ITV

ITV ZOOMS IN ON DORSET PARK

Posted on August 6, 2024

A Poole holiday park received an airing on national TV this spring when they were put under the spotlight by ITV’s Good Morning Britain. South Lytchett Manor hosted a visit from the show’s presenter Matt Johnson who wanted to find out how Brits were planning to spend their holidays this year.

Matt introduced viewers to the park’s Megan Bridgen whose parents, Joanne and David Bridgen, took over the five-star glamping and camping park 18 years ago. Megan and her brother Matt now help to manage the business, and the family has recently been celebrating a raft of major awards. They have included being named as one of the region’s top three parks in the South West Tourism Excellence Awards, and a Diamond accolade in the latest Loo of the Year Awards.

Keen camper Matt said that camping was still a popular way of enjoying a stay at South Lytchett Manor, but that glamping was quickly gaining ground among families and couples. The park’s popular Romany caravans were shown to the Good Morning audience by Matt who was accompanied by his dog Alan Shearer who clearly enjoyed his visit.

South Lytchett also provides shepherd’s huts and glamping pods which have recently been joined by eight luxury Mongolian yurts with decor and furnishings on an opulent North African theme. The dome-shaped yurts have been hand-built in neighbouring Devon using sustainable ash hardwood, and feature Moroccan-themed lanterns, mosaic tiles, and ornamental mirrors.

THE YURTS HAVE A CENTRAL skylight allowing guests to enjoy stunning views of Dorset’s star-studded night sky.

The seating area is arranged around a cosy fireplace, and there is a central skylight which allows guests to enjoy stunning views of Dorset’s star-studded night sky. Matt was also taken by Megan on a tour of the park’s landscaped grounds, and spoke with guests who praised the park’s high quality, beautiful location, and welcoming atmosphere.

“It was fantastic to receive this visit from Good Morning Britain at the start of the holiday season and straight after our recent award wins,” said Megan. “Fresh air holidays such as we offer grew in popularity during the lockdown years, and guests clearly enjoyed the experience as booking remain strong.

“Our family continues to invest much time and energy into the park, and we were delighted to be able to take viewers behind the scenes of our business over their breakfasts!” added Megan. There is more information about the park, as well as its new yurts and other glamping options, on its website.

South Lytchett Manor
www.southlytchettmanor.co.uk

LUXURY MONGOLIAN yurts are a new glamping option.

Broadchurch Fever Hits Bridport

Posted on April 15, 2015
broadchurch

Bookings at Highlands End Holiday Park are up by 57.8 per cent following the return of the TV drama Broadchurch. Pic: ITV

Broadchurch Fever Hits Bridport

Business is booming at Highlands End Holiday Park in West Dorset following the return of the popular ITV drama Broadchurch, which features scenes filmed at the park and the surrounding areas.

Highlands End Holiday Park in Bridport says bookings so far this year are up 57.8 percent for holiday home rentals and up 196 percent for touring pitches.

The programme, filmed around West Bay, returned for a second series on ITV in February, featuring a stellar cast including David Tennant and Olivia Coleman. Visitors flocked to the area last year to see the locations, and many more now seem keen to take a holiday in the heart of the action.

Highlands End Holiday Park general manager James Cox said: “At the end of October the cast and crew of Broadchurch were filming the second series on Eype Beach next to the park.

“While the holidaymakers at Highlands End were asked not to take pictures of any plot spoilers, they had a bird’s-eye view of the filming from the decking of their caravan holiday homes.”

He added: “We have recently expanded our luxury holiday lodge accommodation as the existing lodges, bungalows, holiday homes and apartments are all booking well on the back of Broadchurch fever.”

Fern Backs Free Holidays Scheme

Posted on November 13, 2013

Fern Britton, who sacrificed part of her and her husband Phil Vickery’s holiday in Cornwall to help highlight the free holiday scheme, was taken around Mother Ivey’s by Patrick and his wife Meg

Fern Backs Free Holidays Scheme

TV presenter Fern Britton took time off in Cornwall this summer to help launch a new scheme by holiday parks to provide free holidays for struggling families.

The former star of ITV’s This Morning was at Mother Ivey’s Bay Holiday Park in Padstow where the initiative, described by Fern as ‘a genius idea’, is being pioneered. She said that her own happy memories of holidays in Cornwall, and her belief that a family holiday is ‘not a luxury but an essential’, had persuaded her to freely lend her support. The scheme is the brainchild of Patrick Langmaid, owner of Mother Ivey’s, who has pledged to give away a week’s holiday to a needy family for every hundred bookings his park takes.

NO COST STAYS

With the scheme already in action, Patrick hopes that the number of families enjoying no-cost stays at his park will be into double figures by the end of the season. He hopes too that his initiative will also be adopted by many of the UK’s other 3000- plus holiday parks as part of a national effort to provide holidays to families in crisis.

Mother Ivey’s beachside park has been owned by the Langmaid family for 25 years, and has 60 holiday caravans for hire. Three years ago, it won the tourist board accolade for the best holiday park in the South West. Patrick said a number of other South West holiday parks had already committed to his charity initiative including the Surf Bay Holidays group and Hendra Holiday Park in Newquay. “I really believe that this idea has huge potential to make a significant difference to the lives of struggling families, and I would like to see as many other parks on board as possible,” said Patrick.

“Offering one holiday to charity for every hundred holidays booked is practical and possible without incurring any major outlay,” he added. “The real cost of providing holidays is in maintaining the infrastructure of the park and the holiday homes, and this is generally covered by normal commercial activity.

“Every park has some spare capacity during the year, so to give some of those holidays away to needy families makes perfect sense. Parks will only have to bear the marginal cost of cleaning, laundering and energy.