It’s been a few years since my last visit to Richmond, but it has such a feeling of permanence that I doubt it will have changed in the intervening years.

One thing I do remember is that with its Norman castle, cobbled market place, famous Georgian Theatre Royal, monuments and abbeys, plus the fast-flowing river Swale, and breathtaking scenery, it has something for everyone if you fancy a good day out.

The Market Place overlooking the striking Norman castle, is one of the largest in England, and was originally the outer bailey of the castle, which is why it is shaped like a horseshoe. Once there were stocks and a pillory here for punishing wrongdoers, as well as the medieval market cross, which was replaced in 1771 by the present obelisk. A Saturday market is still held here every week when the place throngs with visitors from all over the area. There’s also a Farmers’ Market on the third Saturday of each month.

In the centre is Trinity Chapel, which in previous times had many uses including a prison, shops, warehouses and a school chapel. Today it is home to the Regimental Museum of the Green Howards. In 1873, the market town became the home of the Green Howards Regiment. Unfortunately the museum is closed for redevelopment until late summer, thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £974,600.

Around the square, the choice of specialist clothes, food and gift shops ranks with the best in Yorkshire, with a choice of cafes, country inns and restaurants when you need a rest from all that shopping.

More or less everything to see in Richmond can be reached from the Market Place, including the castle.

The oldest of the stone-built Norman castles in Britain, it’s a mighty affair and remarkably intact, particularly the impressive 100ft keep. Strategically placed on the promontory – or richemont, which is Norman for strong hill – building work started soon after the conquest of 1066.

The Normans liked their castles to intimidate British subjects – showing them they were well and truly beaten – and the castle would have done the trick. The mighty keep looms over the town which built up around it, and if you’ve the stamina to climb to the top, there are spectacular views across Richmond, the Swale and beyond.

Check out more than nine centuries of Richmond Castle’s history, including the internment beneath the castle of Conscientious Objectors during the First World War, by visiting an interactive display in the visitor centre.

Walk through Friar’s Wynd from the Market Place and you’ll pass one of the town’s two remaining medieval gates. If you look down, you can see tram lines on the ground where once a trolley was used to push heavy goods between an ironmonger’s shop in the Market Place and his warehouses in the Wynd.

Through the postern gate is one of Richmond’s greatest treasures – the Georgian Theatre Royal, which was built in 1788. From the outside it’s an unpretentious building, but inside you find the country’s oldest Georgian theatre still in its original form.

Go in and look round the theatre museum, and try out the thunderbox which is hanging from the ceiling with a rope to make it work and background sound effects to recreate the rowdy and irreverent mirth of a Georgian night out.

Next to the Tourist Information Centre is Friary Gardens, with a pretty bell tower, which was added in 1258. There’s no end to Richmond’s architectural gems, and the beautifully-preserved Franciscan Friary and gardens is a must-see, especially in the spring, when the gardens are at their best.

Richmondshire Museum in Ryders Wynd, tells the story of Richmond and its people. It opened its doors in 1978 in a former joiner’s workshop and has grown ever since. The building appears small on the outside but is a veritable ‘Tardis’ once entered. Displays include artefacts from the Stone Age to the present day, a Cruck House from nearby Ravensworth, lead-mining in the Dales, toys through the ages, Barker’s chemist shop from Catterick, the Herriot Set from the film All Creatures Great and Small and Fenwick’s grocers and chandlers shop.

A five-minute stroll downhill from the Market Place will bring you to The Station. The last train may have left more than 40 years ago, but thanks to hundreds of volunteers and donors, the magnificent old Victorian station has been restored and enlarged to house art galleries, micro-brewery, an ice-cream maker, cheese maker, craft bakery and even a cinema.

To round off the day, why not enjoy the garden at Millgate House? A walled garden full of intriguing corners and meandering paths, it’s small but perfectly formed. A lovely spot to wind down and enjoy the rich scent of roses as you look out over the River Swale with the waterfalls in the background.