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.