Scarborough, North Yorkshire

Scarborough Castle entrance

The town is claimed to have been founded around 966 AD as Skarðaborg [ˈskɑrðɑˌborɡ] by Thorgils Skarthi, a Viking raider. There is no archaeological evidence to support this claim, which was made during the 1960s as part of a pageant of Scarborough events.[5] The claim is based on a fragment of an Icelandic Saga. However, due to coastal erosion over the years, evidence may have been lost to the sea. In the 4th century, there was briefly a Roman signal station on Scarborough headland, and there is evidence of earlier settlements, during the Stone Age and Bronze Age.[6] Any settlement between the fifth and ninth centuries would have been burned to the ground by a band of Vikings under Tostig Godwinson (a rival of Thorgils Skarthi), Lord of Falsgrave, or Harald III of Norway. These periodic episodes of destruction and massacre means that very little evidence of settlement during this period remained to be recorded in the Domesday survey of 1085.[7] (The original inland village of Falsgrave was Anglo-Saxon rather than Viking.)[8]

A Roman signal station was built on a cliff-top location overlooking the North Sea. It was one of a chain of signal stations, built to warn of sea-raiders. Coins found at the site show that it was occupied from c. AD 370 until the early fifth century.[9]

In 2021 an excavation at a housing development in Eastfield, Scarborough, revealed a Roman luxury villa, religious sanctuary, or combination of both. The building layout is unique in Britain and extends over an area of about the size of two tennis courts. It included a bathhouse and a cylindrical tower with rooms radiating from it. The buildings were “designed by the highest-quality architects in northern Europe in the era and constructed by the finest craftsmen.” Historic England described the finds as “one of the most important Roman discoveries in the past decade.”[10] There are plans to revise the housing development layout, recover the remains and incorporate them in a public green area. Historic England is to recommend the remains be protected as a scheduled monument.[11][12][10]

Scarborough recovered under King Henry II, who built an Angevin stone castle on the headland and granted the town charters in 1155 and 1163,[13] permitting a market on the sands and establishing rule by burgesses.

Edward II granted Scarborough Castle to his favourite, Piers Gaveston. The castle was subsequently besieged by forces led by the barons Percy, Warenne, Clifford and Pembroke. Gaveston was captured and taken to Oxford and thence to Warwick Castle for execution.[14]

In 1318, the town was burnt by the Scots, under Sir James Douglas following the Capture of Berwick upon Tweed.[15]

In the Middle Ages, Scarborough Fair, permitted in a royal charter of 1253, held a six-week trading festival attracting merchants from all over Europe. It ran from Assumption Day, 15 August, until Michaelmas Day, 29 September. The fair continued to be held for 500 years, from the 13th to the 18th century, and is commemorated in the song Scarborough Fair:

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?

—parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme....[16]

Photochrom of Scarborough in the 1890s and a photo in 2012

Scarborough and its castle changed hands seven times between Royalists and Parliamentarians during the English Civil War of the 1640s, enduring two lengthy and violent sieges. Following the civil war, much of the town lay in ruins.

In 1626, Mrs Thomasin Farrer[17] discovered a stream of acidic water running from one of the cliffs to the south of the town.[18] This gave birth to Scarborough Spa, and Dr Robert Wittie's book about the spa waters published in 1660 attracted a flood of visitors to the town. Scarborough Spa became Britain's first seaside resort, though the first rolling bathing machines were not reported on the sands until 1735. It was a popular getaway destination for the wealthy of London, such as the bookseller Andrew Millar and his family. Their son Andrew junior died there in 1750.[19]

The coming of the Scarborough–York railway in 1845 increased the tide of visitors. Scarborough railway station claims a record for the world's longest platform seat.[20] From the 1880s until the First World War, Scarborough was one of the regular destinations for The Bass Excursions, when fifteen trains would take between 8,000 and 9,000 employees of Bass's Burton brewery on an annual trip to the seaside.

