Sheringham

Sheringham lies on the North Norfolk coast between Weybourne and West Runton.

The poet Stephen Spender (1909-1995) used to spend his holidays in Sheringham. His family leased a house on the cliffs here called 'The Bluff' and Spender was greatly inspired by the nature and landscape of the area. He recalls it fondly in his autobiography World With World (1951). Later he attended Gresham's School near Holt - where W.H. Auden was also a pupil.

The Great Eastern Railway Line, which opened in 1883, brought many Victorians to the North Norfolk coast - including Clement Scott. Scott, who was a theatre critic and writer, helped to popularise the area by referring to it as 'Poppyland'.

The Sheringham to Holt section of the line was closed during the Beeching closures of the 1960s - but a group of volunteers reopened it again in 1975. It is now commonly known as 'The Poppy Line' - although poppies are less evident these days due to the use of modern herbicides.

Sheringham was also the childhood home of Allan Smethurst - aka the Singing Postman.

Links:

The North Norfolk Railway