Bridport Archives - West Bay Cottage

Things To Do Around Bridport On A Rainy Day

Susan Things to do, West Dorset 15/02/202229/07/2025Bridport, Family-friendly 0 Comment

The weather forecast takes on an extra significance when you’re on holiday. You don’t want to see grey clouds and raindrops. We hope you’ll be spending your holiday under clear blue skies but help is at hand if rain does make an unwelcome appearance. Read on for some local attractions and activities that are perfect to make the most of a wet and windy day.

You may believe that there is no such thing as the wrong weather, just the wrong clothes. Indeed we’ve been out in a gale with near horizontal rain and waves crashing over us on the pier and it’s been a lot of fun, rather salty and very memorable. This photo is not a black and white one! But this post is not for the (foolhardy?) all-weather adventurers, it’s for people who want to stay warm and dry, especially if you have a family to entertain who may not share a love of the great wet outdoors.

Go Ten-Pin Bowling

The Jurassic Fun Centre at Freshwater Beach Holiday Park in Burton Bradstock has six full-sized American 10-pin bowling lanes. Do ring to book ahead.

Go Swimming

You’ll not stay dry but you will keep under cover if you go to the Jurassic Fun Centre to visit their indoor pools, best for younger children with slides and other water features. Again ring to check availability and book.

Bridport Leisure Centre has a 25-metre, six-lane main pool. They also have fun sessions with inflatables, see the timetable on their website.

Visit A Soft Play Centre

If you’ve small children then rain doesn’t need to stop play with several indoor soft play areas in the area.

Bridport’s latest indoor soft play centre is the Reef Soft Play at Seal’s Cove. Suitable for primary school children (aged 12 and under) it has a sectioned off specifically for children aged 0-3 years. Also at Seal’s Cove, for older children (from 5+) and adults, is Jurassic Ridge, South West’s newest indoor climbing centre. The centre has routes for beginners and stronger climbers too. You can grab a drink and watch all the action from the viewing galleries too.

Vurlands Animal Farm and the Eggcup has a soft play area in their Play Barn. Their tearoom serves delicious home-cooked lunches and cream teas.

Highlands End in Eype has The Little Fire Station Soft Play area for children aged 6 and under.

The Community Waffle House in Axminster has created a small indoor soft play area for under 4’s. They also have some retro computer games older children can enjoy, plus a library of board games. Not forgetting the waffles of course.

See A Film

In Bridport the Electric Palace shows films occasionally. The nearest multiscreen is the Odeon in Dorchester.

Visit A Museum

Still looking for something family friendly? We have the award winning West Bay Discovery Centre just a few minutes walk away but if you want a day trip there’s loads of museums in Lyme, Dochester and beyond.

In East Devon there’s the Beer Quarry Caves. It doesn’t matter what the weather is like when you’re in a cave!

Enjoy Some Live Music

Have a look at what’s going on locally. Check out the guides for the Electric Palace and Bridport Arts Centre. Many of the local pubs and bars have live music regularly too, with some starting in the afternoon at weekends. A good bet is The Ropemakers. Look at Lemonrock to see listings for the area.

For Antique And Vintage Lovers

It may be too wet for the alfresco courtyard café but you will stay dry wandering around The Customs House Emporium, housed in an old listed warehouse near East Beach in West Bay. Lots of individual traders sell an eclectic mix of stuff, both old and new.

Antique and vintage lovers should also make a beeline to The Alleyways Bridport Antiques Centre in the Art & Vintage Quarter on St Michael’s trading estate in Bridport. It has 50 traders under one roof and is open every day.

For Art Lovers

From The Alleyways you can also visit the large art gallery Global Art Galleries and Bridport Vintage Warehouse at Unit 61. It has paintings for sale by a range of different artists with an eclectic and extensive number by the world’s most prolific reformed art forger, William ‘Billy The Brush’ Mumford. Painting versions of the works of many famous painters and passing them off as originals, he was eventually jailed for two years after putting more than £6 million in fake works through some of the art world’s best-known auction houses. He now recreates pieces legitimately under his own name.

