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{{Short description|Town in Merseyside, England}}
{{For|similar-sounding people and places|Prescott (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}} {{Use British English|date=January 2025}}
{{infobox UK place
| country                   = England
| type                      = Town
| coordinates               = {{coord|53|25|43|N|02|48|23|W|display=inline,title}}
| official_name             = Prescot
| static_image_name         = St Mary's Church, Prescot.jpg
| static_image_caption      = St Mary's Church, Prescot
| population                = 11,184
| population_ref            = ([[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 Census]])<ref name=2001census />
| metropolitan_borough      = [[Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley|Knowsley]]
| civil_parish              = Prescot
| metropolitan_county       = [[Merseyside]]
| region                    = North West England
| constituency_westminster  = [[Knowsley (UK Parliament constituency)|Knowsley]]
| constituency_westminster1 = [[St Helens South and Whiston (UK Parliament constituency)|St Helens South and Whiston]]
| post_town                 = PRESCOT
| postcode_district         = L34/L35
| postcode_area             = L
| dial_code                 = 0151
| os_grid_reference         = SJ4692
}}

'''Prescot''' is a town and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] within the [[Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley]] in [[Merseyside]], England. It lies about {{convert|8|mi|spell=}} to the east of [[Liverpool city centre]]. At the [[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 Census]], the civil parish population was 11,184 (5,265 males, 5,919 females).<ref name=2001census>{{citation|url=http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=3&b=790599&c=prescot&d=16&e=15&g=357983&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1211835210468&enc=1&dsFamilyId=779|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629064300/http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=3&b=790599&c=prescot&d=16&e=15&g=357983&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1211835210468&enc=1&dsFamilyId=779|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 June 2011|title=2001 Census: Prescot|publisher=Office for National Statistics|access-date=26 May 2008}}</ref> The population of the larger Prescot East and West wards at the [[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 census]] totalled 14,139.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=13689381&c=Prescot&d=14&e=62&g=6349058&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1452527574031&enc=1 |title= Prescot East Ward population 2011 |access-date= 11 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=13689382&c=Prescot&d=14&e=62&g=6348960&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1452527616250&enc=1|title=Prescot West Ward population 2011|access-date=11 January 2015}}</ref> Prescot marks the beginning of the [[A58 road]] which runs through to [[Wetherby]], near [[Leeds]] in [[West Yorkshire]]. The town is served by [[Prescot railway station]] and [[Eccleston Park railway station]] in neighbouring [[Eccleston, St Helens|Eccleston]].

==History==
Prescot's name is believed to be derived from the [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]] ''prēost'' "priest" + ''cot'' "cot", meaning a cottage or small house owned or inhabited by a priest, a "priest-cottage". ([[Middle English|ME]] prest, preste, priest, [[Old English|OE]] prēost, [[Late Latin|LL]] presbyter, [[Greek language|Gk]] πρεσβύτερος presbýteros "elder, priest")<ref>{{citation|url=https://www.prescotmuseum.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Origins-of-Prescot.pdf|title=Prescot Origins and History|publisher=Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council|access-date=5 November 2023}}</ref>

In the 14th century, [[William Dacre, 2nd Baron Dacre]], obtained a [[charter]] for the holding of a three-day [[market (place)|market]] and moveable [[fair]] at Prescot, to begin on the Wednesday following [[Corpus Christi (feast)|Corpus Christi]].<ref>Edward Baines, William Robert Whatton, Brooke Herford, James Croston, ''The history of the county palatine and duchy of Lancaster'', vol. 5 (J. Heywood, 1893), p. 2</ref>

In 1593, the English political philosopher [[Gerrard Winstanley]]'s parents, Edward and Isabell Winstanley, originally from Wigan, were married in Prescot.

From the mid-1590s to 1609, Prescot was home to the [[Prescot Playhouse]], a purpose-built [[Shakespearean]] theatre, probably located on Eccleston Street.<ref name=Graham>{{cite book |title=Merseyside: Culture and Place |editor1-last=Benbough-Jackson |editor1-first=Mike |editor2-last=Davies |editor2-first=Sam |chapter="So Unbridled & Badde an Handfull of England": The Social and Cultural Ecology of the Elizabethan Playhouse in Prescot |last1=Graham |first1=Elspeth  |last2=Tyler |first2=Rosemary |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |location=Newcastle |date=2011 |isbn=1-4438-2964-1 |pages=109–139 }}</ref> In the sixteenth century it was a small town of about 400 inhabitants, and not much bigger by the late seventeenth century.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Prescot Churchwardens' Accounts|last=Steel|first=Thomas|publisher=Record Society of Lancashire and Cheshire|year=2002|isbn=0 902593 48 X|pages=xii}}</ref>

During the 18th and 19th centuries it was at the centre of the [[watch]] and [[clock]]-making industry. This ended with the failure of the [[Lancashire Watch Company]] in 1910. In later years the [[British Insulated Callender's Cables|BICC company]] was the primary industrial employer in the town. BICC ceased operations in Prescot in the early 1990s before the site was demolished and later cleared. The land remained desolate until 2000 when it was then regenerated into what is now known as Cables Retail Park, the name of which is a reference to the BICC and the history of the site on which it was built.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.lmu.livjm.ac.uk/BICC|title=BICC was Prescot, Prescot was BICC|access-date=9 June 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060721170031/http://www.lmu.livjm.ac.uk/BICC/|archive-date=21 July 2006}}</ref>

==Governance==
[[File:Prescot Town Hall.jpg|thumb|[[Prescot Town Hall]]]]
Prescot has historically been within the [[Historic counties of England|historic county of]] [[Lancashire]]. The town was contained in the [[Prescot Urban District]] in the [[administrative county]] [[Lancashire|of Lancashire]] from 1894.

