Built for wealthy Victorian holidaymakers as the biggest hotel in Europe, Scarborough’s iconic Grand has stood proud since 1867, perched high on the seafront, just metres above the sandy South Bay beach.
So for many in the town, it has been embarrassing to watch the Grade II-listed building suffer a sad reversal of fortunes in recent decades, becoming the “shame of Scarborough”.
The grandeur of the “Yorkshire Riviera” has been left behind and an April midweek getaway costs as little as £37 a night, with the most recent reviews describing the hotel in extremely derogatory terms.
Now a Tory mayoral candidate has set his sights on reviving the fortunes of the Grand.
Keane Duncan, the Conservative candidate for York and North Yorkshire, has vowed to ensure “the Grand is grand once again” if he becomes mayor next month by buying up and renovating the venue, which has been owned by Britannia Hotels since 2004.
In what might appear a bizarre election pledge, the 29-year-old former Daily Star journalist is promising to use his mayoral powers to spend public money to forcibly seize the Grand, “returning Scarborough to its glory days”.
He said: “Once a symbol of the town’s prestige, the Grand today stands tall above the seafront as the shame of Scarborough.
“It’s holding back the town’s potential and damaging its prospects. This is a situation that cannot be allowed to continue.
“So I’m ready to take bold action. I’ll buy the hotel, using new mayoral powers and funding to wrestle the hotel from Britannia’s hands.”
The hotel faced an extra tier of controversy in 2021 when it began to be used by the Home Office to house refugees fleeing the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, a move that was unpopular among many locals.
Duncan, a former leader of Ryedale district council, admitted the multimillion pound investment was “radical”.
The hotel, which hosted Winston Churchill during a party conference, and King Edward VIII, who visited when he was Prince of Wales, is not currently up for sale. While Duncan hopes to agree a sale, he said he was prepared to resort to compulsory purchase powers if required.
He said: “I’ll ensure the Grand is grand once again, restore it so it’s a building we can be proud of.
“It will herald a new era for the whole town, restoring pride, kickstarting wider regeneration and returning Scarborough to its glory days.
“I admit this is a radical plan, but tackling the problem of the Grand is absolutely essential for Scarborough’s future fortunes.”
