Market Pl, Macclesfield - 01625 378123 macclesfieldtic@cheshireeast.gov.uk

Wilmslow derives its name from Anglo-Saxon Wighelmes hlaw = "mound of a man called Wighelm."

Much about the local Iron Age history of Wilmslow was uncovered with the discovery of Lindow Man, in Lindow Moss. Preserved in the peat bogs for 2000 years, Lindow Man is one of the most important Iron Age finds in the country. Despite a campaign to keep Lindow Man in the area, he was transferred to the British Museum and is a central feature of the Iron Age exhibition. Lindow Man returned to Manchester Museum in April 2008 for a year-long exhibition.

Wilmslow was in the international media in March 1997, when an IRA bomb exploded near the railway station damaging signalling equipment. The original IRA message was confusing and led to the evacuation of the Wilmslow Police Station to the local leisure centre not far from the explosion. Nobody was hurt.

In the general election of the same year, the parliamentary constituency of Tatton, in which Wilmslow falls, made headlines as part of the "sleaze" accusations levelled against the then Conservative Government. Tatton MP, Neil Hamilton, was accused of accepting cash for tabling Parliamentary questions, and subsequently defeated in the election by independent candidate Martin Bell. Bell was supported in his door to door canvasing for votes by David Soul and served a single term as MP.

Wilmslow held its first Scarecrow Festival in July 2010 with 85 local businesses taking part and 93 different scarecrows. Organised by the Rotary Club of Wilmslow Dean and the members of the Wilmslow Business Group, the week-long festival has transformed the town centre and received a tremendous response.

It is one of the most sought-after places to live in the UK after central London, and falls within the Cheshire Golden Triangle. It has one of the highest proportions of wealthy residents in the North of England. The town has boutique shops, cafes and restaurants, and high-marque car showrooms which cater for those associated with the "Cheshire Set" lifestyle.