Newcastle, Co Down is a northern delight

AT ONE end of a magnificent beach running the length of the town, stands a massive, austere red-brick building, looking sideways out to sea.

The town is the popular seaside resort of Newcastle in Co Down, about 50 minutes across the border, and the building, which has an almost Gothic feel to it, is the Slieve Donard hotel.

The exterior was used to portray the mysterious Hotel Splendide in the movie of the same name, starring Daniel Craig and Toni Collette, in 2000 — something I discovered in the wonderful little ‘museum’ in the lobby, along with other titbits about the hotel which was purpose-built for wealthy holiday-makers in the late 1890s.