Mill Rythe
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Mill Rythe Holiday Village is a
holiday camp A holiday camp is a type of holiday accommodation, primarily in the United Kingdom, that encourages holidaymakers to stay within the site boundary, and provides entertainment and facilities for them throughout the day. Since the 1970s, the term ...
in
Hayling Island Hayling Island is an island off the south coast of England, in the borough of Havant in the county of Hampshire, east of Portsmouth. History An Iron Age shrine in the north of Hayling Island, later developed into a Roman temple in the 1st cent ...
, Hampshire, England. Originally called Sunshine Holiday Camp, it opened its doors to the public in the early 1940s and had also been used by the
Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
during the war and for holidays with their families after
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Sunshine Holiday Camp was owned by a local management team, Freshfields and was eventually bought out by
Pontins Pontins is a British company operating holiday parks in the UK, founded in 1946 by Fred Pontin. It was acquired by Britannia Hotels in 2011. Pontins specialises in offering half-board and self-catering holidays featuring entertainment at reso ...
in the 1960s. It was later bought by
Warner Warner can refer to: People * Warner (writer) * Warner (given name) * Warner (surname) Fictional characters * Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, stars of the animated television series ''Animaniacs'' * Aaron Warner, a character in '' Shatter M ...
in the 1980s and became known as Mill Rythe Holiday Village. After a few years, Warner decided to merge with Haven with the ownership of Mill Rythe Holiday Village. During the 1990s the ownership of the holiday camp changed a few times. It was close to administration and closing down in 2008. In September 2010, newly formed holiday park operator, Away Resorts bought the park.


Mill Rythe history

The Sunshine Camp was originally a farmhouse, Hudson’s, with some land and modest surroundings. Building of the holiday camp started in 1938 but was not finished due to the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and holidays were put on hold. Hayling Island played a major role in many aspects of the Allied war effort during WWII and had been in the forefront of the pre-war holiday camp boom and created ideal accommodation for the many thousands of service personnel drafted in to train on the island. Sunshine Holiday Camp was taken over by the
Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
and was the location of HMS ''Northney'', a dockyard facility for
landing craft Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...
repair and maintenance. Hayling Island was chosen as the location for
D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
rehearsal Fabius 2 to prepare for the Normandy landings and the invasion of mainland Europe. From the end of the war, through the 1950s and into the early 1960s the holiday camp industry thrived and Hayling Island became a popular destination for holidaymakers. Roebuck 1982, p. 174. The camp was eventually bought out by Pontins in the 1960s from local management operator Freshfields. However, by the 1970s the popularity of holiday camps began to decline as people began to holiday abroad taking advantage of new, cheap
package holiday A package tour, package vacation, or package holiday comprises transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided such as a rental car, activities or outings during the ...
s. Ward, Hardy 1987, p. 171. The holiday camp was eventually bought by
Warner Warner can refer to: People * Warner (writer) * Warner (given name) * Warner (surname) Fictional characters * Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, stars of the animated television series ''Animaniacs'' * Aaron Warner, a character in '' Shatter M ...
in the 1980s and changed the name of the camp from Sunshine Holiday Camp to Mill Rythe Holiday Village. After a few years, Warner merged with Haven and became part of
Rank Group The Rank Group plc is a gambling company based in the United Kingdom. Rank was involved in the cinema and motion picture industry until 2006, and continues to use the Gongman logo originally used by the Rank Organisation's film distribution su ...
Holidays Division. In the 1990s and after nearly a decade of ownership, the village changed hands a few times to minor companies and was close to going into administration in 2008. In September 2010, Mill Rythe was bought by holiday park operator Away Resorts. Since the acquisition, Away Resorts has invested over £2.5 million into the holiday camp with continuous plans for further renovations and improvements.


Entertainment

Mill Rythe hosts a variety of entertainment weekends with breaks targeted at both adults and families. The facilities include a ballroom, indoor swimming pool and a restaurant.


Influence

In 1977, Mill Rythe was the setting for the British comedy film ''
Confessions from a Holiday Camp ''Confessions from a Holiday Camp'' is a 1977 British comedy film directed by Norman Cohen and starring Robin Askwith. It was written by Christopher Wood. The film was released in North America in 1978 under the title ''Confessions of a Summer ...
'' starring Robin Askwith and directed by Norman Cohen. The popular BBC sitcom ''
Hi-de-Hi! ''Hi-de-Hi!'' is a British sitcom created by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and produced for the BBC. The programme initially began with a pilot on 1 January 1980 and aired for nine series between 26 February 1981 and 30 January 1988, and starre ...
'' used Mill Rythe for establishing shots and other exterior scenes. More recently, BBC soap opera ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
'' shot scenes at the holiday village in 2014.


Bibliography

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Bibliographic notes


References


Websites


External links

*{{Official website, https://www.awayresorts.co.uk/parks/hampshire/mill-rythe/ Holiday camps Hayling Island