Burgh Island Hotel
Encyclopedia
The Burgh Island Hotel is a hotel on Burgh Island
, Devon
in England
.
star George H. Chirgwin
built a prefabricated wooden house on the island, which was used by invited guests for weekend parties. The island was sold in 1927 to the filmmaker Archibald Nettlefold of Nettlefold Studios
, and the heir to the Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds engineering firm, who built a more substantial hotel in the Art Deco
style, which became a popular destination in the 1930s. Additions were made through the 1930s, including a room created from the captain's cabin of the warship HMS Ganges (1821)
. The hotel is now a Grade II Listed Building
During World War II
, the hotel was used as a recovery centre for wounded RAF personnel. The top two floors of the hotel were damaged by a bomb during the conflict. Despite being repaired, it suffered a period of post war decline after being converted to self catering apartment accommodation. The hotel was restored during the early nineties by Tony and Beatrice Porter.
, as it inspired the settings for both And Then There Were None
and the Hercule Poirot
mystery Evil Under the Sun
. The 2002 TV adaptation of Evil Under The Sun used the island as a filming location. Several scenes from the BBC’s 1987 dramatisation of Christie’s story Nemesis were also filmed in the hotel. In 1994 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow', an episode of the television series Lovejoy
, was set and filmed on the island. The island was also the location for GMTV's Inch-loss Island slimming feature in 2008, as it was for the original series in 2001. The climactic scene of the 1965 British film "Catch Us If You Can" (featuring The Dave Clark Five
) takes place at the island.
Other famous visitors to the Burgh Island Hotel have included The Beatles
who used the hotel when they were playing a concert in Plymouth
. Noel Coward
visited the hotel, intending to stay three days and ended up staying three weeks. Other guests who have reputedly used the hotel include Edward
and Mrs. Simpson
and it is said that Eisenhower
and Churchill
met there in the weeks leading up to the D-Day
invasion.
s) from the mainland at Bigbury-on-Sea
and is approachable on foot at low tide. At high tide, the Sea Tractor
, which is operated by the hotel, transports pedestrians back and forth. The original vehicle was constructed in 1930; the current, third generation tractor dates from 1969. The vehicle drives across the beach with its wheels underwater on the sandy bottom while its driver and passengers sit on a platform high above. Power from a Fordson tractor engine is relayed to the wheels via hydraulic motors. In 2011, it costs £2 per person.
Burgh Island
Burgh Island is a small tidal island off the coast of South Devon in England near to the small seaside village of Bigbury-on-Sea. There are several buildings on the island, the largest being the Art Deco Burgh Island Hotel...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
In the 1890s, the music hallMusic hall
Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
star George H. Chirgwin
George H. Chirgwin
George H. Chirgwin was a British music hall star billed as "the White-Eyed Kaffir", a black face minstrel act.Chirgwin appeared in the first Royal Variety Command Performance...
built a prefabricated wooden house on the island, which was used by invited guests for weekend parties. The island was sold in 1927 to the filmmaker Archibald Nettlefold of Nettlefold Studios
Nettlefold Studios
Nettlefold Studios were located in what is now Hepworth Way, Walton-on-Thames. Cecil Hepworth began film making there in 1899, but the name derives from the subsequent owner, Archibald Nettlefold, who rebuilt the studios on the original site. During the late fifties the studio changed its name to...
, and the heir to the Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds engineering firm, who built a more substantial hotel in the Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
style, which became a popular destination in the 1930s. Additions were made through the 1930s, including a room created from the captain's cabin of the warship HMS Ganges (1821)
HMS Ganges (1821)
HMS Ganges was an 84-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 10 November 1821 at Bombay Dockyard, constructed from teak...
. The hotel is now a Grade II Listed Building
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the hotel was used as a recovery centre for wounded RAF personnel. The top two floors of the hotel were damaged by a bomb during the conflict. Despite being repaired, it suffered a period of post war decline after being converted to self catering apartment accommodation. The hotel was restored during the early nineties by Tony and Beatrice Porter.
