Seaton Carew hotel is scrapping 'canoe man' branding after ITV John Darwin drama

The owners of the Staincliffe Hotel in Seaton Carew, near Hartlepool, are keen to distance themselves and avoid glorifying the crimes of Darwin, who was jailed in 2008.

The story of John and his wife Anne Darwin captivated the nation when news of John’s reappearance broke in 2007 and has now been turned into a gripping four-part ITV drama, The Thief, His Wife And The Canoe, 

Outside the hotel a sign advertises the venue’s fine dining “Darwin Room” restaurant – but it won’t be up for much longer.

The seafront hotel is next to the couple’s former home and its restaurant was named after their neighbour and regular visitor in 2012 following his release from prison.

Read more: Where is canoe man John Darwin now? His life revealed after ITV drama

Owner Lisa McParland took over the business in November and has recently rebranded it’s former “Canoe Room” into a new sports bar.

“We shouldn’t publicise what he’s done,” she told The Northern Echo. “And I don’t know why they named it after him anyway - it’s crazy.”

In 2008, Sinatra's Bar, in Seaton Carew, was renamed The Seaton Canoe.

Customers were challenged to come up with a new name for the pub and win £100, but no one came up with the name owners Richard and Angie Lakey had in mind.

But despite the recent fanfare, and renewed national focus on Seaton Carew, locals haven’t witnessed a huge influx of visitors since it was first aired.

The Staincliffe Hotel in Seaton Carew

Although the couple’s crimes are well documented locally, they took place over 20 years ago and any gimmicks adopted by business owners at the time have now been dropped.

Ms McParland added: “We had a couple of reporters in the run up, maybe four or five weeks ago, but that is it.”

Meanwhile, the actors taking on the roles of John Darwin and his wife Anne have come under fire from viewers for their “geordie” accents – a view also shared by locals in Seaton Carew on Tuesday.

“I watched it once and the voices annoyed me so I couldn’t watch it again,” Ms McParland added. “I’m not from Hartlepool but it is annoying.”

“I was watching it to see if I could see the hotel but I had to turn it off. They just sound nothing like Hartlepool people.”

John and Anne Darwin's former house in Seaton Carew. Picture: SARAH CALDECOTT

At the Seaton News, the shop's owner said many customers had been discussing the new ITV drama and spotting the local filming locations. But the issue of local accents has repeatedly been brought up.

She said: “They said it sounds more Geordie. There’s been a few residents pointing out how it wasn’t shot where it actually happened.”

Read more: How to watch ITV's John Darwin 'canoe man' drama before anyone else

The owner said they had visited the Headland area of Hartlepool while filming was taking place last May while film crew personnel also visited her shop during the filming process.

Other businesses on The Front acknowledged the current ITV drama but said the large crowds and long queues were thanks to the Easter holidays and sunny weather.

The saga surrounding Darwin and his wife Anne started when he was seen leaving his home on March 21, 2002.

He paddled out to sea in his canoe near his home in Seaton Carew, just south of Hartlepool, and disappeared.

The Darwins were eventually prosecuted for fraud and were jailed in 2008

Failing to arrive at work later that day, John was reported missing, prompting a massive sea search.

All that was found was a double-ended paddle and the wreckage of John’s red canoe: the man himself was nowhere to be seen, declared legally dead.

That is until he walked into a London police station five years later and, feigning amnesia, announced: “I think I am a missing person”.

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