Oxford pastry cook & England’s first aeronaut There are several Berkshire associations within the story of James Sadler (1753–1828), the unlikely first Englishman ever to build and fly a hot-air balloon. His wife came from Abingdon, for instance. And the first English woman to fly, as a result of Sadler’s expertise, came plausibly from Bucklebury. Subsequently an engineer, designer of armaments, and Chemist to the Navy, Sadler returned to ballooning after a gap of 24 years in 1810. He and... See more >