I never imagined that running a small guest house in Southport would one day lead to Larissa and me having our photograph taken by an internationally recognised fine-art photographer! But that’s exactly what happened.
This year, Marketing Southport launched Southport 2026: Elegantly Eccentric, a year-long celebration of the town’s culture, creativity and character. As part of the launch, Sefton Council and Culture Liverpool commissioned photographer Julia Fullerton-Batten to recreate Fortunino Matania’s famous 1936 travel poster, Southport for a Holiday in Wintertime. Somehow, Larissa and I ended up being part of the modern-day version.
Photograph by Julia Fullerton-Batten
We were invited to take part following what was a pretty amazing year for us at Sunnyside. We’d won double Gold at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, and had received quite a bit of attention for the work we’ve been doing at the guest house.
We’re used to welcoming guests, making breakfast and worrying about whether there’s enough homemade cake for the guests we’re definitely not used to being in front of a professional photographer! The photograph was taken outside the historic Garrick Theatre on Lord Street. It was quite a strange feeling standing there knowing that the image was going to be used to promote Southport throughout 2026.
Julia was lovely to work with, and watching her bring the whole thing together was fascinating. There was a lot more to creating the photograph than simply standing in front of a camera!
Anthony and Larissa next to a poster from the campaign
Being involved in the campaign has been a very proud moment for us. I lived and worked in Southport all my life and I am genuinely passionate about the town. A big part of running Sunnyside is helping our guests discover Southport and encouraging them to explore beyond the obvious tourist attractions. Being asked to help promote Southport feels like a lovely recognition of something we’ve always believed in.