Home to the oldest university in the English-speaking world, this town dates back to the Saxon settlers around 900 A.D, although the university is first mentioned in records from the 12th century. This "city of dreaming spires" has been used by many film and TV productions, and its museums and libraries are open to the public. That Ashmolean Museum is the oldest in the U.K., with a collection ranging back 4 millennia, and the Botanical Gardens has the most diverse plant collection in the world. There is also the Harcourt Arboretum, Sheldonian Theatre, the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Christ Church Picture Gallery, Museum of National History and the History of Science, among many other things to do.