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American Reacts to The 10 Oldest Cities in the UK
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- Published on Feb 16, 2026
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Original Video: • The 10 Oldest Cities i...
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You're better at this than I am! I love your enthusiasm for my country 💙🇬🇧
He doesn't LOVE the COUNTRY he's just reacting to UK videos nothing more for VIEWS and SUBS but he has got family in the UK..
Wells Cathedral looks amazing. Must go and see that next time I’m in the land of the worzels!
Exeter has some interesting history. There are medieval underground passages you can be toured through and they show how the city got clean water. Even though the city was bombed in WW2 there are still a fair amount of historical buildings. The areas not to miss if you ever visit are the Cathedral, Quay, Stepcotte Hill and The House that Moved.
On your next visit, you should definitely visit Somerset, Wells is in that county. Wells is the most beautiful small city, the cathedral is exquisite, and the bishop's palace is lovely. Cheddar Gorge home of the famous Cheddar cheese, Glastonbury is a magical place. I think you would love it.......and that's a recommendation from a very proud Yorkshire woman!!!!!!!
bristol the best city in the uk aswell which is 30 mins from cheddar
Hereford is beautiful. I have been to most of these cities and you can always see near the cathedrals narrow streets called the shambles. And most are near a river. Thank you for another great video ❤
Hi Joel, the commentator is technically correct with "oldest cities". Britains oldest recorded town is Colchester, Essex. It doesn't have a cathedral. It only recently gained city status. There was meant to have been Celtic settlement there. The Roman town was built adjacent to the Celtic settlement. It was called Camulodunum. Queen Boadicea in the great revolt against the Roman occupation burnt the town down and massacred its inhabitants. There was a Siege of Colchester in 1648 during the English Civil War. Colchester Castle is well worth a visit. Any town or city with the name of Chester i.e. Colchester, Winchester, Manchester traces the place back to its Roman origins. Dominic
Actually he was technically incorrect. The link between cathedrals and city status is not an automatic thing at all.
@johnorchard4 Yes it is true, there is not an automatic connection between having a cathedral and being a city. . Chelmsford as the county town of Essex has had a cathedral for a very long time. It only very recently gained its city status.
Joel , glad you enjoyed the video. I saw your face light up when you saw York 🙂
Terrific podcast Joel. I'm a Londoner born and bred, I've learned a lot
Definitely go to Wells cathedral. It’s massive. There is also the Bishops palace to visit. You can go to Cheddar Gorge as well.
Star Carr in North Yorkshire was a Mesolithic settlement dating back to about 9,000 BC so that's 11,000 years ago! 😁
Nearby is where the ancient Folkton Drums were found, now in the British Museum.
@hobi1kenobi112 I didn't know that 👍
The oldest known continuous settlement in England is Amesbury in Wiltshire, with evidence of habitation dating back to 8820 BC. This claim, based on archaeological digs and carbon dating, suggests the area was continuously occupied from the end of the Ice Age until today, predating Stonehenge by some 5,000 years.
always makes me think how cool it wouldve been to be them saxon`s discovering all them old abandoned Roman ruins
Wells is lovely, worth a visit if you cross the pond again, also if you like the film Hot Fuzz!
Hi Joel. I thought your eyes would light up at the mention of York, you must bet getting a real sense of satisfaction now having a first hand connection with more and more UK places thanks to your travels. Best of luck with your future adventures.
When u coming back to visit handsome? u should have a 3 month stint here on that radio station, those posts were awesome... love that York is like your second home now
Over the years I've been to each of these cities. My second son did a semester as a foreign student at Bangor University (University of Wales) and found it great. My youngest was at school in Winchester (aged 8-13) and then Wells and both cities are strikingly beautiful places with glorious histories and breathtaking hinterlands.
Surprised Norwich in Norfolk wasn't mentioned. Norwich Cathedral is one of the largest built in England which began being built in 1096 and finished in the 1140's ... the final consecration of which took place in 1278. There were 57 parish churches in Norwich alone at one time within it's medieval city walls. There now remains 31 medieval churches. Norwich stretches back to Anglo Saxon times. Following the Norman conquest in 1067 the Castle was built now right in the middle of the City. In the medieval period Norwich was a thriving trading and economic centre second only to London which made it second largest City in England (London being the first of course). There are roman walls around the City and medieval cobbled streets such as Elm Hill. The market in Norwich has been there for over 900 years. The U.E.A. (University of East Anglia) is situated on the outskirts of the City so the Centre of the City has a youthful and vibrant centre with many pubs, restaurants, places to eat, theatres etc etc. The vibe would be right up your street! I'm lucky enough to live 20 mins or so outside of Norwich in a Market Town called Diss which has a direct rail link from London to Norwich. Can't remember where you flew into but in case you're unaware Stansted Airport does flights from the States. It has direct transport links to Norwich from there. Norfolk is a beautiful county .. there are many beaches. Cromer is a typical British seaside resort which has a pier. Then there's the Norfolk Broads. Norfolk is also where Queen Boudica hails from .. she who gave the Romans a bloody nose. So come give us a look you won't be disappointed.
