Evesham since 1991. Evesham local news has been served since 1860 by the "Evesham Journal", now part of the Newsquest (Midlands South) Ltd. subsidiary of Gannett Corporation, which is predominantly a weekly free newspaper that is distributed over four counties. In 2007 the weekly free newspaper "Evesham Observer" was launched by Midlands-based Observer-Standard series of newspapers, now the family-owned Bullivant Media. Commercial radio stations that provide music and local news include Wyvern (radio) broadcasting on 96.7 FM, Touch FM broadcasting on 102 FM, and BBC Hereford & Worcester broadcasting on 104 FM and 94.7 FM. The Evesham Leisure Centre comprises two
Economics of English towns and trade in the Middle Ages began to increase sharply. By 1297 a hundred and twenty new towns had established and in 1350, by when the expansion had effectively ceased, there were around 500 towns in England. Many of these new towns were centrally planned - Richard I created Portsmouth, John founded Liverpool, with Harwich, Stony Stratford, Dunstable, Royston, Baldock, Wokingham, Maidenhead and Reigate following under successive monarchs. The new towns were usually located with access to trade routes, rather than defence, in mind. The streets were laid out to make access to the town's market convenient. A growing percentage of England's population lived in urban