No, really…
The area around Bournemouth is now being targeted as a prime spot for overseas investors outside London.
This puts the Dorset town in good company along with Harrogate, Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon.
But why Bournemouth?
Better known to most as a refuge for retirees and party political conferences, its beach was last year voted Best beach in the Britain, and, surprisingly, the fourth best in Europe by Trip Advisor.
While it remains a great bucket-and-spade destination, the town has been glamming it up quite a bit lately, with an £11million designer makeover on the seafront at Boscombe, new beach ‘pods’, created by Wayne Hemingway, a pier refurbishment, new water sports academies, bars and restaurants.
In February, Sotheby’s International Realty opened an office in Bournemouth to sell superhomes to the super rich in the top districts of Branksome Park, Canford Cliffs and Sandbanks.
Rumour has it that interest is high and a couple of wealthy Russians have already bought in the area, drawn by the beach and good private schools nearby, such as Sherborne and Canford.
Bournemouth still has some way to go to smarten up its image. A few little (?) things I noticed a couple of weeks ago on a stroll through the town: at the right hand entrance on to Bournemouth pier ugly grey rubbish bins greet you; the former pier swimming pool/IMAX building – and empty for eons – is an eyesore; the wrought iron work around the terraces of the Pavilion theatre is rusting; the former elegant Westover Rd is decidedly tacky and looks unloved; and there are no plants or flowers in the large concrete containers in the pedestrianised Commercial Rd, just beyond The Square.