How a North East town became an ‘unlikely’ mecca for A-list celebs and a fish & chip hotspot

There’s a place by the North Sea coast that has become quite the hotspot for famous faces, particularly music icons

16:10, 14 Apr 2026Updated 17:31, 14 Apr 2026

Church Street in Seaham, County Durham.(Image: Craig Connor/ChronicleLive)

While it doesn’t have its own theatre or an arena that can seat thousands, a town by the North Sea has become quite the hotspot for celebrities, particularly globally famous music icons. Oh and once they’re there, its famous visitors can also tuck into fish and chips from two chippies rated by many as among the best in the region.

Given that it has the Utilita Arena, City Hall and various theatres, it’s never much of a surprise to see a showbiz type in Newcastle city centre; typically in one of the swankiest hotels in town like The Vermont or Dakota, or in a restaurant like Babucho, Aveika or Victor’s. It’s also never that startling to see someone you recognise from the telly up by the coast at Tynemouth or North Shields, with North Tyneside, of course, having its own Brit and Mercury award-winning prodigal son, Sam Fender, often seen in the Low Lights Tavern and been visited by an eclectic mix of stars in recent years, ranging from Hollywood great Harrison Ford to superstar DJ Calvin Harris.

But the top end of the coast isn’t having it all its own way as far as celebrity visitors are concerned. Step into the spotlight Seaham, with the County Durham seaside town, having a growing number of stars come its way. And that it is no small part to the town being blessed with its own luxury hotel and spa Seaham Hall.

Kylie Minogue on Seaham beach(Image: Facebook)

While their stays there don’t often become public knowledge until after they’ve checked out, the guest book at Seaham Hall could read like a who’s who of the music industry’s elite. Over the years and, mainly if they’ve just been playing to a packed crowd just up the road at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, or at the arena in Newcastle; the likes of Take That, Bruce Springsteen, One Direction and Lionel RIchie have all enjoyed the sumptuous surroundings of the hotel and its Serenity Spa, which has just launched a stunning new Zen Garden, as part of a £1m investment.

Last year, locals couldn’t believe their eyes when they clocked a video of Kylie Minogue going for a stroll on the sand, before realising that the clip seen by hundreds of thousands of people on social media, was actually the beach in Seaham, after the Aussie pop princess too had stayed at the Hall whilst in the North East on her Tension tour.

Seaham, home to the iconic Tommy statue, also had a famous visitor just this weekend gone, with Tom Read Wilson, runner up to Angryginge on I’m A Celebrity 2025, delighting staff by calling in at popular cafe and bistro The Lamp Room for coffee and a scone, before also being seen enjoying some R&R at the spa.

Seaham Hall

Should a A-lister find themselves in the vicinity of Seaham, they should definitely check out Downey’s , whose fish and chips have seen their appeal spread much further than their home on North Terrace. Downey’s, has been in Seaham and Roker for years and just added a new string to its bow, with the opening of its first ‘high end’ restaurant at STACK in Seaburn.

And, speaking of quality fish and chips, Seaham is also home to another North East business synonymous with them, the nationally recognised Bells, who opened a new coal mining themed chippy by the coast in 2023.