The history of TLH Leisure Resort goes back to 1947 when the Murrell family first started the business as a 28 bedroom hotel. Today, although greatly expanded from its small beginnings, TLH is still owned and managed by Laurence Murrell and his family. So many memories and so much hard work and dedication to build TLH Leisure Resort into what it has become today.
The Derwent is the largest of the TLH hotels, and as you might have guessed it was originally a series of separate properties. Belgrave Terrace (known commonly as Belgrave Road) was built during the late 1800s by a Mr J Harvey and featured mainly private accommodation with a few select “boarding establishments”. The black and white picture at the top of this page shows Belgrave Road aka Belgrave Terrace circa 1899.
The name "Derwent" can be traced back to 1913 when the owner of a property further up the road a Mrs F Gibbs, moved into the property and brought along the name “Derwent Private Hotel and Boarding Establishment.” The Murrell family took ownership of the Derwent in 1947, when it was a boarded up building containing just 28 bedrooms, considerably less than the 175 we have today! Food, of course, was also rationed and the first guests had to bring their coupons with them. Guests used to stay for full board from Saturday to Saturday at the cost of 7 guineas (the equivalent of £1.05 per day for those of you too young to remember).Within twenty years of opening, the Derwent could boast 160 rooms, and all of them en-suite, which was considered a luxury at the time.