When the [[administrative county|administrative counties]] were abolished in 1974 the district became part of the [[Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley]] in the [[metropolitan county]] of [[Merseyside]]. It is currently served by [[Prescot Town Council]] and [[Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council]]. The current iteration of [[Prescot Town Hall]] is a converted public house: the conversion works were completed in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=History – Prescot |url=https://archives.knowsley.gov.uk/prescot/history-of-prescot |website=Archives Resource for Knowsley |publisher=Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council |access-date=18 February 2024}}</ref>

==Churches==
The centre of Prescot has six churches. Dominating the skyline is the 17th-century [[Prescot Parish Church]] of [[St Mary]]'s is the only Grade I listed building in the borough of Knowsley. Tucked away behind St Mary's is the [[Roman Catholicism|Roman Catholic]] [[Our Lady Immaculate and St Joseph Church, Prescot|Church of Our Lady and St Joseph]] designed by Joseph Aloysius Hansom, inventor of the Hansom Cab. Prescot [[Methodism|Methodist]] Church celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2009, but the building has since been converted into apartments. The congregation continues to exist, however, meeting in the adjacent church hall, known as Prescot Methodist Centre which has now been converted into a church. Also in the town are a [[Salvation Army]] church, an [[Elim Pentecostal Church|Elim Pentecostal]] church (Prescot Community Church) and the Zion Independent Methodist Church. Outside the centre, in the Portico area of the town is the Catholic [[Our Lady Help of Christians Church, Portico|Our Lady Help of Christians Church]].

Places of worship shut down or moved over the past 20 years include the [[United Reformed Church|United Reformed]] church, the [[Kingdom Hall]] ([[Jehovah's Witnesses]]), the Plymouth Brethren Gospel Hall and an independent [[Charismatic Christianity|charismatic]] church called simply Prescot Christian Fellowship.

==Tourism, leisure and places of interest==
Prescot [[Museum]] houses a permanent exhibition about the history of clock and watch-making in the town, and several temporary exhibitions per year. The [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] building is now also home to [[Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council|Knowsley Council]]'s [[Arts]] and Events Service.

On the edge of the town is the famous estate of [[Earl of Derby|Lord Derby]], which includes the [[Knowsley Safari Park]].

In recent years, several cultural and arts events have been established in the town, including the annual 10-day Prescot Festival of Music and the Arts and an annual [[Elizabethan]] Fayre.

The Shakespeare North Trust promotes [[William Shakespeare]]'s historic connection with the town, a subject being researched at [[Liverpool]]'s [[Liverpool John Moores University|John Moores University]]. Inspired by the historic Prescot Playhouse, the Trust has built the [[Shakespeare North]] complex in Prescot, including a Shakespearean playhouse and an educational centre.<ref name="telegraph">{{citation|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/3664063/Shakespeares-Globe-goes-North.html | work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] | location=London | title=Shakespeare's Globe goes North | first=Maureen | last=Paton | date=26 March 2007 | access-date=26 April 2016}}</ref> In April 2016, Knowsley Council granted [[planning permission]] for the new playhouse.<ref name=Snow>{{cite news |title=£19m Merseyside Shakespeare theatre gets green light |last=Snow |first=Georgia |url=https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/19m-merseyside-shakespeare-theatre-gets-green-light/ |newspaper=[[The Stage]] |date=22 April 2016 |access-date=26 April 2016 }}</ref> Construction work on the new The Shakespeare North Playhouse was completed in late 2022.

Stone Street ({{Coord|53|25|45|N|2|48|17|W|display=inline}}), running between High Street and Eccleston Street, is just 26 inches wide at its southern end and is [[Parliament Street, Exeter|one of the narrowest streets in Britain]].

==Sport==
The area's local [[Association football|football]] team [[Prescot Cables F.C.|Prescot Cables]] currently play in the [[Northern Premier League|Northern Premier League Premier Division]] at [[Valerie Park]]. Prescot & Odyssey Cricket Club is located near [[Knowsley Safari Park]].

==Media==
Local news and television programmes are provided by [[BBC North West]] and [[ITV Granada]]. Television signals are received from the [[Winter Hill transmitting station|Winter Hill]] TV transmitter.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Winter_Hill |title=Full Freeview on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter |publisher=UK Free TV |access-date= 25 May 2024}}</ref> Local radio stations are [[BBC Radio Merseyside]], [[Heart North West]], [[Capital North West and North Wales]], [[Hits Radio Liverpool]], [[Smooth North West]], and [[Greatest Hits Radio Liverpool & The North West]].{{cn|date=September 2024}} The town is served by the local newspapers ''Prescot & Knowsley Reporter'' <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britishpapers.co.uk/england-nw/prescot-knowsley-reporter/|title=Stockport Express|date=4 March 2014|website=British Papers|access-date=25 May 2024}}</ref> and ''[[Liverpool Echo]]''.

