Richard Rogerson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fine Lady statue, Banbury
A bronze of the rhyme's fine lady on her white horse, on a Hornton stone plinth where South Bar meets West Bar in Banbury. The people of the town paid for it, and the Princess Royal unveiled it in 2005. Free to see at any time.
Monument
BanburyThe Fine Lady is a bronze statue of the woman in the nursery rhyme, riding her horse on a plinth of local Hornton stone at South Bar in Banbury. It is new by the town's standards, unveiled in 2005, but it holds more of the rhyme than Banbury Cross does.
The story of the statue
The people of Banbury funded the statue themselves, and it took longer than planned. The Public Statues and Sculpture Association records that the idea began with the Golden Jubilee of 2002 and that the money took three more years to raise. The Princess Royal unveiled it on 27 April 2005.
Artcycle Ltd designed it. The Association credits the figure and base to Andy Edwards, Julian Jeffery and Carl Payne, and the horse to Denise Dutton, and it names Castle Fine Arts Foundry as the founders. The town council says the horse is modelled on a Welsh Cob.
Nobody knows who the fine lady was, or whether she was anyone. Names often put forward include Celia Fiennes of Broughton Castle, Elizabeth I and Lady Godiva, and none has evidence behind it. The statue leaves the question open: the council says she is shown as a Queen of the May. Our story of the Fine Lady and her cross sets out the claims.
What to look for
The detail is in the small things. The town council's account of the design picks out these things to find: the words of the rhyme, inscribed on the edge of the bronze base; thirteen spring flowers in her crown, alternating daffodils and wild roses, with two butterflies and a moth hidden among them; seven bluebells on her toes, one for each day of the week; petals falling from her raised left hand; a frog, which stands for metamorphosis and community; and a sun, used as a Banbury emblem since the sixteenth century.
Visiting and getting there
The statue is on the pavement, free and visible at any time. It is a short walk south west of Banbury Cross, so see the two together. Drivers should use a car park from our guide to parking in Banbury. St Mary's Church is a few minutes further on, and our guide to things to do in Banbury covers the rest of the town.
Walks past Fine Lady statue, Banbury
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Banbury Ironstone Heritage Walk
Walk · Starts in Banbury · 4 hrs · Circular
The Banbury Ironstone Heritage Walk is a 9.6-mile (15.5km) moderate circular walk from Banbury station, about four hours with 180m of climbing. It follows the canal, skirts the northern estates, reaches Wroxton and North Newington, and ends at Banbury Cross.
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Banbury Fringe Circular Walk
Walk · Starts in Banbury · 5 hrs · Circular
A 10.6-mile (17.1km) waymarked circular walk round the edge of Banbury, moderate and about five hours: the Oxford Canal south to Bodicote, the Salt Way past Crouch Hill, field and wood paths by Giant's Cave, and an old ironstone railway back to the canal.
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Broughton Road to Wroxton Obelisk Circular
Walk · Starts in Broughton · 2 hrs · Circular
A 4.5-mile (7.3km) circular walk from the car park on Broughton Road, about two hours of moderate walking on field paths. It crosses the Sor Brook, climbs to the Wroxton Obelisk and returns by the other bank. It does not go through Broughton or past the castle.
Stay and eat near Fine Lady statue, Banbury
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Whately Hall Hotel, Banbury
Hotel · Banbury
A Grade II listed 17th-century inn, now a 71-room hotel on Horse Fair in the middle of Banbury, with gardens, an oak-panelled restaurant and six EV chargers.
Dog-friendly · Family-friendly · Wedding venues
Verified Nov 2026
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Ye Olde Reine Deer Inn, Banbury
Pubs · Banbury
A Parsons Street pub that dates itself to 1570 and calls itself Banbury's oldest, a Hook Norton house with the panelled Globe Room of the 1630s, serving food every day from noon to 9pm.
Car-free
Verified Nov 2026
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Banbury Cross Bed and Breakfast
B&B · Banbury
A family-run Victorian B&B on Broughton Road, Banbury, with seven bedrooms, about 370m from Banbury Cross, with free off-road parking, cooked breakfasts and rates from £77. No under-18s.
Car-free
Verified Nov 2026
Stories about Fine Lady statue, Banbury
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Banbury Cross: the lost crosses and the fine lady
Story · History · 7 minute read
The Banbury Cross of the rhyme is gone. Banbury's own aldermen had the High Cross pulled down on 26 July 1600. The cross you can see dates from 1859 and stands somewhere else, and nobody has ever shown who the fine lady was.
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Banbury heritage walk: a self-guided town centre route
Story · Guides · 6 minute read
A self-guided heritage walk round Banbury town centre: the Fine Lady, the Cross, St Mary's, Parsons Street, the Market Place and the canal. It is under a mile (1.3km) and free, taking about an hour with stops, or two with the museum.
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Banbury with children: days out for families
Story · Guides · 9 minute read
Banbury with children: the aviary and play areas in the two parks, the free museum, swimming at Spiceball, boat trips at Tooley's, then Silverstone Museum, Compton Verney, Burton Dassett and Sulgrave by car, with ages, prices and what to skip.
More sights to see
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Banbury Cross
Sight · Monument · Banbury
The cross of the nursery rhyme stands at the top of Banbury High Street, but it is a Victorian monument of 1858 to 1859, put up about 250 years after the town's medieval crosses were pulled down. Grade II*, free and seen from the street at any time.
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St Mary's Church, Banbury
Sight · Church · Banbury
A round-towered classical church on Horse Fair in Banbury, built after the medieval church was brought down, in part with gunpowder. Grade I, by S. P. Cockerell. Open most mornings.
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People's Park, Banbury
Sight · Common or park · Banbury
Banbury's town centre park, opened in 1919 to mark the peace, with an aviary of budgies and cockatiels, a walled garden, rose garden, bowling green, tennis, a play area and a café. Free, and run by the town council.