Celebrating 250 years of Bath's Royal Crescent

Bath's Royal Crescent is celebrating its 250th anniversary this week.The half-kilometre long terrace is perhaps the best-known street in the West Country.

It attracts tens of thousands of visitors from around the world every year - and is one of the biggest draws in the tourist hotspot of Bath.

The initial plan was by John Wood the Elder in the 1750s and but the final design and build was by his son John Wood the Younger over seven years from 1767.

The Royal Crescent is steeped in history, especially when it comes to the number of famous and infamous names who have stayed in homes on the terrace. With a wrap up of some of those characters and the street's tales in 30 seconds here's ITV West Country's Robert Murphy.

In the 1960s and 70s contemporary architecture started making its mark on Bath's skyline, with building design taking a distinctive step away from the traditional looks the city was accustomed to. In 1973 HTV filmed a documentary in which film-maker Wynford Vaughan-Thomas reacts to the new buildings going up in the historic city centre. It is fair to say he is less than impressed.

Back to the Crescent though and it was designed to look like a grand country estate - but one in which the cream of British High Society could come to rent a house or an apartment.

Wood laid down strict rules about how the Crescent should look. Developers bought the facade of their property, but could then build whatever shape of building they wanted behind.

Local historian Dr Amy Frost says it is "extraordinary" that the building is still performing the function it was built to do 250 years ago.

Today the terrace homes continue to stand strong and are enjoyed by new owners, some of whom are spending millions renovating the iconic properties. This beautiful aerial footage shows what the modern-day Royal Crescent looks like from the skies.

A weekend of celebrations is planned - including illuminating the Crescent on Friday night.