Thistleyhaugh Farm

Sadly we have just heard that this fine example of a traditional farmhouse B&B: huge and comfortable bedrooms and generous hospitality has closed its doors and is no longer welcoming guests. The Nelless family’s organic farm feels remote (down a network of country lanes), yet is only two miles from the main road. ‘A wonderful and peaceful location in rural Northumberland,’ say fans. The creeper-covered Georgian farmhouse, surrounded by gardens and farmland, is picture-book-perfect. Inside, Enid Nelless’s passion for art and antiques is clear: polished tables, collections of silver and china, paintings and sketches fill the rooms. Bedrooms are elegantly old-fashioned – mahogany wardrobes, ‘proper towel rails and dressing tables’, pretty lampshades and broderie anglaise bedcovers. All rooms have fresh milk and home-made biscuits; there are roll-top baths in the bathrooms. Enid and her daughters-in-law, Zoe and Janice, are praised for their ‘endlessly helpful’ manner, whether suggesting walks or nearby pubs, or drying muddy clothes. ‘Lovely’ breakfasts include home-produced bacon, eggs and honey from neighbours, and local Craster kippers. (HP)