Events at the Bank House Hotel

The Times loves King's Lynn and Bank House

Did you see Nicholas Roe's article in The Times 9th Feb, 2013?

(Editor's note - Nicholas's only mistake was to miss out on Sunday lunch at The Rose & Crown in Snettisham! But we couldn't keep him all to ourselves!)
We’re off to north Norfolk for the weekend, which isn’t far from where we live — so why does it feel like a wild and adventurous thing to do? It is, we agree as the road unwinds, because Norfolk’s on the way to absolutely nowhere else, so the edges of this flat but attractive county have a frontier feel that is quite exciting.
Soon we come to King’s Lynn on the banks of the Great Ouse River, a few miles inland from the coastal mysteries of the Wash. And here, amid a surrounding bustle of shopping precincts, we discover a medieval town that’s so much a reflection of olde England we are immediately won over. It’s brilliant.
So beautiful, in fact, they built it twice, or so they tell us down at the quayside in the 17th-century Custom House, a fine building that nowadays houses the tourist information office and a museum. King’s Lynn was once an important trading centre developed by the Church in the early 12th century, then extended to the north 50 years later as an entirely new town — complete with duplicate market place, duplicate church and second lavish guildhall. They’re all still standing, these magnificently unnecessary civic monuments, and we spend a couple of hours enjoying the double-vision.
Nelson Street proves especially atmospheric, filled with perfectly maintained houses up to 600 years old in a world of their own, so calm that when we emerge at the other end, the ugly postwar shopping areas seem like a crude joke. That’s exactly what this town’s all about, though. Some parts are wonderfully ornate; others are plain shabby. We stick to the good bits, and there are enough to keep us happy. Both guildhalls and many old trading houses near the water are fascinating, and the churches — St Margaret and St Nicholas — are unusually imposing for a town of just 42,000.
Sneaking down a riverside path we discover a £1-a-go ferry that whisks foot passengers over to West Lynn on the far bank, from where visitors can walk back along the river if they fancy a three-mile stroll (I do it by myself later that night, enjoying the atmosphere of all that dark water).
Before that, Lynn Museum reveals the mysteries of Seahenge, a 4,000-year-old oak stockade famously dragged from the shifting sands on the nearby coast in 1998. Better still, we visit True’s Yard, a fishing and community museum in the northern part of town, where the lives of fishermen who still cling to King’s Lynn are recorded and celebrated. The Queen has visited this tiny museum, they tell us; so has the Prince of Wales. But then, Sandringham is just down the road.
As night falls we retire to our quayside hotel, the Bank House, which is another pleasant discovery. The 11 rooms in this Georgian building are beautifully designed and spacious, the view from our window revealing misty riverboats blinking their nightlit way downstream to the Wash. Over breakfast the next morning we notice young men queueing by one of the most attractive old buildings in town, barely a hundred yards away, and our friendly waitress informs us that this is, in fact, the local probation office and the young men are queueing for community service — modern life once again imposed on a rather attractive historic backdrop.
As a Sunday fog descends, we drive a few miles to the RSPB nature coastal reserve at Snettisham where it’s too misty to see far, though we make out waders, gulls and bar-tailed godwits picking at mudflats, and it’s a bracing walk. Lunch is good, too. The Black Horse at Castle Rising, just outside King’s Lynn, is big and interesting in a pleasantly old-fashioned way; the landlady calling us “love” as we order roast pork and almost-local beer (well, Suffolk). We’ve enough time to look round the nearby 12th-century Castle Rising ruins, where towering earthworks and a deep dry moat surround a Norman keep, silences broken by the flapping of a single flag, high on the uppermost tower. Then home we go, cheered by a trip to nowhere.
Need to know
Where to stay
The Bank House Hotel in the heart of King’s Lynn old town has modern rooms, with large bathrooms. Doubles start from £100, but it’s worth paying £140 for the Captain’s Room, best in house (01553 660492, thebankhouse.co.uk).
Where to eat
The Bank House restaurant is buzzy and offers a mix of upscaled classics such as gammon steak, chips and egg (£10.95), with more interesting dishes such as roast belly of pork with Bombay potatoes, coriander and mint chutney (£13.50). Alternatively the Riverside Restaurant in King’s Street has a more formal style (01553 773134, theriversiderestaurant kingslynn.co.uk).
More information
visitnorfolk.co.uk

What's On in North Norfolk Summer 2013

Sunday 17th March J S Bach St John Passion  at 6.30pm performed by the King’s Lynn Festival chorus in St Nicholas Chapel, King’s Lynn. Tickets £29 and £15 (£5 under 18s)from KL Corn Exchange 01553 764864 or on the door. www.klfc.org.uk

 25th March - 31st October Glamour and Gowns, Holkham Hall, NR23 1AB
Holkham Hall www.holkham.co.uk