Notable visitors
Burgh Island Hotel is closely linked to the crime novelist Agatha ChristieAgatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
, as it inspired the settings for both And Then There Were None
And Then There Were None
And Then There Were None is a detective fiction novel by Agatha Christie, first published in the United Kingdom by the Collins Crime Club on 6 November 1939 under the title Ten Little Niggers which was changed by Dodd, Mead and Company in January 1940 because of the presence of a racial...
and the Hercule Poirot
Hercule Poirot
Hercule Poirot is a fictional Belgian detective created by Agatha Christie. Along with Miss Marple, Poirot is one of Christie's most famous and long-lived characters, appearing in 33 novels and 51 short stories published between 1920 and 1975 and set in the same era.Poirot has been portrayed on...
mystery Evil Under the Sun
Evil Under the Sun
Evil Under the Sun is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in June 1941 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company in October of the same year...
. The 2002 TV adaptation of Evil Under The Sun used the island as a filming location. Several scenes from the BBC’s 1987 dramatisation of Christie’s story Nemesis were also filmed in the hotel. In 1994 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow', an episode of the television series Lovejoy
Lovejoy
Lovejoy is a TV series about the adventures of Lovejoy, a British antiques dealer and faker based in East Anglia, a less than scrupulous yet likeable rogue. The episodes were based on a series of picaresque novels by John Grant...
, was set and filmed on the island. The island was also the location for GMTV's Inch-loss Island slimming feature in 2008, as it was for the original series in 2001. The climactic scene of the 1965 British film "Catch Us If You Can" (featuring The Dave Clark Five
The Dave Clark Five
The Dave Clark Five were an English pop rock group. Their single "Glad All Over" knocked The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" off the top of the UK singles charts in January 1964: it eventually peaked at No.6 in the United States in April 1964.They were the second group of the British Invasion,...
) takes place at the island.
Other famous visitors to the Burgh Island Hotel have included The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
who used the hotel when they were playing a concert in Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
visited the hotel, intending to stay three days and ended up staying three weeks. Other guests who have reputedly used the hotel include Edward
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
and Mrs. Simpson
Wallis, The Duchess of Windsor
Wallis, Duchess of Windsor, previously Wallis Simpson, was an American socialite whose third husband, Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, formerly King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom and the Dominions, abdicated his throne to marry her.Wallis's father died shortly after her birth, and she and her...
and it is said that Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
and Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
met there in the weeks leading up to the D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
invasion.
Transport
The island is approximately 250 metres (270 yardYard
A yard is a unit of length in several different systems including English units, Imperial units and United States customary units. It is equal to 3 feet or 36 inches...
s) from the mainland at Bigbury-on-Sea
Bigbury-on-Sea
Bigbury-on-Sea is a village located on the south coast of Devon approximately 250 metres from the tidal island of Burgh Island. It falls within the civil parish of Bigbury and the local governmental district of South Hams....
and is approachable on foot at low tide. At high tide, the Sea Tractor
Sea tractor
A Sea tractor is a motor vehicle designed to travel through shallow seawater, usually carrying passengers on a platform suspended typically or so above a tractor-like chassis. Early models of Sea tractors had a motor and a 10 person capacity. The sea tractor was most popular during the early...
, which is operated by the hotel, transports pedestrians back and forth. The original vehicle was constructed in 1930; the current, third generation tractor dates from 1969. The vehicle drives across the beach with its wheels underwater on the sandy bottom while its driver and passengers sit on a platform high above. Power from a Fordson tractor engine is relayed to the wheels via hydraulic motors. In 2011, it costs £2 per person.
External links
- http://www.burghisland.com/ official website
- English Ferry Wades Through Ocean Waves the original Burgh Island sea tractor, from Science and Mechanics, 1935