💯 agree our fine city ,but dont bother with Prince of Wales road on a friday Saturday night 😂
I grew up in a city called Chester, which is located on the border of north Wales. It too is a Roman city. It's Roman name was Deva Victrix and was founded between A.D 74-79. It has a complete Roman ampitheatre and a complete Roman wall surrounding the city. They have also undercovered part of a roman bath. It was a fascinating place to grow up in.
sadly a city still under the curse of roman gods (nephilim) looks pretty but has a seedy underbelly.
I had Chester on my list. I was surprised not to see it here.
Wells, a film set for " Hot Fuzz " !
Technically, Colchester, which didn’t achieve city status until recently, is the oldest, having been mentioned by Pliny the Elder. It became the most important Roman settlement in Britannia after the Roman conquest in AD43. It was attacked in AD 61 by Boudicca and although it was rebuilt, the Romans shifted to the newly established settlement that is now London. Much of the Roman wall built after the attack in AD61 still stands and people still pass through the surviving Roman Balkerne Gate today.
@krisjonesuk Colchester was actually a city when it went by its original name of Camulodunum during the Roman Occupation. It was originally the Capital City of Brittannia but somewhere along the long mists of time it became known as the oldest recorded town
Well I live in Lincoln city and it's full of Roman walls roads and buildings and more
Wells is tiny, pretty, with a huge cathedral, right near Glastonbury
The Archbishop of York - the guy you met - is now running the Church of England until a new Archbishop of Canterbury: well done for knowing that, Joel. As an honorary Yorkie, you can call this your second-home 😊
I live 10 min from canterbury, still has large parts of the roman walls still there
Hello Joel. It is 250 years since the first battle of AWI. It does not sound much when you hear the timescales for these places.
Joel, the link to the original video is wrong.
by the way, 'Time Immemorial' in UK law actually has a date on which i think was sometime around 1100 AD. no idea why but i suspect some scroll somewhere contains details of an ancient court case... cant remember if Chichester is on the list but it too has roman walls still existing, and is a beautiful little city.
I live 10 minutes drive from Lichfield, a beautiful city. My daughter got married there.
Exeter is my home city! The cathedral is beautiful, I can see it from my windows (I live on a hill) - I've been to a few Christmas services there and the sound of the choir singing as it echoes around the vaulted ceiling literally makes your spine tingle!
I grew up in a farming area halfway between Exeter and Barnstaple. I agree that the cathedral is beautiful. I did take photos inside once. All I had to do to be able to photos was give a donation.
Now I live halfway between Bournemouth and Southampton. But I still prefer Exeter. I even remember it's old name.
Take care and best wishes
I live in Exeter it’s full of historic buildings/ Roman walls /underground passages etc etc
Sherborne, Dorset, with an amazing Abbey, listen to the choir, the acoustics are amazing
Wells was the film location for Hot Fuzz, as its the director's hometown. They played down the huge cathedral as it was supposed to be a typical town.
Try mundane cities like Leicester. We have Roman ruins in the town centre. There are major Roman roads that still run through the city centre. There is even hill forts just outside the city from 2000BC!
I live on the Isle of Wight which is just off the south coast in the UK, we have Roman mosaics and ruins here.
My family is from Durham on my mums side and York on my dads, and I live in Lincoln, 3 very old cities running in ma veins :D
Happy St George's day.
Not this year, unfortunately. If St George's Day falls in Easter Week, then it is transferred to the first free day afterwards, which this year is the 28th April- just google "St George's Day 2025" if you are unsure.
