I’ve heard many mentions of Holkham Beach – the last scene of ‘Shakespeare in Love’ was filmed there and it’s won plenty of awards – so I was intrigued to finally see what all the fuss is about for myself.

Arriving after a lovely visit to Holkham Hall’s walled garden and grounds, I parked up and headed through the beautifully scented pine forest. Unable to see the beach as I walked I grew more and more excited to see what was on the other side of the wood. When the beach and sand dunes finally came into view I was blown away.

The beach was vast and utterly stunning! If someone had told me I was on the south coast of France I would have believed them.

It took a good ten minutes to walk from the edge of the pine forest, across the soft sand, skipping over channels of water, but this gave me a chance to take in the waves lapping gently for miles along the beach.

Taking my picnic and blanket up to one of the sand dunes, I bunkered down to enjoy my lunch while admiring the incredible views. Following my lunch, I took a glorious walk along the beach and could have carried on for miles but decided to head up to the sand dunes at the edge of the pine forest. The smell of the sea, sand and pine, combined with the beach views was breathtaking. I will definitely be returning in the spring to this rather special place.

Images by Joanna Payne