Just around the corner from the cottage the art gallery at Sladers Yard sells contemporary British art, very lovely and expensive handmade furniture designed by local craftsman Petter Southall and designer craft by leading artists, designers and makers. Downstairs you can eat locally produced lunches, snacks and cakes in the gorgeous rustic café.

You can shelter from grey skies within the white walls and vibrant works of Artwave West, a contemporary art gallery based in Morcombelake, Dorset, just a short drive from Bridport. The gallery exhibits a frequently changing, collated and diverse range of British and international award-winning contemporary artists.

For Beer Lovers

Palmers Brewery have been brewing ales non-stop since the 18th century in the lovely old thatched brewery on the way into Bridport from West Bay. Take a tour and as you walk through the buildings you will learn about each of the stages involved in the process before a spot of beer tasting at the end. Tours run daily at 11am, Monday to Friday all year round and last two hours. Book in advance.

Put Your Feet Up!

Of course, you could always stay dry and warm by staying in before venturing out when the rain dies down. Light the woodburner and relax with a good book perhaps, you’re on holiday. If you’ve read all this and haven’t yet booked accommodation for your trip to the area, we’d love to welcome you to West Bay Cottage. Take a look inside the cottage if you wish, or head to our Book With Us page for availability, the rates and how to book.

Dorset Knobs

Susan West Dorset 07/03/201806/10/2025Bridport, eating, history 0 Comment

With a name guaranteed to invoke much hilarity among children, Dorset knobs are a local speciality. Read on if you are interested in finding out more about them:

Originally Dorset knobs were made from leftover bread dough with added butter and sugar, hand-rolled and left to dry in the dying heat of the oven.
These days they are still made from bread dough which contains extra sugar and butter. They are rolled and shaped by hand and baked three times. Once cooked, they are roughly the size of a golf ball, very crumbly and rather like a dry, hard breadstick. They keep crisp and tasty in a tin for months. Don’t be fooled by the picture, they are much crispier than a bread roll.
It is thought their name comes from the hand-sewn Dorset knob buttons that were also made locally. They have also been compared, in size, to door knobs.
In the past there were a number of producers of Dorset knobs. Today the only firm to produce them commercially is Moores Biscuits. They have been making them for more than 130 years. The knobs are now baked in Moores factory in Bridport.
The company makes roughly two million knobs a year but only during January and February. The 8 – 10 hour process means they are not economically viable to produce for longer. By the start of March the demand for sweet biscuits has increased again after the New Year lull and the company returns to its profitable and less labour-intensive biscuits.
They can be eaten with cheese (traditionally Blue Vinny), dipped in tea or cider, or taken with honey and cream. This is known locally as thunder and lightning.
Dorset knobs were a favourite food of local author Thomas Hardy. He liked them with stilton cheese.
The Dorset Knob Throwing Festival made a comeback in 2024 following a five-year break. While the main attraction is the knob throwing, there are various other ‘knob games’ which include Knob Painting, Splat the Knob, Knob or no Knob, Putt the Knob, Knob and Spoon Race, Guess the Weight of the Big Knob, Knob Darts, Knob Pyramid and Pin the Knob on the Cerne Abbas Giant. In 2025 a new knob throwing record was set, with a distance of 32.05m narrowly beating the previous record of 31.9m.
Dorset knobs are normally sold in a bag or tin in Dorset delicatessens, farm shops and independent food stores. I think our nearest stockist is Harbour Gifts and Groves Nursery. They would make a nice little present to say thank you to someone who has been watering your garden / feeding your goldfish / looking after your hamster (etc) while you holiday in West Dorset. But be warned, supplies are limited. When they’re gone, they’re gone, until next year anyway.

If you fancy a holiday near the home of the Dorset knob we’d love to welcome you to West Bay Cottage! Please take a look inside the cottage or head to our Enquire and Book page for availability, the rates and how to book.

Shopping In Bridport

Susan Things to do, West Dorset 02/03/201818/04/2018Bridport, shopping 0 Comment

Bridport is only a five minute drive away, or a twenty-five minute stroll from our cottage. You can find many of the well known high street shop names there, including banks, supermarkets, newsagents and chemists. But what makes shopping in Bridport different from any old generic high street is its many independent shops and market. It’s a cool place to wander around.

