The Nation's Host

In 1936, with the opening of his first holiday camp in Skegness, Billy Butlin laid the foundations for a new era in the history of the British seaside. Today, his legacy still lives on as Butlin's celebrates its 80th year as an iconic British institution.

The Nation's Host charts the incredible inside story of Butlin's, from its origins in a British society still reeling from the economic downturn of the 1920s, to its heyday in the mid-twentieth century and the challenges posed by the arrival of overseas package holidays. Lavishly illustrated throughout with timeless images from the Butlin's archives, many of which have never been seen before, this is a unique insight into the history of a company long synonymous with the British seaside holiday.