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| Borough of Torbay | |
|---|---|
| Geography | |
| Status: | Unitary, Borough |
| Region: | South West England |
| Ceremonial County: | Devon |
| Area: - Total | Ranked 288th 62.88 km² |
| Admin. HQ: | Torquay |
| ONS code: | 00HH |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total () - Density | Ranked / km² |
| Ethnicity: | 98.8% White |
| Politics | |
| Leadership: | Mayor & Cabinet |
| Elected Mayor: | Nicholas Bye (Con) |
| Executive: | |
| MPs: | Adrian Sanders (LD, Torbay), Anthony Steen (Con, Totnes) |
Torbay is an east-facing bay at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Historically part of the county of Devon, Torbay was made a unitary authority on April 1, 1998. The tourist authorities call it the English Riviera, probably because of its mild climate.
Geography
There are three main towns around the bay: Torquay in the north, Paignton in the centre, and Brixham in the south. These three have become connected over the years, swallowing up villages and towns such as St Marychurch, Cockington, Marldon, Churston Ferrers and Galmpton.
Torbay, as an administrative area, was created in 1968 as a County Borough, from the amalgamation of the Boroughs of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham.
The southern limit of Torbay is Berry Head, and the northern limit is Hopes Nose, although Torquay itself stretches further north into Babbacombe Bay, where the popular beaches at Oddicombe and Babbacombe can be found; these are noted for their interesting Breccia cliffs.
Torbay is bordered by the South Hams to the south and west, and by Teignbridge to the north. Nearby towns include Totnes, Newton Abbot, Teignmouth and Exeter.
Because of the mild climate, Torbay Palm trees are a common sight along the coast. However, this 'palm' is in fact a Cabbage Tree (Cordyline australis), originating from New Zealand.
The area is host to a large number of European students learning English every summer.
Transport
Torbay has three stations on the National Rail network:
- Torre railway station is inland on the road from Torquay to Newton Abbott
- Torquay railway station is close to Torre Abbey Sands.
- Paignton railway station serves that town and links with the heritage railway to Kingswear.
Torbay lacks motorway links and is served by the A380 road from Exeter.
Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Torbay at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
| Year | Regional Gross Value Added | Agriculture | Industry | Services |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 1,151 | 3 | 305 | 843 |
| 2000 | 1,241 | 4 | 408 | 829 |
| 2003 | 1,309 | 6 | 227 | 1,076 |
includes hunting and forestry
includes energy and construction
includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
Famous people
Famous former residents of Torbay include authors Agatha Christie (who set many of her novels in a thinly disguised version of the town), Charles Kingsley and Rudyard Kipling, the great industrialist and architect of the nearby Atmospheric Railway, Isambard Kingdom Brunel and (allegedly) Barry Manilow. Prog-rock band Wishbone Ash, and supermodel Lily Cole also hail from the town.
See also
Local government in Devon | Unitary authorities in England | Torbay
External links
"Torbay"