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Harrogate Leasing

Did You Know?

When Charles Dickens visited Yorkshire’s spa town, he said ‘Harrogate is the queerest place with the strangest people in it, leading the oddest lives of dancing, newspaper reading and dining.’

When Agatha Christie went missing in 1926, it sparked a nationwide hunt to track her down. And where did she eventually turn up after 11 days? Harrogate of course. Agatha was found at The Old Swan Hotel and claimed she had suffered with amnesia.

The name Harrogate is first attested in the 1330s as Harwegate, Harougat and Harrowgate. The origin of the name is uncertain. It may derive from Old Norse hǫrgr 'a heap of stones, cairn' + gata 'street', in which case the name presumably meant 'road to the cairn'.

The city was established due to the discovery of chalybeate and its sulphur-rich spring water back in the 16th century. The first mineral spring was discovered in 1571. Over time, more springs were discovered, which led to many visitors coming to enjoy the waters.

Harrogate has some great tea rooms that offer the best Yorkshire products around! However, one of the best places is Betty’s, which is located in the heart of the city. You’ll always find the place packed with tourists, which means locals have a hard time getting in. Betty’s was established back in 1919 and has been going strong ever since. You might want to try their “Fat Rascal” scones, which are decorated with a cherry and almond face.

Harrogate is filled with plenty of brilliant architecture. One of the most popular is the grade I St. Wilfrid building, located on Duchy Road. The building was designed by Lushington Moore and is considered his great masterpiece. Another wonderful building is the grade 2 building called the Royal Hall theatre. This building was designed by Frank Matcham. This is a royal heritage building that was redesigned and opened as a museum.

Harrogate’s Turkish Baths was the unlikely choice for Malcolm McLaren, manager of the anarchic Sex Pistols, when picking a location to shoot the video for his 1984 electronic re-working of the operatic “Madame Butterfly”. The single reached No13 in the charts.

Well you know the drill with Eurovision – if you win one year, you have to host the next year. After Bucks Fizz romped to victory without their skirts in 1981, the powers that be made their mind up that Harrogate’s International Centre, as it was then called, would be the venue for 1982's contest.

The Majestic hotel opened in the summer of 1900. In its early years it was popular with celebrities, politicians and royalty from around the world. Still a hotel, it is now known as the DoubleTree by Hilton Harrogate Majestic Hotel & Spa.