Friends reunited having blast in Nottingham

THE 20th anniversary of a special friendship deserves a special celebration, but what to do to mark such a momentous occasion?

In two decades of trawling the motorways between our homes at virtually opposite ends of the country, my friend from the north and I have covered most of the usual girly getaways. From glitzy weekends of shows and shopping to laidback spa breaks of pummelling and pampering, there isn’t much left on the to-do list... well, not within price range anyway.

But I must admit I never expected to spend our 20th anniversary get together wearing a pair of wellies and a woolly hat. And – even less likely – settling down for tea and cake instead of champagne.

“God, I feel old,” I said, as we strolled arm-in-arm through an admittedly beautiful woodland carpeted with snowdrops.

“We are old,” Hilary replied, stopping to take a double selfie. “But the trick is not to look it!” Pose... click!

With almost 300 miles between us, we have found that weekend breaks are best taken at a halfway(ish) spot. This time, we’d picked Hodsock Priory, just outside Worksop in north Nottinghamshire, as our meeting point – a venue renowned for those snowdrops and, later in the year, the bluebells which take their place.

On a crisp and beautifully clear February day, it felt like half the county had had the same idea and we joined throngs of visitors admiring the blankets of the delicate white flowers bobbing in the breeze.

Despite its name, this centuries-old building has never housed an order of monks at all, but was built as a family home then extended by its various occupants over the years. The current owner, George Buchanan, is the ninth generation of his family to live there – with his wife and four young children – and, as general manager, can be seen striding around the grounds, walkie-talkie in hand, taking a very hands-on role.

The building itself was closed for a wedding during our visit, but we still managed to while away a couple of hours wandering around the gardens, catching up on gossip and filling up on homemade cake in the teashop, before heading off to our hotel.

A 10-minute drive from Hodsock, we arrived at Ye Olde Bell Hotel & Restaurant in Barnby Moor, near Retford as afternoon tea was being served. As tempting as it looked, we weren’t planning on sticking with hot drinks and cake all weekend and reverted to type, settling down in front of one of their open fires to share a bottle of celebratory bubbly.

This four-star hotel has a rich history stretching back to the 17th century, and much of its memorabilia decorates the walls.

Sat on the original Great North Road, midway between London and Edinburgh, the hotel rose to fame in the days of stagecoaches and highwaymen and the inauguration of the postal service in 1635. The landlord from 1800 to 1842 was George Clarke, an avid horse breeder and farmer, so with stabling for 120 horses and beds for 60 post boys, bedrooms were provided for weary stagecoach travellers.

It was during Mr Clarke’s ownership that the young Queen Victoria stayed with her mother, the Duchess of Kent, in what is now named the Victoria Suite on her journey along the Great North Road to the music festival at York.

As the age of the motor dawned, the hotel held the official appointment of the Royal Automobile Association and set up an inspection pit for all those new-fangled machines to be tuned up before setting off on the open road. Early classics such as the Minerva, Argyle and Daimler were often found lined up outside the hotel.

In the 1950s, St Leger Week at nearby Doncaster Racecourse nearly saw the end of the Bell, when two wings of the hotel – 30 bedrooms – were destroyed by fire. The alarm was raised by race-going residents who returned from their day out to see the hotel ablaze.

Somehow the hotel bar was kept open through it all and drinks were served by candlelight – now, there’s customer service for you.

The late 1950s heralded a period of great change, triggered by the opening of the new A1 and a marked reduction in the volume of traffic passing by. The hotel went on to be operated by a succession of hotel chains, with mixed fortunes, but was taken over in 2007 by the current owners, Paul and Hilary Levack, who decided to run the place independently.

Within weeks of the takeover, a full-scale renovation and refurbishment was underway with the aim of retaining the sense of history at every turn but instilling some wow factor.

The result is just that – a blend of tradition and luxury, with authentic antiques sat alongside sumptuous fabrics and top-notch fittings, and every one of the 57 bedrooms different to the next.

This is a hotel that rarely sleeps and during our overnight stay we saw visitors sitting down to afternoon tea, others arriving for dinner in the hotel restaurant, locals from the village popping in for a pint and even a whole wedding party occupying one of the suites.

Dinner in the historic Restaurant Bar 1650 was a delight, with our perfectly pink steaks washed down with a perfectly paired cabernet sauvignon. Coffee creme brulee and sticky toffee pudding followed on... well, it was a celebration after all.

The next morning we treated ourselves to some pampering at LB Therapies, the hotel beauty salon. A luxury spa is a possibility for the future but for now guests can book in for a range of treatments including facials, massages and manicures with beautician Lizzie and her team. As our therapist smoothed away a wrinkle or five (hopefully), the excesses of the night before were left behind and our energy restored.

En route, there was just time to stop off at Clumber Park Hotel & Spa near Worksop for lunch. This hotel is a taste of the modern after the deep history of Ye Olde Bell, with abstract art on the walls and a bright and airy dining room.

So spotless was it that it felt as though the place was newly refurbished, but we were assured by our waitress that the last revamp was a few years ago.

Delicate crab cakes were followed by belly pork on a bed of bubble and squeak, and, as we ate, the previously-empty restaurant slowly filled up with guests from the hotel spa.

It was a shame we didn’t have time to linger longer but the long drive home beckoned. With a National Trust park just next door, and another chance to wear those wellies, perhaps this should be the setting for our 21st reunion?

• Michelle Tompkins was hosted by Experience Nottinghamshire. Go to www. experiencenottinghamshire.com for more details or contact Nottingham Tourist Information Centre on 0844 77 5678 or email tourist.information @nottinghamcity.gov.uk l Find out more about Ye Olde Bell Hotel at Barnby Moor at http://www.yeoldebell-hotel.co.uk/ or call 01777 705 121.
•  Hodsock Priory: Don’t miss the bluebells season at Hodsock Priory in May this year: http://www.hodsockpriory.com/ 01909 591 204.