A Lincolnshire B&B owner has spoken of his pride after winning Channel 4’s Four in a Bed with an impressive final bill average of 98%.
The Channel 4 show sees B&B owners throw open their doors and take turns to stay with each other, as they compete to be crowned best hosts. Last week’s competition began with Village Limits Pub & B&B on Stixwould Road in Woodhall Spa, where owner David Coulam took centre stage and showcased his business to the other competitors.
David owns Village Limits with his partner Leigh, who didn’t appear in the show as he was getting the business ready after the relaxation of coronavirus restrictions. David was instead joined on the show by his best friend of 23 years, Kim Goodman.
Filming took place last summer, about nine months before the show was aired on Channel 4 last week (February 28 to March 4), so David had to keep the outcome a secret for a long time.
Reflecting on being crowned as a winner of the show, David told The Lincolnite: “It has still not sunk in. People saw camera crews in Woodhall Spa last year and have been asking us how we got on. It was hard to keep it quiet and knowing what to say.
“I’m probably one of the biggest fans, so to be on the show was absolutely amazing. It was very diverse and to be fair every place was different which was nice.
“To then find out we’d won, as I thought we had finished second, gave me a sense of pride, and it shows off Village Limits and Woodhall Spa.
“You see the show in a different light. It’s long days with the filming and it was surprising that it was done over two weeks. On the last visit you sit around a table, in the same clothes and with the same hair style so it comes across that it was all done in one day.”
Village Limits owner David Coulam, pictured with his best friend Kim Goodman, during their time on Channel 4’s Four in a Bed. | Photo: Channel 4/Studio Lambert
The Lincolnshire business was up against three other pairs – Zoe Walton and her daughter Mia from The Old Mill in Yarm, Martin McDade and Iris Anderson from The Elan Hotel in Rhayader, Powys, and Spencer Braydon-Phillips who runs The Royal Oak Inn in Luxborough, Somerset, who was joined by his friend Gavin Reece.
There are six rooms available for up to £100 at Village Limits. Upon entering the spacious accommodation the feedback from the other three pairs in the competition was largely positive. All three pairs said they would happily stay at Village Limits again.
When the results were revealed on Friday, Village Limits received a full payment of £100 from Zoe and Mia. They received under payments of £2 (from Martin and Iris) and £5 (from Spencer and Gavin), but that didn’t stop the Lincolnshire firm from running out worthy winners with a final bill average of 98%.
Zoe and Mia from The Old Mill finished in second place with a final bill average of 92% after two full payments from two teams, and an underpayment of £45 from Spencer and Gavin.
The Elan Hotel finished in third, originally with a final bill average of 74%, but this dropped to 56% after tensions boiled over between two teams.
Martin and Iris received three underpayments, but it was the £40 below the asking price from Spencer and Gavin which caused the most frustration, so much so that they refused to accept it, causing a drop in score and accusations of “game playing”.
The Royal Oak Inn run by Spencer Braydon-Phillips finished fourth with a final bill average of 54%, including two underpayments and problems with the hot water, and him refusing to accept Martin and Iris’ £40 underpayment.
David and Kim saying farewell to guests Martin and Iris. | Screenshot: Channel 4
Although David was happy with how the show was edited from his perspective, as he says it showed him being himself, he thinks people’s perceptions of some of the others may be different to the reality.
He said: “It was tense [the disagreement between two of the teams], but they didn’t put everything in the show. It was a bit of a strange one, but they are all lovely people and I’ve kept in touch with Spencer, and Martin and Iris.”
He received some criticism after the show for his choice of activity – taking the guests to the Bubble Car Museum near Boston, which is not in Woodhall Spa – but he has since explained this was chosen by Channel 4 and Studio Lambert, rather than him.
What caught the eye during his guests’ visit to Village Limits, and caused some debate, was the breakfast hamper delivered to everyone’s doors rather than the guests having a cooked breakfast together. The breakfast hamper contains homemade croissants, fruit juices, cereals, and a hot element which can include a bacon roll.
The guests all enjoyed the food and praised its quality, but the overall consensus seemed to be that the guests would have preferred to sit together for a full English.
David and Kim reading through the feedback from the other guests. | Screenshot: Channel 4
David has since revealed they do usually offer a full English inside the pub, but due to coronavirus guidelines at the time of the visit to his business, they decided to do the hamper.
He believes it worked well and will now be kept as an additional option for people to choose when staying at Village Limits.
The 42-year-old has big plans for the future of his business and told The Lincolnite: “I honestly think the experience was everything I wanted it to be, with the icing on the cake of actually winning.
“We have had people ring up and congratulate us, and we’ve had more bookings come through for the rooms. If you see the rooms, to look at from the outside it looks like a motel, but now it’s been on TV and people saw inside they can see how nice they are.
“We have just taken on a new chef and will be having a whole new menu. We want to build an orangery on the side of the pub to give us more seating.
“Woodhall Spa is renowned for golf and the 1940s weekend, but hopefully this will help put it on the map. It’s a beautiful place to live.”
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The final in the latest series of road closures for works on the A1, as part of the Grantham Southern Relief Road project, has been temporarily postponed
A weekend northbound A1 closure was due to be in place between 8pm on Friday, May 20 and 6am on Monday, May 23.
However, Lincolnshire County Council said the closure has been temporarily postponed and once new dates have been confirmed they will be shared.
Works on phase three began in April this year, with the council anticipating that winter 2023 will be the completion date for the relief road.
This will be with the view to reduce congestion and carbon emissions, and provide opportunities for growth in the local economy.
The £102 million Grantham Southern Relief Road project has been led by Lincolnshire County Council, supported by South Kesteven District Council, Highways England, Greater Lincolnshire LEP, Network Rail, Homes England, the Department for Transport and local business contributions.
Safety improvements have been carried out at corner where numerous accidents have occurred in East Keal.
The council is looking into what else can be done to prevent motorists from coming off the road at Hall Corner, while police are looking into the possibility of fitting a speed camera.
A cement lorry recently overturned on the corner in February.
Lincolnshire County Council has found a slight dip in the road where Blacksmith Lane meets the A16 could be the reason why heavy vehicles travelling at excessive speed are tipping over.
It is considering whether to smooth out and realign the road, but says it is concious of the impact that closing the A16 would have on traffic and local businesses.
Several safety improvement measures have already been put in place, including ‘slow’ markings, enhanced bend warning signs and improved chevrons.
Problems have been found with the road surface on the corner. | Photo: Google Street View
Lincolnshire Police are assessing whether a speed camera on the corner would be beneficial, and will be taking speed readings in the coming weeks.
Larger barriers and longer safety fencing have been proposed by the public. However, the county council says that in order for it to be big enough to withstand the impact of overturned vehicles, the cost can’t be justified.
Either the local parish council or the country council could also explore whether to fund a reactive speed sign on the location.
Richard Davies, executive member for highways, said: “We are very thankful to the residents and members of the parish council who have given us their ideas and support in what can be done at Hall Corner. Local knowledge and personal feedback are cornerstones of what we do in terms of delivering the best solutions in the most informed way.
“There has already been much done at this bend to try and mitigate the issues faced and we now have more planned for this particular area that will go on to encourage all road users to drive accordingly in line with the road and conditions.
“I would like to thank everyone involved so far for their input. We will all work together to get the best resolution we can for Hall Corner.”
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