The Market

You can easily spend a morning browsing Bridport’s street market, held every Wednesday and Saturday. Friendly traders fill the pavements in front of the shops of South, East and West Streets with stalls selling books, ancient tools, clothing, furniture, pots, vintage jewellery, flowers and plants, local foods, books, bric-a-brac, brass things, antiques and various other curiosities and miscellaneous items. Think of it a cross between a traditional market and a flea market. Definitely worth a rummage through some junk to find your treasure!

On most market days between February and September there is live music for shoppers in Bucky Doo Square in front of the Town Hall. The town also has a monthly Farmer’s Market at the Arts Centre and a Vintage Market within the Art and Vintage Quarter in St Michael’s Trading Estate.

The Shops

Don’t worry if it’s not a market day, there are lots of interesting shops to explore. These include a huge Toymaster toyshop (where we spent many hours when our daughter was little), several galleries, a yarn and a sewing shop, a shop devoted to hats (T Snooks), a hardware shop, a music shop and several book shops. The Book Shop, housed in a building that dates back to the 1830s, is a Bridport institution with an extensive Dorset section. Who could resist a second-hand bookshop called Wild and Homeless Books? For a unique gift Malabar Trading on South Street is a treasure trove of Asian textiles, jewellery and ceramics. Bridport is recognised as a Beacon Town for the quality and variety of its locally produced food. Alongside several supermarkets there are smaller groceries and independent butchers, bakers and green grocers. One of them, R Balson, is Britain’s oldest family business.

The Art & Vintage Quarter

Situated near to the centre of town is the Art & Vintage Quarter where you’ll find The Alleyways with over 50 traders under one roof. You’ll be surrounded by artists, sign writers and artisans plus a collection of antique, vintage and retro shops. A place you can happily lose yourself and drift back in time. If you are keen on collecting vinyl you’ll wonder where the time has gone after stepping into Clocktower Music. Enjoy it all while you can as there are plans afoot to convert some of the space into housing.

Getting There

When you holiday in our cottage it’s worth making a few trips to Bridport. The downside of the lively, busy market is trying to park on Saturday mornings. It’s best to get there early or walk. There is a choice of ways to walk from West Bay. You can head up the same way as the cars but it’s more interesting to follow the old railway line footpath from the play area. Or you can take the footpath at the back of the local caravan site. This path goes through fields, along the River Brit, and comes out near Palmers Brewery.

Of course I’ve only mentioned the shopping in Bridport here. There’s also a museum, loads of pubs, great places to eat and three arts venues. Click here for some details and links.

If you’ve read all this and haven’t yet booked accommodation for your trip to the area, we’d love to welcome you to West Bay Cottage. Take a look inside the cottage if you wish, or head to our Book With Us page for availability, the rates and how to book.

Dorset Apple Cake

Susan Places to eat and drink, West Bay, West Dorset 08/01/201808/08/2025Bridport, eating 0 Comment

What better way to cheer up a cold grey day than a slice of Dorset apple cake with, if you like, a dollop of thick cream or custard? Most apple growing counties make some kind of apple cake but the one from Dorset has become the most well-known. It’s a regular in local bakeries and cafés and won a competition to be named the county’s ‘National Dish’ in 2006, held as part of Dorset Food Week that year.

The Recipe

To use up some leftover cooking apples I decided to bake a Dorset apple cake. What better cookery book to turn to than The Piddle Valley Cookbook, full of “the favourite recipes of the people of the Piddle Valley”? My mum bought it years ago when we lived in Dorset near the valley. That’s her notes in the margin. It’s now a bit dog-eared and you can find it, back in Dorset, in our West Bay cottage.

It has two recipes for Dorset apple cake. The first one looks a little plain. It uses margarine rather than butter which I expect is a sign of its time as the book was published back in 1978. The second recipe isn’t a traditional cake mix at all with no sponge but a bread-crumb, orange, butter and sugar crumble on top of stewed apples.

