I wrote this webpage in 2004, to coincide with the publication of The Well of Lost Plots . There was a Giveaway postcard tie-in, too. Of all the Wonders, the only one that actually existed is coincidentally also the only one that was demolished - the Helix of Carfax which was removed to expand the bus station. Apparently, one family from Devon came all the way to see the Llamas - and got very annoyed when they turned out to be an invention.

This is all native HTML, as is all my website. www.jasperfforde.com has over 1000 pages, so updating it to an all-new-all-singing-and-dancing modern website is neither practical, cost effective nor justified. This is pretty much what websites used to look like in the early days - just text and pictures, aligned in particular areas as the code describes. Writing in HTML makes it very easy to add pages, debug or change in very minor ways.

2020 is the 20th anniversary of www.jasperfforde.com. Hard to believe that when it went active, there were fewer than 30 million websites in the world. The links to the Wonders go back to www.jasperfforde.com, so you may want to use the back button to find your way home.

Seven wonders of swindon banner
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An Elgin Llama named Bruce
One of the so-called "Elgin Llamas" (Wonder # 7)
Welcome to the Seven Wonders Of Swindon, compiled for your visiting pleasure by the Swindon Ministry of Information in association with the City Council and the Swindon Special Committee for Wonders.

The planning procedure alone took over five years in development to allow you, the discerning visitor, a more informed choice of Swindon's premier attractions. The compilation of the list was prepared by the Seven Wonders Working Party from six separate name selection subcommittees. Once shortlisted, the Wonders were further scrutinised by eight different oversight committees before being finally adopted.

Although this system might seem byzantine, time wasting and needlessly expensive, the high level of bureaucracy involved elevated The Seven Wonders Choosing Procedure
to become a Wonder in its own right, and was only narrowly pipped to the long shortlist by the inclusion of Mrs Next's excellent Battenberg cake, an inspired piece of cakeology that kept the committees working during the many dark hours of painful selection.

We hope you enjoy the list of Wonders outlined here and make them part of your visit to our city; if you want to know more about the 'Lesser Wonders' of Swindon that didn't quite make it on to the list but are well worth a visit regardless, please call in at one of our many Tourist Information centres which can be found dotted around the city.

Have a nice stay!

The Swindon Special Committee for Wonders, 1993.

The Wonders:

1: The Tower of Brunel

Originally known as the David Murray John Building, this 88 storey collosus is not only the highest building in Wessex but it also has a very reasonably priced cafeteria. For more information, click HERE
The tower of brunel
The hanging baskets of babbington
2: The Hanging Baskets of Babbington

Surely one of Swindon's finest areas of horticultural calm, the famous hanging baskets of Babbington draw in excess of 70,000 visitors a year. For more details, click HERE
3: The Double Helix of Carfax

Not only the first stressed spiral concrete construction in the world, but also the inspiration for Frank Lloyd Wright's clearly inferior Guggenheim museum in New York. To learn more, click HERE
The Double Helix of Carfax
The lighthouse on alexander road
4: The Lighthouse on Alexandra Road

Constructed during the Great Global Warming Scare of 1832, this famous Swindon landmark is unique for being the only lighthouse in the world invisible from any navigable waterway. More details, click HERE
5: The Statue of Vavoom at the Bus Station

Just one of eight bronze colossi that once lined the procession route to the 1980 Swindon World Fair, the statue of local celebrity Lola Vavoom has to be seen to be believed. To learn more, click HERE
The statue of vavoom at the bus station
The cathedral of st zvlkx (site of)
6: The Cathedral of St Zvlkx (site of)

Despite the fact that nothing whatsoever remains above ground, the medieval cathedral that once graced this site was an equal to Chartres or York. On-site tours available. For details, click HERE
7: The Elgin Llamas

One of the more visible members of Swindon's spectacular urban wildlife, the demand from Peru for their immediate return is hotly contested by the City Council. For more details, click HERE
7: the magic roundabout

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1: Brunel Tower    2: Hanging Baskets    3: The Double Helix of Carfax    4: The Lighthouse
5: Vavoom Statue    6: St Zvlkx Cathedral    7: The Elgin Llamas