Morecambe's splendid Midland Hotel

A friendly volunteer recognised me from the T&A - he lives in Bingley and gets the train to Carnforth every Monday to work at the heritage centre. I’m quite envious of the volunteers at this charming little station. Alighting the train at Carnforth is like stepping into a romantic age of steam-filled platforms, where a couple who barely know each other are briefly frozen in time together, as life bustles on around them.

It is here where David Lean’s 1945 classic Brief Encounter was filmed, and the award-winning heritage centre pays tribute to it with lovely exhibitions on the making of the film, the age of steam and the history of Carnforth and its people. The station has been faithfully restored, with a tea-room resembling the one in Brief Encounter. There’s the original stove in the cosy guard’s room, where Celia Johnson sat in the warmth between takes, and the famous clock still hanging on the platform.

Deciding to leave the cars behind, my partner and I took the Shipley to Morecambe train - a lovely journey through the Dales - stopping at Carnforth on the way. After a cuppa in the tea-room, we headed for Carnforth Bookshop, a delightful labyrinth of rooms sprawled across three floors where you can lose yourself in new, second-hand and antiquarian books.

Then to Morecambe, via a stop at Lancaster station. A five-minute walk from Morecambe station - not the original Victorian one, that’s now an entertainment venue - is the splendid Midland Hotel, where we checked in for the night.

An Art Deco jewel of the Lancashire coastline, the Midland curves gracefully along the prom, overlooking Morecambe’s stunning bay. Built in 1933, the three-storey Grade II listed building was beautifully restored in 2008, with original features including striking Eric Gill sculptures - his two seahorses are above the main entrance - and the elegant spiral staircase of the central circular tower, with the Neptune and Triton medallion, designed and carved by Gill on the ceiling.

Sitting on the sunkissed terrace, sipping a cocktail from the funky Rotunda Bar, gazing out to Cumbrian mountains across the water, you could imagine the likes of Noel Coward and Coco Chanel - both actual guests at the Midland - gliding by.

I felt very Coco Chanel in our stylish room, opening onto a roof terrace with panoramic bay views. The suite comprised a spacious lounge, with two sofas and a TV, a kitchen where you could cook dinner to eat in or alfresco, and a lovely bedroom where floor-to-ceiling windows practically brought the glistening beach inside.

Morecambe has fabulous sunsets and if you’re lucky you’ll catch one while dining in the hotel’s aptly-named Sun Terrace Restaurant. On the menu are British classics featuring produce from Lancashire, Cumbria and the Irish Sea. I started dinner with charred cured mackerel, while Nick went for slow cooked pork cheek. Other starters include Morecambe Bay shrimps, slow-cooked duck egg with sheep’s curd; and beetroot and Seahorse No.10 gin cured salmon.

The main course menu includes blade of beef, with wild garlic and herb risotto; braised duck meat tortellini; poached Ribble Valley chicken fritter with smoked potatoes; and caramelised onion, potato and cheese pie.

I had delicious aromatic poached cod with noodles and an aromatic vegetable broth, and Nick tucked into roast rump of lamb with Jersey royals, broccoli puree, rosemary sauce and some side green vegetables.

Friendly, efficient staff made us feel more than welcome and helped to make our dinner, and stay, fabulous.

We ended with vanilla panna cotta, with a raspberry, lemon verbena curd, orange and almond sponge crumb (me) and treacle tart and cream (him) then took an evening walk along the promenade.

Like many West Yorkshire folk, I enjoyed happy day trips to Morecambe as a child, spent mainly in the now long-gone Frontierland. Now I love the natural beauty of its dramatic seascape, as well as the seaside attractions lining the front. We wandered past historic Winter Gardens, once home to seawater baths, and the Eric Morecambe, looking a bit lonely without Ernie. Whether it’s sandcastles on the beach, the zip wire in Happy Mount Park, walks along the rugged coastline, or a guided trek across the bay, Morecambe has plenty to offer for a seaside break.

Next morning, after a hearty veggie cooked breakfast (me) and bacon sandwich (him), we left the Midland and walked down to The View cafe, where they play old records and the walls are covered in vinyl and vintage rock ‘n’ roll posters, before heading to the station. Our brief encounter with this shimmering slice of North West coastline was over, and the train was pulling in.

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