The ancient ‘Kynges Towne’ of Brading is the main town of the civil parish of the same name. The ecclesiastical parish of Brading used to cover about a tenth of the Isle of Wight. The civil parish now includes the town itself and Adgestone, Morton, Nunwell and other outlying areas between Ryde, St Helens, Bembridge, Sandown and Arreton. Alverstone was transferred to the Newchurch parish some thirty years ago.
The main street of Brading contains most of the facilities expected of a large village, or in Brading’s case, small town. There are four pubs; The Bugle Inn where the sea almost met the High Street when Brading Haven was a major port, the Wheatsheaf Inn which faces the Bull Ring, The Kynges Well (formerly the Dark Horse) which is on the High Street and one at nearby Yarbridge named the Yarbridge Inn (known for many years as the Anglers Inn) which is famous for its selection of real ales. St. Mary’s Church, Brading is at the north end of the town and the Methodist chapel is near the centre. There is a small supermarket, a post office, a newsagent, several other specialist shops,a hairdresser’s and a fish and chip shop. In addition to these facilities, there is Brading Primary School.
Brading has many attractions to tempt the visitor, quite apart from the natural beauty of the area. These include the Lilliput Doll and Toy Museum; The Roman Villa at Morton and interpretation centre.
