Tears of joy – and sorrow – flowed when a Bournemouth hotel won a hat-trick of awards and was also named ‘Winner of Winners’ at this year’s Dorset Tourism Awards.

The virtual, and socially distanced, ceremony saw the Marsham Court Hotel win the categories for:

• Business Events & Wedding Venue
• Dog Friendly Business
• Hotel of the Year

It also received the ‘Winner of Winners’ award.

An emotional Rosie Radwell, Managing Director, pointed out that the February 4 awards fell on World Cancer Day.

Nearly four years ago her mother, Jennie Deavin, pictured left with Rosie and brothers James and Russell, passed away at the age of 68 after a five-year battle against cancer.

Rosie, who appeared on screen with her dog Treacle, said: “To have a drink in memory of Jennie was a great way as a family to honour her legacy that she passed down to us.

“She lived and breathed the hotel industry.

“We are both delighted and astonished to have won Gold in not one, not two but three categories, especially after such a difficult year.

“We have invested heavily in the aesthetics of our event spaces and our dog friendly offering over the last few years and have continued to plan and invest in the future of the hotel whilst being hopeful for a strong recovery after the pandemic.

“These awards will give the Marsham Court great kudos with our guests past and future; however, none of this could have been achieved without a strong and passionate team behind us.

“It has given all of us a huge boost and is great recognition for all of their hard work.

“The icing on the cake was being announced as the Winner of Winners.

“Our thanks must go to Robin Barker and his team and all the sponsors who helped make these awards happen.”

A total of 91 entries were received for the awards with 60 selected as finalists.

Organiser Robin Barker, pictured left, of Services for Tourism, said they celebrated “all that our fantastic hospitality and tourism businesses have achieved in this incredible year”.

He added: “It would have been very easy to cancel the awards this year.

“We did think long and hard about it, but the level of early entries we received in spite of everything, and the creativity and determination shown, inspired us to find a way to make this happen.

“Your responses and feedback ever since have completely blown us away, so for that alone – a huge thank you.”

Guests taking part in the virtual ceremony included Sara Uzzell, pictured right, Deputy Chair, Dorset LEP, who described the awards as “a much needed boost in these tough times”.

She said: “It has been inspiring to see the energy, innovation and positivity about the future from all the participants in the awards process.”

Clare Bushby, of headline sponsors Clockwork Marketing, said: “We are incredibly proud to share this genuinely memorable day with the finalists of the Dorset Tourism Awards.

“Huge congratulations to all the winners – what a fabulous day of good news and celebrations for Dorset hospitality businesses.”

The full results were:

1. ACCESSIBLE AND INCLUSIVE TOURISM AWARD sponsored by Yellow Buses

Gold
• HolidayInDorset, Birchcroft, Ferndown
Silver
• West Bay Discovery Centre, West Bay
Bronze
• Ellwood Cottages, Blandford Forum
• West Bay Play Area, Bridport Town Council
Commended
• Pause Cat Café, Bournemouth

2. B&B AND GUESTHOUSE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Goadsby

Gold
• Dorset House, Lyme Regis,
Silver
• St John’s Guest House, Weymouth
Bronze
• Mory House Bed & Breakfast, Southbourne
Commended
• Channel View Guesthouse, Weymouth

3. BUSINESS EVENTS & WEDDING VENUE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Saffery Champness

Gold
• Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth
Silver
• Upton Country Park, Poole

4. CAFÉ/TEAROOM OF THE YEAR sponsored by Clipper Teas

Gold
• Picnic Park Deli, Bournemouth
Silver
• Seasons Kitchen and Coffee Barn, Ringwood
Bronze
• Pause Cat Café, Bournemouth
Commended
• Upton Country Park Tea Rooms, Poole

5. CAMPING, CARAVANNING AND HOLIDAY PARK OF THE YEAR

Gold
• South Lytchett Manor Caravan and Camping Park, Poole
Silver
• Durdle Door Holiday Park, Lulworth
Bronze
• Swanage Coastal Park, Swanage

6. CASUAL DINING AWARD sponsored by Dorset Food & Drink

Gold
• Fish ‘n’ Fritz, Weymouth
Silver
• Oriel on the Quay, Poole
Bronze
• Peppina, Swanage