Confusing I know, but this year St Georges day is on 28th April and not the 23rd. Apparently no saints day can be a week before or a week after Easter and with Easter being so late this year the Church of moved it. As it's a saints day I guess the Church has a say :)
@davidwebley6186 and it happens st George is the only st at easter you mean churches the Catholic Church in England and Wales, along with the Church of England and other Christian denominations, have their own processes for determining when a saint's feast day is celebrated
Wells - the location for the film Hot Fuzz
Have you considered doing a 2-year M.Phil in computing in the UK? Scholarships are available.
Didn't see Lincoln city on there unfortunately
i live in a city where we have roman walls st albans city 20 mins from london on the train
I lived in Chichester for two years. Lots of Roman history there.
Surprised that Bath and Chester weren't amongst the top 10, but nice to see Winchester up there as one of the oldest. Great place for a summer visit and I gigged there for about 20 years in a number of the local hostelries (pubs to the Americans) and it's only 14 miles from where I live!
There is a song about Bangor. It's 'Daytrip To Bangor (Didn't We Have A Lovely Time) - Fiddler's Dram (Top of the Pops 1979)'.
It's nice to hear a proper voiceover, vs. AI
York is just 10 miles from me it's incredible 👍🏴🇬🇧
2:57 clever man. Starting to learn a lot haha.
York is very close to me. And Castleford (my town) is one of the oldest Roman historic settlements. We still have all the baths and foundations of the homes. Crazy to know my little mining town has more history then 90% of the uk. Such a shame we don’t preserve it the same way some of these other places do. We just build a car park over the top and have a plaque to show it was here and still is. Just covered for what ever stupid reason
Have you been to the Jorvik centre yet?
One of the things I most vivdly remember from a school trip in 1962 is Wells Cathedral clock. It's definitely worth a look for your own amusement if nothing else. It is said to date from around 1390. It's quite something.
ps - love your videos and your amiable enthusiasm.
Every City has a high street, filled with mostly the same shops and restaurants
There are a Lot of Independent Shops in Exeter
They probably didnt show canterbury cathedral because it is surrounded by scaffolding most of the time.
13:40 Well Joel, on your next visit you’ll have to come to the West Country to see Wells. And nearby Cheddar, which is where the original Cheddar cheese is still made and matured in limestone caves. We also have the amazing Jurassic Coast of Dorset which is stunning in summer!
Not entirely convinced Salisbury shouldn’t be up there too. With evidence of settlement dating to 3,000 BCE, and Iron Age Hill Fort being built there around 400 BCE, Roman occupation and major royal status before the first cathedral being consecrated in 1075. Maybe it’s because the city was moved into the valley in the 13th century and a new (the existing) cathedral built there that Salisbury isn’t considered as old, but the city status is contiguous with the older city of Salisbury at what is now called Old Sarum.
And if you do come to the West Country, you can see Salisbury Cathedral too, arguably the most beautiful in the country. And Stonehenge is nearby, and the less well known but more impressing Avebury stone circle, with the magical West Kennet Long Barrow too.
Edit: yeah, if you search for Britain’s oldest cities at a site called ukcities with the usual UK site suffix (😉), Salisbury should be up there ahead of the likes of Wells, Hereford and Worcester.
Its strange watching Joels take on our towns and cities. I guess we take so much for granted. I regularly walk to Old Sarum less than 10 mins from my house and sit and relax looking over both the old and new Cathedrals. I love Avebury with the village within the Stone circle including the pub. I find it much more interesting than the now heavily commercialised Stonehenge and miss-named too. As it is a stone circle sitting within a henge and not a stone henge.
@ Excellent! I grew up in Salisbury and know it very well. 😃
Ah yes all beautiful cities and my favorite York and I remember you being there JP 🤗 Thankyou for taking us through all these as there are a few I have not been to even tho I live in the UK ..another great video 😁
Ok 3 glaring ommissions. Lincoln was founded by the romans, before York and has an amazing cathedral. Also Norwich has viking origins and is stull a city. Chester again has roman origins. Colchester is a town but it is also of roman origins.
I was thinking that, and where is Ely, dates back to 6763 AD and it is has a bloomin nice cathedral too. 😮
@Immhotep Colchester is actually a City. It was also the Capital City of Roman Brittania . But at the time it was called Camulodunum at some point in its history it was renamed Colchester and was designated a town but the Queen granted Colchester City Status again. If it's name had remained Camulodunum then it would have been a city since 10BC when it was originally built by the Romans when they first settled it
@Amileo350 its got a nice cathedral but it's got no place being called a city, I've been to bigger villages.
@Immhotep lol Ely is a city but yes it is quite small
Æthelflæd (meaning "noble beauty") was one of the most powerful and significant women in early English history. The eldest daughter of Alfred The Great, she ruled Mercia in the midlands after her husband's death, was extremely popular and became known as The Lady of The Mercians. She coordinated the Anglo-Saxon resistance to viking expansion across the other English kingdoms and was responsible for fortifying a number of still significant cities. In many ways she played a key role in the eventual unification of what we now know as England.
It sounds like the UK was the real "GAME OF THRONES" with the PIKS, JUTES,NORMANS,ROMANS,VIKINGS,ANGLES & SAXONS just battled for POWER
Brilliant showing from you again. If you ever want to visit Canterbury I live quite near and know it very well. I actually graduated from Canterbury University and my degree award ceremony was held in Canterbury cathedral, it was an amazing venue, I felt very lucky to have the ceremony there. Take care
You know your cities Joel - you are practically a British Citizen :)
I know you have been to Newcastle but its shown briefly at 1:48
the romans raided the Britons in the north of the island but couldn’t defeat them. they called them Picts (painted ones) but that wasn’t those peoples’ name for themselves.
Interesting that the first kingdom recognised in the British Isles was Alba (now Scotland) in the 7c. Ironically the roman wall probably caused the separate creations of england and scotland which lasts until today …
In central London it's the Metropolitan police and in the City it's the City police.
Visited Washington Cathedral which is beautiful
Canterbury cathedral is a must if you come back Joel it'll take your breath away 😊
My son had his graduation ceremony in Canterbury cathedral in 2016, but sadly it was under a big programme of refurbishment at the time so parts of it were surrounded by scaffolding. I’d love to go back for a visit.
Of the cities and Cathedrals here that you have not yet visited, and if you were to ask which one to see next, I’d say Wells and Durham tied. Both are no bigger than market towns in population and footprint, both cathedrals are spectacular in very different ways, Wells with an elegance and beautiful golden Bath stonework, whilst Durham has a rugged grandeur, “Half church of God, half castle ‘gainst the Scots” as a well-known poem puts it. Durham is also home to an historic university, third oldest in England I think. But you wouldn’t go far wrong visiting any of the picks here. They may not make this particular list but I’d also add Salisbury, Chester, Ely and Lincoln as Cathedral cities well worth a visit.
wells is lovely / so much crusader art on the outside of its cathedral … hope you get there sometime :)
There are a lot of places like Colchester and Norwich that are older than the Roman invasion but not considered "cities" because of strange UK rules
York Minster is the largest Medieval Gothic Cathedral north of the Alps. It was completed 500 years ago after 250 years of building of the present building. Like most of these places, it replaced earlier versions of a church on the same site. In York the first church on the Minster site was built in the courtyard of the Roman Legion's military headquarters. In the Medieval era each city competed to build the best Cathedral it could , trying to beat the others. All the towers had, or were meant to have spires on, but only Lichfield has still got all 3.
Lincoln Cathedral was the tallest building in the world when it had it's spires for 200+ years, until they fell down. Durham had 3 spires also at one time. It is not always known with many if they had the spires they were meant to have.
Most surviving buildings date from the Medieval period, with subsequent repair & maintenance keeping them standing.
We would love you to visit us in Hereford 😊😊
Skara Brae in Scotland was a village settlement 5000 years ago.
The criteria he's using is pretty specific, I guess you have to use it like that to get a list 😊
@karencooper3428there's never going to be an accurate list now that city status is being regularly granted without any real consistency.
I live not far from Canterbury my son goes to Christchurch Canterbury uni
Thanks Joe, I really enjoyed this. My first guess was London would be on the list and without knowing why, Colchester came to mind.
Not a mention of Colchester....!!!
@hazelb7218 probably because the commentator didn't realise that Colchester was the original Capital Citty of Brittania and went by the name of Camulodunum when it was the Capital of Brittania
In regards to York you could dig anywhere in the city you would find something interesting from the past
Get in Hereford finally made it to a video haha live and born there stunning views if you know where to go
Good video Joel, but amazed that Salisbury wasn't mentioned!