22 - 30th April Titchwell's Fabulous Wildlife 

Sat 4th May 9.30am Farmers' Market, Creake Abbey, Nr Burham Market
http://www.creakeabbey.co.uk/

Sun 5th May GEAR 10K run, King's Lynn www.kingslynnonline.com

Sat 11th -12th May - Wings Over Titchwell Weekend, Titchwell Marsh RSPB
NB: Visit www.RSPB.org.uk for full list of events at Titchwell and Snettisham RSPB
Tel: 01485 210 779 email: titchwell@rspb.org.uk 

12th May 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk

17th May - 29th Sept. The big cultural event in North Norfolk for 2013 is Houghton Revisited

This is an exhibition of the great Old Master paintings collected by Robert Walpole (England's first prime minister, King's Lynn MP twenty one times and builder of Houghton Hall). These pictures were bought by Catherine the Great at the end of the 18th Century to furnish The Hermitage and have been there ever since. For five months, from May to September, they are being loaned by the Russians back to Houghton.
Visit www.houghtonrevisited.com to book your tickets and phone The R&C on 01485 541382 to book your accommodation.


May 23rd - Sun 26th May Houghton International Horse Trials, Houghton Hall, King's Lynn
www.houghtoninternational.co.uk

Sat 25th May Plant Lovers' Day, Creake Abbey, Nr Burham Market
http://www.creakeabbey.co.uk/

 Fri 7th June Wildlife Walk NWT Holme Dunes.  In search of natterjacks and moths
Tel: 01603598333 www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk

Sun 9th June 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk
Sat 29th June Opening night Festival Too Tribute Band tba with fireworks in King's Staithe Square and outside bar. Bank House is the place to be.

Mon 24th June - Sun 7th July  Wimbledon 2013. Relax with a delicious strawberries and cream tea and watch the world's greatest tennis players on the Bank House big screen.

 Fri 5th and Sat 6th July Festival Too Concert in Tuesday Market Place, King's Lynn

Mon 8th July Wildlife Walk, King's Lynn TIC, The Custom House, Purfleet Quay, King's Lynn PE30 1HP
The Natural and Unnatural History of King's Lynn. www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk

Fri 12th and Sat 13 July Festival Too Concert in Tuesday Market Place, King's Lynn

Sun 14th July  - Sat 27th July  King's Lynn Festival
www.kingslynnfestival.org.uk
Festival Too www.festivaltoo.co.uk

Sun 14th July - 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk

Thurs 18th July 6pm Bank House,King's Lynn
George King Cocktail Duo, Piano and Double bass www.thebankhouse.co.uk

 Tues 23rd July Houghton Hall, Race for Life www.raceforlife.org

Tues 23rd July 6pm - 6.45pm Bank House, King's Lynn
Buy a Beer Concert Flute and guitar

Wed 24th - Sun 28th July Norfolk Coastal Operas, St Mary's Church, South Creake and Granary Theatre,Wells-next-the-Sea  Yorke Trust Summer Opera and Seastar Opera
A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Turn of the Screw, Britten Centenary Seminar
http://www.yorketrust.org/

Sat 27th and Sun 28th July Holkham Country Fair 2013
www.holkhamcountryfair.com

Wed 31st July Sandringham Flower Show
www.sandringhamflowershow.org.uk

Sun 11th August 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk

Fri 16th - Sat 17th August Jelly Festival, Compton Hall, South Creake, Nr Fakenham
http://www.festivalmag.com/festivals/jellyfest/

Sat 7th - Sun 8th Sept Sandringham Game and Country Fair
www.sandringhamestate.co.uk

Sun 8th Sept 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk

 Tues 17th Sept Heritage Day, King's Lynn, free admission to many interesting buildings in King's Lynn

27th - 29th September King's Lynn Poetry Festival
http://www.lynnlitfests.com/Welcome.html

 Sun 10th Oct 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk
1st - 3rd November Burnham Market Book Festival www.burnhambookfestival.co.uk


Sun 10th Nov 4pm - 7pm Bank House Jazz Evening, King's Lynn
George King's Cocktail Jazz www.thebankhouse.co.uk

9th November - 23rd December Thursford Christmas Spectacular www.thursford.com

Contact Information

Creake Abbey www.creakeabbey.co.uk
Holkham Hall www.holkham.co.uk
King’s Lynn Arts Centre 01553 779095
King’s Lynn Corn Exchange www.kingslynncornexchange.co.uk 01553 764864
King’s Lynn Museum www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk 01553 775001
King’s Lynn Town Guides. King's Lynn Tourist Information Centre - 01553 763004
Princess Theatre, Hunstanton www.thelittleboxoffice.co/princess
RSPB Snettisham www.RSPB.org.uk
Thursford Christmas Spectacular www.thursford.com or phone 01328 878477.
True’s Yard Museum, King’s Lynn www.truesyard.co.uk 01553 770479


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