==Historic estates==
The estate of Parr<ref>G. E. Cokayne, ''[[The Complete Peerage]]'', n.s., Vol.IX, p.&nbsp;669</ref> was within the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prescot in modern-day [[Parr, St Helens]]. This was the original seat of the [[William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton|Parr family]], of which Queen [[Katherine Parr]], the last wife of King Henry VIII, was a member.

==Notable residents==
{{unreferenced section|date=November 2015}}
*Screenwriter [[Peter Briggs (screenwriter)|Peter Briggs]] who wrote the film [[Hellboy (2004 film)|''Hellboy'']], was born in neighbouring [[Whiston, Merseyside|Whiston]] and grew up in Prescot.
*Actress [[Stephanie Davis (actress)|Stephanie Davis]] (''Hollyoaks'', ''Coronation Street'') born and grew up in Whiston, Prescot.
*[[Frederick Griffith]] (1877–1941) bacteriologist, was born in Prescot
*Former [[Bolton Wanderers]] player [[Derek Hennin]]; was born in Prescot and won the FA Cup in 1958 with [[Bolton Wanderers]].
*Actress [[Sue Johnston]] (''[[Brookside (TV series)|Brookside]]'', ''[[The Royle Family]]''); born in [[Warrington]], grew up in Prescot.<ref name="telegraph"/>
*Actress [[Christine Kavanagh]] (''Seaforth'', ''The Glass Virgin''); was born in Prescot.
*Shakespearean actor [[John Philip Kemble]] was born in Prescot.<ref name="telegraph"/> His house has since been demolished, but the road has been renamed Kemble Street. The John Kemble Pub (later renamed ‘The Bath Springs’) stood in his honour.
*Electrical engineer, scientist and entrepreneur Professor [[Peter Lawrenson]] was born in Prescot.
*Former [[Huddersfield Town F.C|Huddersfield Town]] player [[Billy Mercer (footballer born 1892)|Billy Mercer]]; started his career at [[Prescot Cables]] and won 2 First Division titles and appeared in an FA Cup final for Huddersfield Town.
*Former [[Everton F.C.|Everton]] manager [[Dick Molyneux]]; who won Everton's first League Title was born in Prescot.
*[[Sylvia Gore]], former Women’s football player, who scored the first ever professional goal for England Women’s Team; was born and lived in Prescot.
* Australian politician [[Jeanette Powell]]; born in Prescot, emigrated as a child.<ref>{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322070044/http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/members/id/147 |title=Hon Jeanette Powell |date=22 March 2012}}</ref>
*Reverend [[Arthur Herbert Procter]], [[Victoria Cross]] recipient, was Curate at [[St Mary's, Prescot|St Mary's Church]] from 1927 to 1931.<ref>''Crockfords Clerical Directory for 1931'' OUP (1931) p.1059</ref>
*[[Nigel Roberts]], computer scientist and early Internet pioneer attended [[Prescot Grammar School]].
* Singer/songwriter [[Lally Stott]] most famous for the hit single [[Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep]].
*[[Stuart Sutcliffe]], early member of [[the Beatles]] attended [[Prescot Grammar School]].
*Professor [[Sid Watkins]], world-renowned [[neurosurgeon]] who served twenty-six years as the FIA [[Formula One]] Safety Delegate and Medical Delegate, head of the Formula One on-track medical team, and first responder in case of a crash.
*Former [[Everton F.C.|Everton]] player [[Mark Ward (footballer born 1962)|Mark Ward]]; lived in Prescot at time of arrest.

==See also==
*[[Listed buildings in Prescot]]
*[[Prescot reservoir]]
*[[The Prescot School]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Prescot}}
{{EB1911 Poster|Prescot}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090210135400/http://liverpoolstreetgallery.com/thumbnails.php?album=36 Liverpool Street Gallery – Liverpool 34]
*[http://www.prescotfestival.co.uk Arts in Prescot] News about arts and entertainment in the area, including the Annual Prescot Festival of Music and the Arts
*[http://history.knowsley.gov.uk/prescot.html Historical Archives] Local government collection of pictures, photos and information about the town
*[http://www.prescotian.info The Prescotian] Site for alumni of the historic Prescot Grammar School
*[https://prescotparish.org.uk Prescot Parish Church]
*[http://www.prescot-rollofhonour.info Prescot Roll of Honour] Web site dedicated to the commemoration of the men of Prescot who gave their lives in the Great War 1914–1919
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110923075719/http://www.prescothistory.org/ Prescot History in Films] A collection of Films Old & New depicting Prescot through the ages.

{{Merseyside}}

{{authority control}}
[[Category:Prescot| ]]
[[Category:Towns and villages in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley]]
[[Category:Towns in Merseyside]]
[[Category:Liverpool Urban Area]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Merseyside]]