RoadTour UK takes us back to the Future with the History GPS (approved by Miss POI)

• New RoadTour GPS tour guide provides tourists with a running audio commentary on the events, locations and monuments that shaped British history as they drive around the UK. An indispensible addition to the Tourist's accessories.

A new GPS tour guide that alerts motorists to Britain’s greatest historical sites as they drive near them is set to spark fresh interest in our heritage as well as transform journeys for tourists. Invented by history enthusiast Daniel Taylor, the RoadTour software works with Global Positioning (GPS) equipment to trigger audio commentary and pictures of 600 key attractions, including castles, stately homes and battlefields.

The low-cost software responds to satellite prompts as cars approach places of historical interest throughout the UK, delivering fascinating information narrated by a friendly female voice through the SatNav. It means tourists taking a tour of the UK will no longer remain oblivious to the cultural treasures around them as they cruise along Britain’s roads.

Five years in the making, this invention fulfils Daniel Taylor’s passion for history and his desire to help Britons as well as tourists use technology to get the most out of our heritage. Ironically, GPS technology has perhaps until now put us out of touch with roadmaps and chance discoveries en route.

“RoadTour will help restore our knowledge and understanding of the history of this amazing country and will also provide tourists with the perfect companion when driving around,” said Daniel, managing director of RoadTour.

“GPS make it easy for us to get from A to B, but perhaps in the process we’ve lost touch with the history that surrounds us. A friendly reminder, which tempts us into exploring heritage as we’re driving, seems to me to be altogether a good thing.”

The software package features a total of 600 sites in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each has an average 90 seconds of commentary, researched and written by a team of 12 amateur historians. There’s at least one picture of each place, plus opening times and prices where relevant.

Examples of the commentary include this snippet about Charlecote Park, near Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire: “It is easy to believe the stories of a young William Shakespeare poaching deer at Charlecote Park. It is reputed that he was given a beating by Sir Thomas Lucy - in return for which Shakespeare ruthlessly mocked Sir Thomas in a satirical verse which he stuck on the landowner’s gate. This time coincides with a ten year period in which Shakespeare made a mysterious disappearance only to re-emerge 10 years later in London.”

“We hope our guide will tempt people to pull off the motorway or A-road and visit some of the wonderful sites which have helped shape Britain’s history. But even if they don’t, their journeys will be enlivened and filled with interesting stories and snippets about the country through which they’re travelling.”

The RoadTour Heritage software is available to download from www.roadtour.co.uk and retails for $19.95.