The centrepiece is a huge, wide-brimmed hat, once worn by Oliver Cromwell. Neighbouring St Ives, which also lays claim to Cromwell, has a museum with a proud collection of Cromwellian artefacts. A helpful barman at the nearby Old Bridge Inn explained that this is due to the bridge's joint construction by the Huntingdon and Godmanchester town councils. A closer inspection revealed tasteful decoration on the Huntingdon side and a puritanical design on the Godmanchester side. Cromwell would have approved of the latter.The Oliver Cromwell industry thrives here. Locals tend to describe this as "not quite meeting in the middle".

Further along is the Old River Bridge on the Roman road between Huntingdon and Godmanchester. The 26-mile Great Ouse Valley path, detailed by the local authority in a thoughtful seven- stage plan, winds its way around Huntingdon, encompassing some interesting bridges.Walking south to north, just outside Huntingdon, you come across a bridge that looks as if it has been lifted off a Willow Pattern plate. Parking in the town centre of the Prime Minister's constituency, my companion cried "50p for 24 hours. Aren't Conservative authorities wonderful!" Walkers are also treated with consideration. And indeed there is a Dorothy L Sayers car trail which starts at Bluntisham, where she lived as a child, just north of Huntingdon. Perhaps this is one reason why road users are treated with respect in Huntingdon. Ancient churches dominate a landscape which the novelist Dorothy L Sayers described as resembling a chessboard. This is Fen country, which is not necessarily an excuse for describing its politicians, past and present, as "wet".