Hi Joel, thanks for another great insight into our island’s history. Your wonderful appreciation of it is helping those of us who were born and bred here to love and appreciate it all the more. Just one little thing - the Romans weren’t actually all over what we now know as the UK. They never conquered Scotland as any proud Scot will tell you, though it wasn’t for want of trying. The empire’s northernmost border was Hadrian’s Wall. Just for the record, they decided to leave the Irish alone too! The Romans were actually quite shrewd, or as we northern English and Scots would say, “a canny lot.” 😊
hereford still has the roman road.
peace - great video
I thought Ripon was one of the oldest cities
I'm quite sad that I am graduating from Durham Uni in a month! If only I were still there when you next visit the UK (my family is all from around County Durham and Scotland, so I would have loved to give some recommendations or offer a tour lol), it's definitely worth visiting on your way to Edinburgh or Newcastle, it's absolutely tiny but by far the prettiest place I've lived in the UK, so much history!
"....I'm cooking right now"
❤
Excellent reaction - very informative - I’ve subscribed to the original channel.
Surprised it doesn't include Colchester or St Albans
Great to watch this and learn some more, have visited quite a few of these cathedrals however have to say that Wells Cathedral touched my emotions the most, possibly because it was a Christmas service and we had walked in via the 'beggars doorway' its more of an outbuilding really but look for the 'info on the wall' this will tell you that the poor of the town would gather here in order they may beg for some cash from the more wealthy residents who would attend the church services. So you asked have things improved in our lives at these times .....have they? Doesn't sound like it does it with homeless folk sleeping on the streets. I will grant that maybe more of society have brought this upon themselves with their way of life. Keep your info coming to us as it is great. What a wonderful historian you would make!
I expected to see Ely as its origins go back 1300 years it must be something to do with the what is a city definition.
Chelmsford in Essex has only recently gained City status. It has had a cathedral, for a lot longer than its city status. Also its football team Chelmsford City, has had that name long before Chelmsford became a city. When I lived in Essex there were no cities. Now there are three, Chelmsford, Colchester and Southend on Sea.
Amazing
Sadly, much of the centre of Exeter and parts of Canterbury were destroyed by bombing in WWII.
I'm so behind on Patreon, but as you mention British crime shows which I LOVE, Joel you should consider reacting to "inspector Morse" and its follow-up "Inspector Lewis," and its prequel "Endeavor." All first rate mystery shows. I also recommend "Vera" and "Inspector George Gently." Vera is contemporary while is set in the 1960s.
Plenty on offer in the "Cosy Crime" genre. Midsummer Murders, Bergerac, Father Brown etc . I haven't seen any reaction videos for these or the likes of The Sweeny, Minder etc etc !
Line of duty brilliant
Mate, it would not be a good outcome for me to visit these magnificant historical joints. I'd want to sit and have a beer or two in every pub and just sit and think.
Joel, some US history.
ruclips.net/video/Rgl49Wkkz4E/video.htmlsi=SREnt-76EfXYJqtP
The thumbnail is Mermaid Street in Rye. - Not a city!
I love your pod casts but the Romans were not all over the UK. They built a wall from sea to sea to keep the Pics out( the Scots) and the hills of Wales beat them and it was sparsely populated. ALL these Cathedrals were Catholic before Henry the 8th took them.
Thanks
Hi Joel. Thank you for your reactions. You are an intelligent and compassionate person. Although you don't appear to react to musicians, I would like to introduce you to someone who is not just a talented musician but, also, a wonderful human being striving for unity and world peace. I see similarities in your views on life. That person is Dimash Qudaibergen from Kazakhstan. Please either react or discover on your own. He is an inspiration to mankind. May you have a good journey in your future life.
Shame they did not include Chester on the river Dee (Cheshire) another Roman Fortress built by them in preparation for their conquest of Ireland that never came about.
You should go to Rome as well, not in the UK I know, but Rome is so beautiful and has a load of historical monuments and sites. Most places like the Colessum and the Forum are centuries older than most places in the UK. Not to demean the UK, as I am British, and I love this country and its history, but I'd definitely recommend Rome if you want a really ancient city to visit.
JP what a shame i have already seen this same info the other day but instead of closing out i skipped through it to where you were talking. I like to listen to what you have so say as its always positive.
Im always a bit ticked off by this, probably because of the tricky definition of city, which differs by time and region. I mean Skara Brae is really ancient but stayed a settlement. Where I was born and where I now live (Perth & Dunfermline) are both now cities and both have previously been Scottish capitals way back. So especially peeved when this starts with the northernmost being York. This makes it heavily biased to England if not 100% that. Probably not video makers call but it just seems a little missed opportunity.
Aethelred, Aethelfled, Aethelwold, Aethelhelm. You want to watch The Last Kingdom. It's a ride and a half but worth it. 👌