On a disused railway track at the edge of Northumberland National Park, a railway carriage stands, its brake lights glowing red.
However, the former rail parcel van isn't a relic of the form Wannie line, which once ran from Morpeth to Reedsmouth, but another of the county's unique accommodation options. The centrepiece of The Wannies Retreat in West Woodburn, it is owned by farmers Dave and Annabel Stanners and their unusual offering is about to be given a bigger platform than ever before.
It is set to feature in the second series of Robson Green's Weekend Escapes, after the Hexham-born star announced he'd been filming there earlier in June alongside Angie Lonsdale. They stayed in the carriage and also had a perfume workshop from its viewing platform with Michelle from Scentica Studio.
Read more: Robson Green films in Weardale Valley ahead of second series of Weekend Escapes
Robson's first visit to the Wannies retreat came out of the blue, with co-owner Annabel getting just 30 minutes notice, after Robson and his girlfriend Zoila Brozas called asking if they could look around. Annabel told ChronicleLive: "It was weird, it was surreal at first, luckily we had a friend staying celebrating her mam's 70th birthday, and she thought we'd brought Robson Green to see her as a surprise!"
After that first look, a date was agreed for filming and their visit will be on BBC when series two of Weekend Escapes comes out. Annabel continued: "They were just so nice, he had Angie Lonsdale with him and they were both dead friendly.
"We've got a viewing platform with some telescopes for the dark skies and they sat out there, made their own perfume and then stayed the night and had meat for our BBQ. The next day we did more filming with me showing them around the carriage, he seemed to really love it."
Though the idea for the Wannies retreat was conceived long before the Covid pandemic, it only opened in May 2021. Annabel and Dave spent more than two years looking for the ideal carriage to fit in with the area's history and surroundings, after realising that they needed to diversify their farm.
Annabel, a former insurance broker, continued: "Obviously farming is changing all the time, but since Brexit there have been massive changes where subsidies have changed so much that farmers have to look at diversification. Where we live is rural, it's really beautiful and the location is really special.
"There are obviously glamping pods around but we wanted something a bit different and we wanted to stand out. The old Wannies railway line runs through the farm, why don't we look at putting a train back on it?"
When it arrived in October 2020, residents of nearby Ridsdale were out on the street clapping its arrival from Carnforth in Lancashire. Annabel had put chocolate bars and cards through residents doors as part of a plea to keep the roads clear!
It has become a popular spot and has had plenty of repeat guests since opening, the majority of which are from the North East. Annabel continued: "90% of bookings come from people who live within an hour.
"We've got guest in at the minuet from Newcastle, and Morpeth is a real hotspot. We've had guests from Canada and Alaska, but it's nice that local people come just to get out of the rat race of life.
"They're driving 30 - 40 minutes and staying somewhere for a couple of nights just to unwind. It's important to do that the fact that we get so many repeat guests shows that we are doing something right."
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