Weston-super-Mare, United Kingdom

The mainly flat landscape of Weston is dominated to the north by Worlebury Hill (109 m (358 ft) above sea level). Bleadon Hill (176 m (577 ft) and Brean Down (97 m (318 ft)) forms its southern border. The River Axe flows into Weston Bay at Uphill, cutting Brean Down off from the town. Much of Worlebury Hill is wooded with some Ancient Woodland sites. The remains of Worlebury Camp hillfort are at its far western end.

The beach lies on the western edge of the town. The upper part is sandy, but the tidal rise and fall in the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel can be as great as 14.5 m (48 ft), second only to Bay of Fundy in Eastern Canada. This tidal movement contributes to the deposition of natural mud in bays such as Weston. There has been concern about pollution levels from industrial areas in Wales and at the eastern end of the Bristol Channel; however this tends to be diluted by the Atlantic waters. There are measurable levels of chemical pollutants, and little is known about their effects. Of particular concern are the levels of cadmium and to a lesser degree residual pesticides and hydrocarbons.

Ellenborough Park, on the sea front near the town centre, is a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to the range of plant species found there.

Since the 1970s, Weston has suffered a decline in popularity as a holiday destination, as have most British seaside resorts, due to the advent of cheap foreign holidays and the demise of the traditional "works holidays" of heavy and manufacturing industries elsewhere in UK. The town had become a centre of industries such as helicopter production, and maintenance at the GKN Westland factory until its closure in 2002, however the company still retains a design office under the name GKN Aerospace Engineering Services at the Winterstoke Road site. Road transport links were improved with the M5 motorway running close by, and the town now supports light industries and distribution depots, including Lidl's distribution centre for its southern based stores, and is also a dormitory town for Bristol. Vutrix, one of the largest semiconductor and video/audio distribution equipment companies in the television broadcasting industry, is based in the town. Two of the town's largest employers are the local council and Weston College, which has recently begun to offer university degrees as a secondary campus of Bath Spa University.

The Playhouse theatre is in High Street near Grove Park. It opened in 1946 but burnt down in 1964; the current building dates from 1969. The Winter Gardens Pavilion opened on the seafront in 1927 for shows but now also hosts exhibitions and conferences in an extension. The Blakehay is a small concert hall and exhibition space in Wadham Street near The Playhouse. It is housed in a former Baptist church and managed by Weston-super-Mare Civic Society. All Saints Church hosts concerts, has been used for recording, for example by the Emerald Ensemble, and has featured on BBC TV's Songs of Praise.

The Plaza Cinema was opened as the Odeon in 1935. It is a Grade II listed in art deco. It houses the only Compton theatre pipe organ in an Odeon cinema outside London, and is one of only two working theatre organs left in the country still performing in their original location in commercially operating cinemas.

The Weston Arts Festival takes place each year during September and October using local venues including the Blakehay Theatre, Playhouse, All Saints, and galleries and offering a wide range of cultural events.

Weston has hosted Weston Wallz since 2021. This is a street art programme curated by the Upfest team and has resulted in more than 75 murals across the town.

Churches and charities provided the first schools for poorer families but many private boarding schools were set up as Weston was considered a healthy location for children. These included The College on the sea front (which was sold in the 1880s and enlarged to become the Grand Atlantic Hotel), Stanmore School in the Royal Crescent, Winthorpe in Wilton Gardens, Burton House in Walliscote Road, and Etonhurst at Ellenborough Park. The Sisters of La Retraite opened a Catholic school in 1899 and it moved to South Road in 1907 where it remained until 1971. St Peter's started in Highbury House in 1882 and moved a short distance to the Shrubbery when a new school was built in 1906. This operated until 1970. Roald Dahl was a boarder from 1925; John Cleese was a day pupil from 1948 and later returned as a teacher.

The church schools resisted the formation of a School Board in the 1870s but one was finally established in 1893. The first Board School was provided in Walliscote Road near the Town Hall in 1893, and a second in Locking Road in 1900. Responsibility for education was transferred to Somerset County Council in 1903.