by the researcher who made it known to locals why they should be so proud of the town and its significant past.

The lecture was held on Tuesday, January 17 and proved popular with the community with more than 50 people coming out to attend the talk.

Bill shared his exclusive knowledge of Warrington’s history, as well as the important part the town played in shaping the country we know to this day.

Free to attend, the lecture comes as part of a chronicle of factual talks that will be organised by the Academy, with the next set be presented on Wednesday, February 8.

Principle of Padgate Academy, Adam McMillan said: “We were delighted that Bill was able to host the first of our Padgate Community Lectures at the school.

“It seems only fitting that the first of these lectures should be delivered around the rich history of Warrington.

“As a Warrington resident working in education, it was particularly interesting to hear all about the Boteler dynasty, Thomas Penketh, William Beamont and Joseph Priestly, whose legacy have left a mark on the educational landscape of Warrington today.”

Professor Catherine Fletcher will be the next face to conduct a lecture. An established author who wrote successful novel ‘The Beauty and the Terror’, based on the Italian Renaissance, she will deliver a talk entitled Guns and Gunpowder in the Early Modern Europe.

Catherine will discuss the growing access to guns and how this had an impact on changing European societies before then spending the afternoon in the Academy working with teachers and GCSE students.

“We were delighted to welcome so many members of the community into the school to attend the event.

“The lectures themselves underline our commitment to support lifelong learning within our local and wider community,” Adam added.

To book a space onto the next upcoming community lecture visit the Eventbrite website.