Finchampstead is a village and civil parish in the Wokingham Borough in the shire of Berkshire, England. Its northern extremity is south of Wokingham, west of Bracknell, south-east of Reading, and west of Central London. It is an affluent area, with the village ranking as Britain's 31st wealthiest. It has a high standard of living and is rated as one of the most desirable places to live in the United Kingdom. Topography Finchampstead parish extends from The Throat on the southern edge of Wokingham, just past the Inchcape Garage, down to the Tally Ho pub on the River Blackwater which forms the southern border with Eversley and its county Hampshire, over Eversley Bridge. Finchampstead Bridge is further east, just above Eversley Cross. To the east of the parish is Sandhurst and to the west are Swallowfield, Arborfield and Barkham. The Roman road from London to Silchester traverses the parish from West Court through to Roman Ride off the A321. It is known as the Devil's Highway and is well preserved as a footpath and byway over much of its length through Windsor Forest. It is used as a road at West Court, and from Armholes past Heath Pool and along Roman Ride. The Nine Mile Ride runs the breadth of Finchampstead, through California and then on, between King's Mere and Queen's Mere, to the boundary with Crowthorne, and thence to Pinewood and finally Bracknell. California is the name of this northern part of the parish. It is a large residential village with its own country park around Longmoor Lake, on the edge of Barkham Common. The southern part of the parish includes the parish church; Finchampstead village itself, at the top of Fleet Hill on the B3348 road; Finchampstead Leas, to the west along the A327 road; and the woodlands of the Ridges, spreading north to the Nine Mile Ride. This is a dense, mostly pine tree, wood much of which, including Simon's Wood, is owned by the National Trust. Its hills give panoramic views of the surrounding area. Local government Finchampstead has a parish council with a total of 17 councillors elected by the North, South and Lower Wokingham wards. The parish is in Wokingham Borough unitary authority. Transport Reading Buses service No 3 or "The Leopard Bus," links northern Finchampstead with Wokingham. History The Church of England parish church of St James is on top of a prominent