First World War recruitment poster depicting the effects of the German bombardment of Scarborough in 1914

During the First World War, the town was bombarded by German warships of the High Seas Fleet, an act which shocked the British (see Raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby).[21] Scarborough Pier Lighthouse, built in 1806, was damaged in the attack.[22] A U-boat assault on the town, on 25 September 1916 saw three people killed and a further five injured. Eleven of Scarborough's trawler fleet were sunk at sea in another U-boat attack, on 4 September 1917.

In 1929, the steam drifter Ascendent caught a 560 lb (250 kg) tunny (Atlantic bluefin tuna) and a Scarborough showman awarded the crew 50 shillings so he could exhibit it as a tourist attraction.[23] Big-game tunny fishing off Scarborough effectively started in 1930 when Lorenzo "Lawrie" Mitchell–Henry, landed a tunny caught on rod and line weighing 560 lb (250 kg).[24] A gentlemen's club, the British Tunny Club, was founded in 1933 and set up its headquarters in the town at the place which is now a restaurant with the same name.[24][25] Scarborough became a resort for high society.[23] A women's world tuna challenge cup was held for many years.[23]

Colonel (and, later, Sir) Edward Peel landed a world-record tunny of 798 lb (362 kg), capturing the record by 40 lb (18.1 kg) from one caught off Nova Scotia by American champion Zane Grey.[26][27][28] The British record which still stands is for a fish weighing 851 lb (386 kg) caught off Scarborough in 1933 by Laurie Mitchell-Henry.[23]

On 5 June 1993, Scarborough made international headlines when a landslip caused part of the Holbeck Hall Hotel, along with its gardens, to fall into the sea. Although the slip was shored up with rocks and the land has long since grassed over, evidence of the cliff's collapse remains clearly visible from The Esplanade, near Shuttleworth Gardens.[29]

Scarborough has been affiliated with a number of Royal Navy vessels, including HMS Apollo, HMS Fearless and HMS Duncan.[30]

The North Bay

Peasholm Park

The North Bay has traditionally been the more peaceful end of the resort and is home to Peasholm Park which, in June 2007, was restored to its Japanese-themed glory, complete with reconstructed pagoda,[34] a new boat house was added in 2018.[35] For many years a mock maritime battle (based on the Battle of the River Plate) has been regularly re-enacted on the boating lake with large model boats and fireworks throughout the summer holiday season.[36]

Northstead Manor Gardens include the North Bay Railway and three other attractions: a water chute, a boating lake with boats for hire during the summer season and the open-air theatre. The water chute is now grade II listed and is one of the oldest surviving water chutes in Britain, with the ride of today being the same as when it was opened in the 1930s.[37] The North Bay Railway is a miniature railway running from near Peasholm Park, through Northstead Manor Gardens to the Sea Life Centre at Scalby Mills. The North Bay Railway has what is believed to be the oldest operational diesel-hydraulic locomotive in the world. Neptune was built in 1931 by Hudswell Clarke of Leeds and is appropriately numbered 1931.[38]

The promontory with its castle, viewed from the south

The most striking feature of the town's geography is the high rocky promontory pointing eastward into the North Sea with Scarborough Castle on the top.[39] The castle was bombarded by the German warships SMS Derfflinger and SMS Von der Tann in the First World War.[40]

The promontory divides the seafront into two bays, north and south.[41] The two bays are linked by Marine Drive, an extensive Victorian promenade, built around the base of the headland. Both bays have popular sandy beaches and numerous rock-pools at low tide.

Scarborough's South Bay from Sea Cliff Road

The South Bay was the site of the original medieval settlement and harbour, which form the old town.[42] This remains the main tourist area, with a sandy beach, cafés, amusements, arcades, theatres and entertainment facilities. The modern commercial town centre has migrated 440 yd (400 m) north-west of the harbour area and 100 ft (30 m) above it and contains the transport hubs, main services, shopping and nightlife. The harbour has undergone major regeneration including the new Albert Strange Pontoons,[43] a more pedestrian-friendly promenade, street lighting and seating.

