is a village in the borough of
Brentwood in
Essex ,
United Kingdom .
'Pilgrims Hatch' literally means ''Pilgrims Gate'' and, until recently, local schools used a large farmers gate as a symbol of the area. While no longer common it is still the semi-official symbol of the village.
While small, and in modern times rather sub-serviant to the large town of Brentwood, Pilgrims Hatch does contain some features of note.
The ,
Chuck Berry ,
Daniel O'Donnell ,
Lee Evans , and many more. There is an annual Brentwood Festival held here, as well as the traditional firework spectacular in the autumn months.
Surprisingly there are few churches in Pilgrims Hatch. There is an
Evangelical church on its border with Brentwood (the border is unnoticable, occurring as it does on a well populated road). Also, at the other extreme; towards
Kelvedon Hatch and
Ongar , there is an excellent example of a classic Essex
Flint built church. This church's rectory next door is particularly fine, but is no longer associated with the property.
The
Peniel Church calls the area its home. This controversial,
Christian Sect has been called a cult by some, has generated controversy. It was alleged that they were the instigators of an attempt to take over the Brentwood
Conservative Party . This scandal attracted national attention.
The area relies on, mainly, the larger Brentwood high street stores and supermarkets, but has many local shops including butchers, wool suppliers, antique dealers, and other small business. It also is well served by local restaurants and take aways. Not to mention the numerous
Pubs that pepper the area; some of which date back to the
15th Century or earlier.
Nearby in Brentwood is
Thomas à Becket Chapel, a wonderful ruined chapel that dates back to the
12th Century .
Also nearby is
Greensted Church , a few minutes from
Ongar , the oldest wooden church in the world.
Between Pilgrims Hatch and Ongar is a Secret Nuclear Bunker, an ex-government shelter now owned by a farmer who has turned it into a local tourist attraction. The road signs to this point of interest never cease to cause amusment to non-locals, and occationally turn up in internet humour sites.
Pilgrims Hatch has a frequent, if underfunded, set of buses that serve the area.
It is also very close to both the
A12 , and
M25 .
