Coordinates: 51°56′49″N 0°16′59″W / 51.947°N 0.283°W / 51.947; -0.283

Hitchin is a market town in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 30,360.

Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people mentioned in a 7th century document, the Tribal Hidage. The tribal name is Brittonic rather than Old English and derives from *siccā, meaning 'dry', which is perhaps a reference to the local stream, the Hiz. It has been suggested that Hitchin was the location of Clofeshoh, the place chosen in 673 by Archbishop Theodore of Tarsus during the Synod of Hertford, the first nationwide meeting of representatives of the fledgling Catholic churches of Anglo-Saxon England, to hold annual synods of the churches as Theodore attempted to consolidate and centralise Catholicism in England. By 1086 Hitchin is described as a Royal Manor in the Domesday Book: the feudal services of Avera and Inward, usually found in the eastern counties, especially Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire, were due from the sokemen, but the manor of Hitchin was unique in levying Inward. Evidence has been found to suggest that the town was once provided with an earthen bank and ditch fortification, probably in the early tenth century but this did not last. The modern spelling 'Hitchin' first appears in 1618 in the "Hertfordshire Feet of Fines".

Devonté Hynes (born 23 December 1985 in Houston, Texas), better known as Lightspeed Champion or Blood Orange, is a British composer, songwriter, producer, artist and author, who has written for artists such as Florence and the Machine, Diana Vickers and The Chemical Brothers on their 2007 Grammy award winning album We Are The Night. He is currently signed to Domino Records.

Hynes was born in Houston, Texas but was raised in Essex, England from the age of 2. He was educated at the Chadwell Heath Foundation School, now known as Chadwell Heath Academy. He currently resides in New York. The name 'Lightspeed Champion' comes from a series of comic strips Hynes drew as a teenager in his school mathematics books. Hynes was voted the 49th 'coolest person in rock' in NME's 2007 Cool List, jumping to position 20 in the following year's list. From their formation in 2004 until their break-up in 2006, Hynes was a member of the band Test Icicles, playing guitar, synth, and occasionally performing vocals. The band were known for their blisteringly crazy and diverse music and for their raucous live performances. They released only one full-length album (For Screening Purposes Only) in 2005.