READING is celebrating 200 years of Huntley and Palmers with exhibitions highlighting how the town got it's famous name.

Reading, also known as the 'Biscuit town', got it's famous name by burgeoning biscuit business Huntley & Palmers.

To celebrate the 200th anniversary, Reading Museum in Blagrave Street has a permanent exhibition showcasing almost 300 decorative biscuit tins, including the rude ‘Kate Greenaway’ biscuit tin that embarrassed the biscuit company in 1980.

The Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) will be launching a temporary exhibition on May 10 until Septembr 25, featuring gems from the Huntley and Palmers archive exploring the impact of the business on the town and its people.

Reading Musueam will also be running special exhibitions, guided tours, themed family events, and afternoon teas (complete, of course, with biscuits), all exploring the biscuits that become world-famous.

In 1822, one of the most famous names in baking, Huntley & Palmers biscuits, began life as a small baker’s shop in London Street, Reading. Within 40 years, the company that created the Nice biscuit, Gingernut and the Bath Oliver was exporting its goods across the globe and Reading became known as Biscuit Town, home to the largest biscuit manufacturer in the world with cakes and biscuit names still known today. 

Visit: readingmuseum.org.uk/ for more information and upcoming events.