‘Possibly the friendliest place I have ever stayed in,’ writes a reader in 2019, of Brendan McDonagh’s ‘exquisitely beautiful’ Tudor black-and-white B&B in a quiet Old Town cul-de-sac. ‘Every one of the bedrooms is perfection,’ says another, who stayed every week for a year. ‘From the moment you arrive there is a warm welcome and you are offered refreshments.’ The front door leads straight into the lounge/breakfast room, ‘with roaring log fire in winter’, blond sofas, bare floorboards. Designer flourishes are the work of Brendan’s partner, Lionel Copley (see previous entry, The Old Rectory). A ground-floor bedroom has double wooden doors on to a pretty patio garden. Upstairs rooms, furnished ‘in a way that suits the property’s old style’, have beams, wonky floors, ‘super-comfy bed with the highest quality sheets’. Brendan cooks breakfast to order with ‘home-made preserves and freshly squeezed juices. All the food is delicious but I can highly recommend the eggy bread with bacon!’ There are many nearby options for eating out and, of course, ‘Brendan is always helpful with dinner recommendations and sorting taxis’. ‘Highly 
and warmly recommended.’ (Duncan Sprott, 
and others)