Robson Green took a trip down memory lane for his new BBC series in an emotional episode that saw the star reminisce about his late dad.
The Hexham-born actor has travelled around the North East in Robson Green's Weekend Escapes, and the BBC2 series started off with Robson visiting Bamburgh and Seahouses - which he described as his "most favourite place in the world". Saying that a trip out to the Northumbrian coast "never fails to fill me with joy", the journey was also a deeply personal one for Robson.
The star opened up about his childhood, sharing his happy memories of Bamburgh as he explained that his family would head straight to the coast whenever they had a free weekend. Nostalgic Robson explained what Bamburgh meant to his parents when he was growing up, and how this had led him to fall in love with the area.
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"Mum and dad worked really hard," Robson said. "My dad was a miner most of his life, and it was the same for mum - she was a cleaner and a shopkeeper, holding down two jobs so we never went without.
"Because dad worked so hard, he'd just go to the nearest place that would give him a sense of freedom," he shared. "He would swim in the North Sea - I have this everlasting image of my father, god rest his soul.
"He'd come here in all weathers, strip off down to his red trunks, and him and his mates would just swim all the way from Bamburgh down to Seahouses - I kid you not," Robson said.
"And that's what this place does for me - I always feel free, I can always be myself. When you come to a place like this, and there's so much to do, you can always be in the present."
Later in the episode when Robson visited glamping site Bamburgh Under Canvas, which offers spectacular views of the Northumbrian countryside, he said: "I totally get why my dad spent his last years here. He had a lovely caravan in Waren Mill, and he would look out onto the ocean and Bamburgh beach."
The star then paid an emotional tribute to his dad while watching the sunrise on Bamburgh beach after spending the night at the glamping site. "You know, being here makes me think my dad had it right all those years ago," he said.
"He spent so much time underground that swimming in this cold sea was his escape. I realise now this is how my dad looked after his own mental health. And I know today of all days, he'll be with me in spirit.
"Because not only am I heading back down to Seahouses, which he loved, but I'm also going to meet one of his - and my - all-time footballing heroes." Robson then met up with Newcastle United legend Les Ferdinand to further explore the stunning Northumberland coast.
Do you have similar childhood memories of the Northumberland coast? Let us know in the comments below.
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