Four beaches in the North East have been picked out as among the best in the North of England.
The Sunday Times has published its "comprehensive and exhaustively researched annual gazetteer of the British coast".
And Bamburgh, in Northumberland, which recently played host to Hollywood star Harrison Ford and an Indiana Jones film production crew, got the top spot in the North of England list.
Read more: Northumberland seaside village named one of the most beautiful in the UK
Second place went to Runswick in North Yorkshire, followed by Sandsend and Hunmanby Gap, both also in North Yorkshire.
But fifth place went to Roker, in Sunderland, sixth to Boulmer, in Northumberland, and seventh was Beadnell, also in Northumberland.
Woolacombe, in Devon, was named overall 2021 Beach of the Year.
This is what Chris Haslam, from The Sunday Times, said about the North East beaches:
Bamburgh, Northumberland
"I’ve been unkind to Bamburgh in the past, variously describing the sands beneath the crag-like castle as a monster, a Siberian wasteland or a savage that repaid the effort of reaching it with hypothermia and exfoliation.
"This year was different. With the curse of the north wind lifted, the Beast turned into Prince Charming. The silica-rich sand glittered and T-shirted visitors blinked in the warm sunshine, scattered like Lowry’s stickmen along a beach that stretches for nearly two miles, from Harkess Rocks and Black Rock Point Lighthouse on the left to Greenhill Rocks.
"Getting from the car park across the dunes to the beach isn’t easy, so travel light — you’ll need a windbreak, a kite and a picnic. And be aware that the nearest loos are back across the dunes in the car park or opposite the village green. There’s no wheelchair access but the charity Beach Access North East is working on providing free loans of Hippocampe all-terrain wheelchairs here and also at Beadnell."
Roker, Sunderland
"Sunderland’s post-industrial seaside is an exemplar of coastal regeneration, and a lesson for all resorts on what can be achieved with a little money and a lot of imagination.
"In 2010 the city’s seafront-regeneration strategy set out to transform Roker and neighbouring Seaburn into “playgrounds for the people”.
"Roker has come out ahead, helped by the mesmeric red curve of the North Pier and the striped lighthouse. Old council buildings have been turned into cafés and bars, and the Marine Walk promenade has been designed to invite exploration.
"At its heart is a sheltered beach of golden sand best suited to those who want to play, with the excellent Marine Activities Centre offering paddleboarding, kayaking, coasteering and pier-jumping."
Boulmer, Northumberland
"Push on past the barbed wire of the RAF station and you’ll find what feels like one of the few vestiges of auld Northumbria: a string of seaside cottages, a pub with a reputation and a seaweed-scattered beach of windswept sand.
"That pub — the Fishing Boat Inn — has gone upmarket now, with £180-a-night rooms in the adjoining beach house. But about 200 years ago the landlord Isaac Addison and Scottish gypsy king Wully Faa ran a cartel-style smuggling operation here.
"At low tide you’ll see that the beach is sheltered by the razor-sharp rocks of the Reins reef, split by two narrow channels; and if you follow the coast path north for a mile or so you’ll find Sugar Sands beach, and probably have it all to yourself. And it’s pronounced “Boomer”, OK?"
Beadnell, Northumberland
"When Beadnell first featured in this guide in 2013 it was a modest, little-known beach — a hook of sand sheltered by a Georgian harbour offering a cove-like calm on an otherwise boisterous coast.
"There was a free car park, a small caravan site and, apart from the dog walkers, little else. Eight years later Beadnell seems to be on the cusp of a Croyde-like transformation; there’s a pop-up doing lobster and another offering wagyu burgers.
"Planning permission has been granted for a two-storey restaurant and, in the village, the Beadnell Towers boutique hotel offers upmarket pub grub on a heated terrace.
"Those dog-walking locals are worried that it won’t be long before Londoners arrive in search of lattes and cheap property. I share their fears and can only hope that Northumberland county council is smart enough to keep Beadnell real."
