the border between Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire in this area. As an illustration of the absurdity of the existing arrangements in Markyate, it was said that dogs did not have to be muzzled on one side of the road, but they did on the other. There was general agreement that Markyate should be brought into a single parish and district, but some debate as to whether it should be placed in the Luton Rural District in Bedfordshire or the Hemel Hempstead Rural District in Hertfordshire. Eventually it was decided to place the new civil parish in Hemel Hempstead Rural District in Hertfordshire. The changes came into effect on 30 September 1897, with Markyate then being united as a single civil parish entirely in Hertfordshire. The first meeting of Markyate Parish Council was held on 10 November 1897 in the village school. Frederick William Partridge, a Liberal, was elected the first chairman of the parish council. He had previously been the chairman of the Markyate Rural District Council. The Hemel Hempstead Rural District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, and since 1 April 1974 the civil parish of Markyate has formed part of the district of Dacorum (which gained borough status in 1984). In popular culture The Gainsborough film The Wicked Lady was based on events surrounding the life of Lady Katherine Ferrers — the wife of the major landowner in the area – at Markyate Cell. Parts of the film The Dirty Dozen were also filmed in the village and surrounding area, the stockade being built in the grounds of the local preparatory school. Facilities Markyate has two junior schools: Markyate JMI (state) and Beechwood Park School (independent). The latter is south-west of the village in Beechwood Park, the site of a former Benedictine nunnery. Adjacent to the park was an Army Y-station during the Second World War. Beechwood Park lent its name to a song by the Zombies, written by the group's bassist Chris White. The song has since been covered by Beck in live shows. The parish church of St John Markyate dates from the 18th century, and retains some round-arched windows from that time. Due to enlargement in the nineteenth century it now appears gothic from most directions. St John's is home to a worshipping community of the Church of England and is part of the united parish of Flamstead and Markyate. From its height in