The town was badly damaged in a 98 plane bombing raid by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War, on 18 March 1941. Twenty eight civilians were killed and hundreds were injured and over 1,400 buildings were damaged.

The South Cliff Promenade above the Spa and South Cliff Gardens has wide views of the South Bay and old town. Its splendid Regency and Victorian terraces are still intact, with a mix of quality hotels and flats. The ITV television drama The Royal and its recent spin-off series, The Royal Today were both filmed in the area. The South Bay has the largest illuminated 'star disk' anywhere in the UK. It is 85 ft (26 m) across and fitted with subterranean lights representing the 42 brightest stars and major constellations that can be seen from Scarborough in the northern skies.[44]

Scarborough Mere with Oliver's Mount in the background

To the south-west of the town, beside the York to Scarborough railway line, is an ornamental lake known as Scarborough Mere. In the 20th century the Mere was a popular park, with rowing boats, canoes and a miniature pirate ship – the Hispaniola – on which passengers were taken to 'Treasure Island' to dig for doubloons.[45] Since the late 1990s the Mere has been redesigned as a natural space for picnics, fishing and walkers. In 2012 a new snack bar was built alongside the Mere. The lake is now part of the Oliver's Mount Country Park and the Hispaniola now sails out of Scarborough harbour during the summer season.

Surrounding the River Derwent as it flows into the sea are high hills with tall, dense grasses and fertile soil, due to the stream 'Sea Cut' leading from the River Derwent to the estuary at the North Sea.[46] The area has flourishing and vibrant flora and crop growth.

Pavilion House

Manufacturers based in Scarborough include the Plaxton Company (a division of Alexander Dennis) which has been building coaches and buses since 1907.[57] Sirius Minerals, which is developing a potash mine near Whitby, has its headquarters in Scarborough.[58] McCain Foods has a factory in the town for over 50 years, and sponsored the previous football stadium.[59] Scarborough power station supplied electricity to the town and the surrounding area from 1893 to 1958. It was owned and operated by the Scarborough Electric Supply Company Limited from 1893 to 1925, then by Scarborough Corporation until the nationalisation of utilities by the Attlee ministry in 1948. The coal-fired power station had an electricity generating capacity of 7 MW prior to its closure in October 1958.[60]

Creative industries have been cited as playing a vital role in the regeneration of Scarborough; a report in 2005 estimated that they comprised 19% of the town's economy. They were also a major focus of Scarborough's winning entry in the 2008 Enterprising Britain competition, with representatives from Woodend Creative Workspace and Scarborough-based Electric Angel Design representing the town in the Yorkshire and Humber regional heats. In the finals in London on 16 October 2008, Scarborough won the title of Britain's Most Enterprising Town,[61] and subsequently went on to win the European Enterprise Awards as Great Britain's representative, on 13 May 2009 in Prague.[62]

In 2010 the town was the winner of the 'Great Town Award', as nominated by the Academy of Urbanism, beating Chester and Cambridge respectively.[63]

Scarborough Hospital

Scarborough Hospital is the local district general NHS hospital. It is run by the York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, and is the largest employer in the area employing over 2,400 staff. A review of acute healthcare in the town in 2019 identified problems recruiting staff at the hospital but promised to maintain the site's Accident and Emergency department.[64]

A new £47 million Emergency Department is under construction and is due to open in early 2024.[65]

Scarborough has four major roads serving the town; these also link it to other major towns and cities:

• A64 – starting at the town centre, it links the town with Leeds (through York, the A19 and the A1(M)) and is the main tourist route to the town. The road is dual carriageway standard for some of its route, between the A1(M) and Malton.
• A165 – coastal route south to Hull, through Bridlington. In 2008, an Osgodby bypass was created re-routing the assigned name.
• A170 – starts at Scarborough and heads west to Pickering, the A19 and Thirsk.
• A171 – a coastal route starting in the town and heads north through Whitby. It then passes through the North York Moors and Guisborough, terminating in Middlesbrough.

