Full story behind the St George Hotel at Teesside Airport

But a ray of hope for the future has today (December 8) come in the form of a new deal from a successful hotelier to take over the site. 

Hardwick Hotel boss John Adamson has agreed a 150-year lease for the venue, with multi-million-pound plans in place for a hotel and conference and banqueting centre.

It follows years of uncertainty over what would become of the hotel, which has stood frozen in time since former airport owners the Peel Group shut the doors. 

The laughter of dancing punters and the tunes of the grand piano may be nothing more than a distant memory now - but the deal marks the opening of a new chapter on the hotel’s future with “exciting plans to come in the not-to-distant future”.

Teesside Airport managing director Phil Forster and John Adamson, owner of Ramside Estates, at the former St George Hotel (Image: TVCA)

And the St George Hotel wasn’t always just a hotel - its history goes much, much further back. 

Before it became the 59-suite hotel as it stands today, the St George was once part of an RAF base known as RAF Middleton-St-George, which we now call Teesside Airport. 

RAF Middleton St George first started out as RAF Goosepool in 1939, when the Government bought wet farmland on the outskirts of the village, and opened in 1941.

Battle of Britain Day in September 1959 at RAF Middleton St George

The control tower at Teesside Airport, which still stands today

During the Second World War, it became a base for the Royal Canadian Air Force, who remained there until 1945, flying Vickers Wellingtons, Halifaxes and Avro Lancasters.

And when the men wanted time to socialise, eat, or hold other professional events, they would head to the mess.

The officers’ mess and accommodation was what later became known as the St George Hotel, which is said to be one of the least altered buildings of its kind in the country.

The land around the hotel has changed drastically since the days of the war however, with construction on a runway extension and passenger facilities starting in 1957. 

The airport was brought into public ownership for the first time in 1964 when the first civilian flight, a Mercury Airlines service to Manchester, took off on April 18 from the newly renamed Tees-side Airport (written exactly like that). 

Tees-side Airport on February 13, 1965

While practically everything has been altered and extended at the airport over the last 80 years, there are some reminders of its past, including bunkers and pillboxes. 

The control tower also is the same one that graced the airport in the 1960s, the decade in which the officers’ mess became the St George Hotel as it stands today. 

Between the sixties and its closure in 2018, the St George became known for not only hosting excited travellers before they jetted off out of Teesside but Christmas parties, weddings, and various other events. 

The building was refurbished several times over the years but sadly, in 2018, its future was thrown into jeopardy after Peel announced it was consulting with staff over its future. 

St George Hotel at Teesside Airport (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

The company said challenging market conditions and financial losses were behind the decision at the time, saying that significant investment would be required to renovate the building due to its age and condition. 

The hotel was closed just days before a deal was struck between Peel and the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) to acquire the airport and the hotel. 

It meant that the venue, which had been stripped of its assets through auction and all staff made redundant, was handed over to the authority in its closed-down state.

Inside the St George Hotel (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

The hallways of the hotel

Since then, the building has been used by police to train tracker and sniffer dogs - but, as The Northern Echo found earlier this year, some hotel rooms still house fixtures and fittings. 

While it might have been a while since any guests have stayed in the building, some say it is still home to a string of other-worldly residents.

The hotel is said to still be haunted by the ghost of Raymond Thomas Norman, who died after his plane crashed into Room 52 on November 24, 1951.

A newspaper cutting of an image of the crash

There is also talk of Room 44 being home to its very own coat hanger-twitching poltergeist, which you can read more on here.

One part of the hotel site that still attracts visitors is the statue of Canadian Andrew Mynarski, who was one of the airmen stationed at the base. 

Mynarski was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery in trying to rescue his trapped Lancaster bomber crewmate as their plane went down over France in 1944. 

The Andrew Mynarski statue (Image: Newsquest)

The statue proudly stands directly in front of the hotel - and Teesside Airport has already confirmed that the new deal safeguards the memorial. 

However, it is not yet known if the plans announced this week include regenerating the current hotel or tearing down the building and erecting something in its place. 

John Adamson, the owner of Ramside Estates, which also runs the Impeccable Pig in Sedgefield and The Pin at Ramside Hall, said: “I’m hugely excited to have secured this agreement and the major opportunity this site provides. 

“The appeal of the hotel can be seen in what’s happening in the wider Teesside area when it comes to projects like the freeport, the airport’s growth and the prospect of more flights in the future.

Walking to the St George Hotel from the airport

The ballroom in the St George Hotel (Image: THE NORTHERN ECHO)

“The demand is there. This will be a multi-million-pound development and I’m looking forward to us working together on plans for the hotel in the years to come.”

Phil Forster, managing director of Teesside Airport, added: “This is a huge vote of confidence in our airport and securing the backing of someone with the stature, expertise and calibre of John is a big coup.

“We know the hotel means a lot to people and holds a lot of memories for those who stayed and used our airport over the decades.

“To have the Ramside name backing the hotel is a huge boost. We can now open a new chapter on the hotel’s future with some exciting plans to come in the not-to-distant future.”

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “To have Ramside Estates and John behind our airport offering their invaluable experience and expertise at the former St George Hotel is fantastic. 

“The hotel welcomed tens of thousands of people through its doors during its past – and, with Ramside’s backing, it’ll be great to see the site transformed to welcome many thousands more in the years to come to create jobs and help attract investment.

“Our airport is on the up with more flights and more international companies coming to Teesside and expanding here, so to have Ramside on board is another huge boost, and I’m looking forward to our airport forging even closer ties with the group and John in the years ahead.”