The Hotel on Burgh Island
From the collection of
The Hotel on Burgh Island (Out of the Box)
Staying in style, the iconic Art Deco glamour landmark hotel never goes out of fashion.
Frank Wintle explores the opulence of Burgh Island Hotel. Including the music, fashions, furniture and the history. The tidal island located just off the rugged Devonshire coastline is accessed by a unique sea tractor, carrying passengers at high tide from the mainland at Bigbury-on-Sea. At low tide it is approachable on foot. 1890s music hall star George H Chirgwin built a prefabricated wooden party house on Burgh Island which was sold in 1927 to filmmaker Archibald Nettlefold, who in 1929 built a substantial hotel in the Art Deco style. By the 1930s, Burgh Hotel had become one of the most popular and glamourous destinations of its time, with guests Winston Churchill, Amy Johnson, and Agatha Christie to name a few.
World War II saw Burgh Island's hotel used as a recovery centre for wounded RAF personnel. The hotel was subsequently bombed and saw a post-war decline. Improvements to the hotel in the 30s included the additions of The Captain's Cabin of HMS Ganges, a warship built in 1821, and the hotels own private tidal seawater mermaid pool, croquet lawn and tennis court. Now restored to its former glory as a Grade II listed building the hotel flourishes with theme nights, spectacular views and unique retreat-like peace. The history of the island stretches much further back than the 1930s, a small monastery was established on the island around the 1330s some of the remains of which may lie under the hotel. The Pilchard Inn one of the oldest pubs in Britain was built in 1336 and is thought to be the original lodgings for the monastery, it is one of only five buildings on the island, and was owned by the hotel until very recently.
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What We Wore
Fashion takes enormous strides forward in 20th century Britain.
From the Tudor court to the Georgian dandy, Britain has long cultivated a passion for fashion, but the late 20th century saw things step up a gear. New generations of talent emerged, whose idiosyncratic style democratised fashion for a younger crowd and helped sell ‘Cool Britannia’ to the world - long before that term was coined. In the 1960s, progress was catalysed by the ‘Swinging London’ of Biba and Mary Quant, followed by the Punk movement a decade later. Designers drew inspiration not just from contemporary subcultures but also from established craft traditions across the UK – in some cases helping to revive cottage industries at risk of dying out. The dawn of the 1980s saw the rise of avant-garde pioneers (Zandra Rhodes, Vivienne Westwood), reimagined Savile Row tailoring (Tommy Nutter) and the upscale yet quintessentially British chic of Jean Muir and Bruce Oldfield – a favourite of Diana, Princess of Wales, who gifted British fashion a truly global platform.
38 videos in this collection
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Space Antennae
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The Sash My Father Wore
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Focus on Britain: Design
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Venture Designer Awards
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Alternative Fashion 2002, Brady Arts and Community Centre
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Scottish: Fashion - Pem2543
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Computer Shows Off Make Up Effects
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Northampton Fashion Designer
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Outsize Fashion for 'Checkout'
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Spectacles - 'High Street Fashion'
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Barbara Cartland Book 'Getting Older'
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The Leverett Angora Rabbit Farm
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Martha Hill Age 74 In New Career
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Princess Setting New Hair Fashions
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Voucher Scheme Replaces NHS Glasses
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The Hotel on Burgh Island
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The Gallery of Costume, Manchester
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Jean Tyrrell
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The Yorkshire Disco Dancing Championships
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The Best of British Fashion
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Belfast Fashion and Design Centre
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Fashion
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Fashion and Design
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The Original Cowboys Were Welshmen
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Denim: A New Look
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The Fashionistas
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1980 British Fashion Awards
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Fashion and the King's Road
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Ladies Fashion Autumn 1983
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Sense of Fashion
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The British Fashion Awards 1981
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The Miriam Stoppard Health and Beauty Show [27/08/92]
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Tie and Dye
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London Line No 373
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Fashion of the Year
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Knitmaster F370 Fine Gauge Machine
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