Interesting, but not what I was envisioning for my Dorset apple cake.

I turned my attention to the internet to find a recipe. Oh my, there are so many different variations. Cinnamon, sultanas or lemon? Wholemeal, plain or self-raising? Mary Berry, Waitrose or BBC Good Food?

A couple of years ago the Guardian newspaper carried an article on “How to cook the perfect Dorset apple cake”. The writer used a variety of recipes and experimentation to come up with her own ‘perfect’ apple cake recipe. But does this make it authentic?

The writer in this article liked best the cake made by Bridport’s Leakers Bakery. He even interviewed the baker but sadly she wasn’t giving away her recipe “handed down and tweaked” since 1914.

The recipe from the Dorset Foodie Family blog looks a good one. The post has a reader’s gallery of Dorset apple cake photos too.

I ended up plumping for this recipe, “Greg’s Dorset apple cake“. It’s the one which won the 2006 competition and includes sultanas and lemon but no spices. Here’s a photo, work in progress.

The Verdict

Yum. That’s it in the top image. We’d already had a few warm slices before I thought of taking a photo which, to be frank, wouldn’t win any food blogger prizes. Why didn’t I move the oven glove and put it on a nice plate? Anyway, very nice and lemony, and not a bit like the one I had just before Christmas in the Watch House Café on the beach in West Bay.

So it seems there is no definitive recipe. As long as the ingredients include apples with brown sugar sprinkled on top, then yup, you can call it Dorset apple cake. Do you have a favourite apple cake recipe? If so please share it here by leaving a reply. As for me, that’s enough typing, I’m heading off to the kitchen while there’s still a small slice left. Best eaten fresh – what a drag 🙂

If you’ve read this and now fancy a holiday where you can eat Dorset apple cake in lots of the local cafés and tea rooms (and who wouldn’t) we’d love to welcome you to West Bay Cottage! Please take a look inside the cottage or head to our Enquire and Book page for availability, the rates and how to book.

Inspiration For Your Romantic Break

Susan Things to do, West Dorset 06/10/201712/05/2026Bridport, coast, eating, Eggerton Hill, walks, West Bay 0 Comment

Do you want to whisk someone off on a fabulous romantic break? West Dorset is a perfect destination. Perhaps some of these ideas will inspire your romantic escape to our cottage for that special getaway!

Enjoy a countryside walk and the dreamy scenery of gentle rolling hills.
Stroll around the harbour together with an ice cream or a bag of chips.
Simply take to the South West Coast Path and gaze at the beautiful coastline.
Feast your eyes on the blanket of bluebells across Eype Down in late spring.
Enjoy an afternoon cream tea at the West Bay Tea Rooms or The Seaside Boarding House.
Visit Bridport on a Saturday where you can meander all morning perusing the market, record and book shops, cool cafés, antique and craft stores.
Walk along a beach holding hands.
Pack a picnic and head to a scenic spot, perhaps Hardy’s Monument, St Catherine’s Chapel or a local beach.
Fly a kite on Eggerton Hill.
Tour a vineyard and enjoy a tasting at Furleigh Estate, a vineyard and winery.
Set off in a rowing boat and take in the glorious scenery while drifting along the River Brit.
Walk through the woods on Langdon Hill.
Take to the skies on a champagne balloon flight.
Take a portable barbecue and supplies to a secluded beach for an evening supper.
Head to Bridport early evening for a movie or a show at the art deco Electric Palace.
Get yourselves down to the pier at dusk, look towards Lyme and watch the sun sinking over the sea. You may be rewarded with a beautiful sunset.
Enjoy a candlelit meal in one of West Bay’s restaurants or pubs.
Make the most of Dorset’s dark sky and gaze at the stars together.
Snuggle in front of the wood burner in the cottage.

Feeling the love? So why not channel your inner Bridget Jones and visit West Dorset for a Full-Blown Mini-Break Holiday Weekend, or stay longer and explore all that the area has to offer. If you haven’t yet booked accommodation we’d love to welcome you to West Bay Cottage. Take a look inside the cottage, or head to our Book With Us page for availability, the rates and how to book.