Southwell is a small town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is best known as the site of Southwell Minster , the seat of the Church of England diocese that covers Nottinghamshire.

The town lies on the River Greet , approximately twelve kilometres northwest of Nottingham. In addition to the minster, there are a number of other historic buildings in the town.

South-east of the town lies Southwell racecourse , served by its own train station.

As the site of a Church of England cathedral, the town is sometimes considered to be a city, and was treated as such in the 1911 Encyclopedia. However, its city status is not recognised by the government.

Controversy

The exact pronunciation of Southwell remains a subject of debate. One view, that used by the BBC and other broadcasters, is that it should be pronounced Suth-ell, while others (mostly located in Southwell and the region) believe that it should be pronounced South-well.