Leighton Buzzard as the Grand Union Canal was opened there. More recently, Leighton Buzzard station was the location for part of the film "Robbery", which is based on the so-called "Great Train Robbery" (1963), whereas the actual robbery took place just outside the town, at Bridego bridge, Ledburn. In the "Domesday Book", Leighton Buzzard and Linslade were both called Leestone. Leighton Buzzard contains All Saints' Church, an Early English parish church dating from 1277. The church has a 190 ft spire and has been described as the 'cathedral of South Bedfordshire'. The church was damaged by fire in the 1980s, but has
Leighton Buzzard Light Railway continued to use the lines within their quarries. These were eventually replaced by roads and conveyor belts and the last internal quarry line was abandoned in 1981. Today the line is run purely as a heritage railway. A large collection of steam and internal combustion locomotives run on the line. Visitors can ride the train and are issued with an Edmondson ticket. There is a collection of industrial railway locomotives at Stonehenge Works towards the northern end of the line. The railway is promoted by the Campaign to Protect Rural England. The line is unusual as it runs mostly through