Scarborough has 25 main bus routes, operated by Scarborough Locals, Arriva North East, Shoreline Suncruisers and Yorkshire Coastliner. These link the town centre with its suburbs, the North York Moors and local towns and cities such as Bridlington, Whitby, York, Hull, Middlesbrough and Leeds.

The town is also served by two Park and Ride services, with locations on the A64 and A165. Buses run from each terminus to the town centre and South Bay at least every 12 minutes, seven days a week, with stopping points around the town centre. Buses from the Filey Road terminus on the A165 also stop at the University of Hull's Scarborough campus. Open top tourist buses, branded Beachcomber, also run along the sea front and Marine Drive, linking the South and North bays.

Scarborough railway station

Scarborough railway station is close to the town centre and runs services from York, Leeds, Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street on the North TransPennine Express route and from Hull on the Yorkshire Coast Line. It has the longest station seat in the world at 152 yards (139 m) in length. The town used to be connected to Whitby, via the Scarborough and Whitby Railway along the Yorkshire coast, but this closed in 1965 as part of the Beeching cuts. There is also Seamer railway station in the suburb of Crossgates.

There are two operational funicular railways, both situated on South Bay. An additional funicular exists on the South Bay but no longer operates and two funiculars on North Bay have been demolished.

An electric tramway service with six routes was provided by the Scarborough Tramways Company between 1904 and 1931, after which it was bought by the council and replaced by omnibuses.[67]

Although the town has no ferry services, there are transport links to Hull which runs frequent services to northern Europe.

Scarborough receives its news and television programmes from BBC Yorkshire and ITV Yorkshire via the Oliver's Mount TV transmitter.

Local radio stations are BBC Radio York on 95.5 FM and community radio stations Coast & County Radio which broadcasts to Scarborough on 97.4 FM.[68] and Radio Scarborough which broadcasts on 107.6 FM.[69]

Scarborough was home to local commercial radio station, Yorkshire Coast Radio, in August 2018 the station achieved the highest weekly reach of any radio station in England with a 53% weekly reach.[70] However, in August 2020 YCR ceased broadcasting as it was bought out by Bauer Media and rebranded as Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire Coast. The radio DJs and staff were made redundant.[71] Some of the YCR team have since launched a new local station for the area, This is The Coast broadcasting online and on DAB.[72]

The Scarborough News, is the weekly newspaper for the town and local district. It was first published on 31 May 2012, as a relaunch of the former daily publication, The Scarborough Evening News. The first newspaper recorded as printed in the town, was in 1876

Dramatist Alan Ayckbourn has lived in Scarborough for many years. He has produced seventy-five plays in Scarborough and was formerly the artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre, where almost all his plays receive their first performance. Chris Monks took over as artistic director in 2009,[73] followed by Paul Robinson in 2016.

The Open Air Theatre, at the Northstead Manor Gardens, originally had a seating capacity of 6,500 (now 8,000). The Lord Mayor of London opened the theatre in 1932 and audiences flocked to see Merrie England, the opera was the first work to be staged at the outdoor venue.[74] Productions were performed during the summer seasons until musicals ceased in 1968 after West Side Story, apart from a YMCA production in 1982. In 1997, the dressing rooms and stage set building on the island were demolished and the seating removed. The last concert to be held at the open-air theatre before it closed in 1986 was James Last and his orchestra. The venue was restored and officially opened by The Queen on 20 May 2010.[75] The venue is now a prime concert locality.

The YMCA Theatre is an amateur theatre seating 290. It hosts some 35 productions a year, including musicals and dance shows.[76]

As of 2019, Scarborough has two cinemas, the Hollywood Plaza and the Stephen Joseph Theatre.

