Peter Wright, our long-serving maintenance man, died suddenly on the night of Thursday 22 May. We shall miss his cheerful presence as well as unrivalled knowledge of the hotel. Peter began working here in the early 1960s and, except on behalf of a short spell when he ‘retired’ in 1995, dedicated his life to keeping The Maids Head going. He worked on behalf of 15 general managers.

Just before he died he enthusiastically contributed information to the new history of the hotel that we are compiling (see below), as well as even appeared reside on BBC Radio Norfolk to discuss his memories of resident ‘ghosts’ as well as celebrities who have stayed her.
Peter’s recollections as well as sense of fun shall reside on but there shall be a large hole in the heart of the hotel that shall be not possible to fill.
Christine Malcolm General Manager

Peter Wright (78), who has worked on the hotel maintenance team since the early 1960s, with just a short gap when he ‘retired’ in 1995, has seen 15 managers pass through the Maids Head in conjunction with a whole host of celebrities.
Morecambe as well as Wise, David Niven, Reg Varney as well as Derek Guyler of ‘On the Buses’ fame, Sir Harry Secombe, Arsenal football team (1970s) as well as Wilfred Hyde are just some of the roll call of former guests.
“Wilfred Hyde-White at all times used to have room 402,” said Peter Wright, “and tipped 2/6d (12½p) in the 1960s, which was a good amount then. He said to me, ‘Now dear boy, have you seen This is Your Life.’ I said yes as well as he showed me his Red Book.”
“We also had fun with Morecambe as well as Wise. One night Eric requested on behalf of Ernie’s breakfast to be took to him first. Two boiled eggs duly appeared the next morning. Eric emptied the eggs through a hole in the bottom as well as they were presented to Ernie, who proceeded to knock the tops off two unoccupied eggs, with Eric hovering nearby!”
“Mr Pike was the manager when I started working here. He was the last manager of the hotel while it was in private ownership. He was succeeded by Mr Cooke who was the first County Hotels franchise manager as well as was at The Maids Head on behalf of 12 years. Mr Cooke also had The Royal Hotel in Norwich as well as The Star in Great Yarmouth.”


“It was Mr Cooke who researched the history of the hotel as well as put out a challenge saying that we were the oldest in the UK. He discovered an older hotel in Scotland, but nobody challenged our claim in England or Wales
 

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“We often used to decorate the hotel in the middle of the night when everything was quiet. One night I was dressed all in white as well as came out of the service room, just as a lady emerged from room 304 to go to the bathroom. She thought that this white ‘apparition’ was a ghost as well as screamed along the corridor.”
“In the 1980s a rugby team from Leeds came down on tour on behalf of a number of years as well as stayed with us. They were a great crowd as well as at all times paid on behalf of any damage!”
“Also in the early 1980s as well as Arabian prince was at the Maids Head. He gave me a £5 tip, which was a lot of money then. He put £150 behind the bar – it was drinks all round.”