Hotel Continental, Dovercourt: A dive into its history

The Hotel Continental, in Marine Parade, Dovercourt, closed in 2016 after its previous owners filed for bankruptcy.

And it certainly boasts a rich, and eccentric, history.

It’s why developer Andy Little is prepared to take on the building and get it back on its feet after falling in love with the town.

We took a dive into the former hotel’s history in an effort to uncover some of its secrets, and to find out why the landmark building is such a point of intrigue to residents.

Television Star

Former owners Gordon and Blossom Hoyle

Renowned former owners Gordon and Blossom Hoyle owned the hotel between 1996 and 2016, and turning to television was their way of attempting to draw customers in.

The hotel was first shared with the nation on an episode of Channel 4’s Four in a Bed back in 2012.

The show involves B&B and hoteliers, who take turns to stay in one another’s accommodation and pay what they consider fair for their stay after giving feedback.

Guests were surprised with some of the decor, with each room decked out in a different theme.

In 2016, the cameras returned to Dovercourt as Channel 5 show The Hotel Inspector, presented by Alex Polizzi, visited the Continental.

On the TV treatment the hotel received, Mr Hoyle said: “We believed television appearances would've helped to draw attention to the uniqueness of both our hotel interior and the service we offered resulting in increased business.

“But it was too little, too late and just before Christmas 2016 we lost the battle.”

Gruelling shifts

The Hoyles, in 2018

Mr and Mrs Hoyle certainly couldn’t be faulted for their dedication to the role they took on every day for 20 years.

The couple poured every penny they earned into the business transforming all 14 rooms into quirky, one off works of art where holiday-makers could make themselves at home.

They had a core staff of six people but the couple would regularly work from 6am until the following 3am.

They rarely had a day off and they ended up buying the properties next to the hotel to rent as holiday lets.

A murder investigation

There was a surprise knock on the door one day when Scotland Yard turned up unannounced at the front door of the Continental.

It turned out a man who had stayed in the hotel had left and murdered someone, according to Mrs Hoyle.

“The murder must have happened in about 1997,” she explained, “That happened really early on when we had the hotel. A woman came to stay for the night with her boyfriend who left and murdered someone.”

“She got the boyfriend to murder her husband who was a postman. They were in room ten.

“We only found out about it when Scotland Yard turned up months later.

“A TV station made a programme about it, about the various people who were imprisoned for life. We had a part in that and they explored the room they stayed in.”

Attempts to sell the hotel… in a raffle

The hotel as it stands

In the end, devastated, the Hoyles could not fight the tide and were forced out of their dream career.

They had attempted to get the right price for the hotel but were advised it would only go for as much as £450,000 - about half of what it was worth.

They had tried so hard to make it work but eventually offered the hotel for sale via raffle tickets costing £1,000 each.

Still it was not enough. Not enough tickets were sold and the couple were declared bankrupt and the hotel closed.

Speaking in 2018, Mrs Hoyle told the Gazette: “We lost everything at Christmas 2016. It was shocking, it was a terrible time.”

Where are they now?

Nowadays, Mr and Mrs Hoyle live along the coast in Walton.

And, although they have fond memories of the hotel, they don’t want to see it any more.

In 2018, Mr Hoyle told the Gazette: “We just won’t go near it and we don’t want anything to do with it.”

Mrs Hoyle added: “I also don’t want to see how it’s changed.”

A labour of love and a lifetime’s work taken away from them. Some things will always remain raw.