A third, the Futurist Theatre, closed in January 2014 when the operator's lease expired.[77] The building was later demolished.[78] A new multi-complex cinema development is planned for the town at The Brunswick Centre site, but full approval is yet to be confirmed.[79]

The Rotunda Museum

Scarborough has a long-established museum and visual-arts facilities. Wood End, the former home of The Sitwells, was converted into the Woodend museum,[note 1] a creative centre including workspace for artists and the digital cluster, plus an exhibition space.[80] The Rotunda Museum underwent a multimillion-pound redevelopment to become a national centre for geology.[81] 2006 also saw the formation of a creative industries network called 'Creative Coast' comprising artists, designers, writers and other creatives with the shared vision of a culturally vibrant economy on the North Yorkshire coast.[82]

The Rotunda Museum nowadays forms part of the Scarborough Museums Trust. The other part is the Scarborough Art Gallery, which houses the collections of fine arts since 1947. This gallery is based in a Grade II*Italianate villa, Crescent Villa, that was built in the 1840s.[83]

For a short time, a walkthrough attraction called 'Millennium' operated at the end of Sandside near the Harbour. Created by local amusement owner Henry Marshall in a former sail loft, the attraction depicted 1000 years of Scarborough's history. It opened in 1993 but closed in 2002.[84][85][86]

Scarborough has a considerable graffiti culture, with as many as 20 artists currently active. There are two areas where graffiti art is legal in Scarborough: Sainsbury's basketball courts / all-weather pitch and Falsgrave Park wall. Both have seen many collaborations and murals.

The Grade II listed Scarborough Spa complex is home to the Scarborough Spa Orchestra, the last remaining seaside orchestra in the UK.[87]

The globally successful pop / soul singer Robert Palmer spent his teenage years in Scarborough, attending Scarborough High School for Boys'.[88]

During the late 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, Scarborough band Little Angels were one of the best known hard rock bands in the UK. Their third and final studio album, Jam, peaked at No. 1 on the UK charts in early 1993.[89] Chris Helme of The Seahorses, Eliza Carthy, Ashley Hicklin, Oliver Knight and Sophia Wardman, also attended schools and colleges in the area.

'Acoustic Gathering', a free one-day music festival, has been held annually in Peasholm Park, since September 2005. This features over 20 bands and singer/songwriters from all parts of the UK including a number of local groups and musicians, all performing from the bandstand in the centre of the lake.[90] Finnish idols winner Koop Arponen filmed his video for the song, "Young and Foolish" in the town, and One Night Only shot the video for their hit Just For Tonight, mostly along Scarborough foreshore.

The films Little Voice,[91] Possession, and A Chorus of Disapproval[92] were filmed on location in Scarborough and surrounds. Also shot in the Scarborough (borough) & North York Moors are over 90 films, documentaries and various TV programmes. Films include An Inspector Calls, Miranda, Dancing Queen, Beltenebros, The Brides in the Bath, Screwed, The Damned United, Scarborough, A is for Acid and Saint Maud. Television series filmed in the area include Heartbeat, its spin-off series The Royal, CBBC's All at Sea, BBC1's Rosie, BBC1's Remember Me, German TV crime drama, The Search, scenes from the second series of Five Days and an episode each of Barbara, Coronation Street & Last of the Summer Wine. The 2015 series of The Syndicate starring Anthony Andrews, Melanie Hill and Lenny Henry also filmed scenes in Scarborough.[93] A sitcom named Scarborough was filmed in the town in 2019. The show being the brainchild of Derren Litten the creator of ITV hit Benidorm was based on a group of friends who meet up for Karaoke nights in the town.[94][95] The show first aired on BBC1 on 6 September 2019 in a primetime Friday night slot (9:30 pm) the day before transmission the first two episodes were given a 'world premiere' to an audience at the Stephen Joseph Theatre.[96][97] The third series of reality TV show Celebs on the Farm, was filmed on location in the outskirts of the town, in 2021.

• Leider, Emily Wortis (14 October 1990). "A writer's resort". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
• Page, William, ed. (1923). "The Borough of Scarborough". A History of the County of York North Riding: Volume 2'. Victoria County History. Institute of Historical Research. pp. 538–560.