Mr & Mrs Smith

The Quarry is a beautiful 29-acre park with ‘the Dingle’ at its centre (a floral masterpiece created by world-renowned gardener, Percy Thrower). Gastronomic gluttons can take a trip to nearby Ludlow and explore the food markets and fantastic restaurants that abound locally. Meander over the English Bridge and walk off your dinner along the River Severn. Continue the bridge theme with a trip to Ironbridge, the world’s first ever cast-iron bridge and the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. If too much good food has made you sluggish, simply select an antique book from the library’s ghost stairs and curl up in front of the fire for a good read.

Walk to The Hayward, the restaurant at the Lion Hotel (+44 (0)1743 353107; www.thelionhotelshrewsbury.com), which serves dishes such as duck confit and fennel risotto with dill and parmesan. Local produce is the order of the day at The Bell at Skenfrith (+44 (0)1600 750235; www.skenfrith.co.uk), where braised belly pork is served with crackling, savoy cabbage and confit apples. Number Four (+44 (0)1743 366691; www.number-four.com) has an anglophile-pleasing British menu with classic dishes such as fish pie.

The ruby-red Libertine Cocktail Bar & Tea Room at 16-17 Butchers Row has an eclectic interior and imaginative cocktails that will appeal to the true English eccentric. Alternatively, pull up a bar stool at Mad Jacks (+44 (0)1743 358870; www.madjacks.uk.com) on St Mary’s Street and work your way through their extensive cocktail list. The bar is named after a riotous 18th-century squire who hailed from the area.

 Stop for steaming pots of tea and just-baked cake at Bebbington’s Tea Rooms (+44 (0)1743 271166) on Wyle Cop.

 August Shewsbury Flower Show takes place annually in the Quarry during the first week of August  (www.shrewsburyflowershow.org.uk).