in Adrian Mole & the Weapons of Mass Destruction as the home of the Flowers family. Demographics Population The population of Beeby has always been very small and has changed very little since the Domesday survey in 1098. According to a population census in 1801 it was home to 124 people which rose to 139 in 1851 (the highest recorded since the first population census). This number then fell to 95 in 1991 (the lowest recorded). Population records date back to the 14th century to show there were 96 inhabitants at the time of the Poll Tax in 1377 and a population of 86 at the time of the Ecclesiastical census in 1676. At present Beeby has a population of 115 (60 males and 55 females) 16 of which are children. Occupational statistics The Domesday book census taken in 1086 indicates that there were 21 villains ('peasants', bound to the Lord of the Manor), 5 Sokemen (freemen enjoying extensive rights over land) and 2 servants. The first census in 1801 simply divided people into those involved in agriculture and those in trade and manufacturing. It was only in the 1841 census that first gathered occupational data. According to occupation data reports published in 1881, of Beeby's 108 inhabitants, the majority of males worked in agriculture and females in domestic service. The children of this parish would have attended school in Barkby's Public Elementary School, about 2 miles to the west of Beeby and still do in the present day. Many of Beeby's residents at present work in agriculture and retail, commuting to Leicester for work. The nearest train stations to Beeby are Syston (3.19 miles away) or Leicester (5.09 miles away). Nearby food sources include Picks Organic Farmer & Grower Farm Shop, Gamble and Hollis Butchers, with the large supermarket chains in Leicester. Geography Topography The physical and historical development of the hamlet has been strongly influenced by the local topography and its relative isolation. Beeby is situated within an established agricultural landscape largely in pastoral use. Until 1904 the east-west route was the only route through the hamlet, which was referred to as the Main Road or Barkby Road, connecting the village to Barkby (neighbouring village) and South Croxton. The other roads that now run through Beeby are Hungarton Road, situated to the east and Scraptoft Road, to the south giving the village a more direct link to the