7. DOG FRIENDLY BUSINESS OF THE YEAR sponsored by Forthglade

Gold
• Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth
Silver
• Upton Country Park, Poole
Commended
• Polygon Pets Ltd, Poole

8. ETHICAL, RESPONSIBLE & SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AWARD sponsored by Bournemouth Water

Gold
• Pause Cat Café, Bournemouth
Silver
• Farmstead Glamping, Sturminster Newton
Bronze
• Bridport Tourist Information Centre, Bridport
• Sculpture by the Lakes, Pallington, sculpturebythelakes.co.uk
Commended
• English Oak Vineyard, Poole

9. EXPERIENCE OF THE YEAR (ACTIVE OR LEARNING) sponsored by Dorset Tourism Association

Gold
• Jurassic Coast Guides, Milborne St Andrew
Silver
• Shore Campers – Campervan Hire, Bournemouth
Bronze
• Fore/Adventure, Studland

10. GLAMPING BUSINESS OF THE YEAR sponsored by Tozers

Gold
• Farmstead Glamping, Sturminster Newton
Silver
• Dorset Forest Garden Glamping, Beaminster

11. HOTEL OF THE YEAR sponsored by Saffery Champness

Gold
• Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth
Silver
• The Bull Hotel, Bridport
• The Grange at Oborne, Sherborne
Bronze
• RNLI College, Poole

12. INTERNATIONAL VISITOR EXPERIENCE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Dorset LEP

Gold
• Jurassic Coast Guides, Milborne St Andrew

13. LARGE VISITOR ATTRACTION OF THE YEAR sponsored by Pear Communications

Gold
• The Tank Museum, Bovington
Silver
• Smugglers Cove Adventure Golf, Bournemouth

14. NEW TOURISM BUSINESS AWARD sponsored by Visit Dorset

Gold
• The Cross Keys, Sherborne
Silver
• Shore Campers – Campervan Hire
Bronze
• Hammoon Manor – Luxury Retreat ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’, Sturminster Newton
Commended
• The Tunnel Tree Tops, Charmouth

15. PUB OF THE YEAR sponsored by Lovegrove Essentials

Gold
• The Half Moon, Melplash, halfmoonmelplash.co.uk
Silver
• The Cross Keys, Sherborne
Bronze
• The Milton Arms, Blandford Forum

16. RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Dorset Food & Drink

Gold
• Al Molo, Weymouth
Silver
• Moose Kitchen, Charminster
Bronze
• Zim Braai Ltd, Poole
Commended
• Shalims Indian Restaurant, Weymouth

17. SELF CATERING ACCOMMODATION OF THE YEAR sponsored by Quality in Tourism

Gold
• Burnbake Forest Lodges & Campsite, Corfe Castle
Silver
• Dove House and Swallows, Dorchester
Bronze
• Hammoon Manor – Luxury Retreat ‘Far from the Madding Crowd’, Sturminster Newton

18. SMALL VISITOR ATTRACTION OF THE YEAR sponsored by Resort Dorset

Gold
• Nothe Fort, Weymouth
Silver
• Sculpture by the Lakes, Pallington
Bronze
• English Oak Vineyard, Poole
Commended
• Dorset Falconry Park, Dorchester
• West Bay Discovery Centre, West Bay

19. TOURISM EVENT/FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR sponsored by Hall and Woodhouse

Gold
• White Star Running – Run Jurassic 2019, Bridport
Silver
• Sculpture by the Lakes – Dorset Arts Festival 2020, Pallington
Bronze
• Dorset Festivals Consortium – Dorset Moon 2019

20. TOURISM INNOVATION AWARD sponsored by Worldpay

Gold
• The Grange at Oborne, Sherborne
Silver
• Sculpture by the Lakes, Pallington

21. UNSUNG HERO AWARD sponsored by Clockwork Marketing

Unsung Heroes
• Heather Brown, Dorset Foodie Feed, dorset.foodiefeed.co.uk
• Kellie Court, Tangerine Café & Gallery, Beaminster
• Yessica Falcon, Bournemouth Tourist Information Centre, Bournemouth

22. VISITOR INFORMATION SERVICE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Yellow Buses

Gold
• Bridport Tourist Information Centre, Bridport
Silver
• Shaftesbury Tourist Information Centre, Shaftesbury

23. WINNER OF WINNERS sponsored by Dorset LEP,

• Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth