MILLIGAN'S, the North-East's largest independent family-run bakery which runs 42 shops, restaurants and cafes in the region, has expanded its operations into Harrogate.

Milligan's Bakery, based on the Newburn Industrial Estate in Newcastle, has invested in Oliver Twist's, a new Dickensian coffee house at the Victorian Centre in Harrogate town centre.

Oliver Twist's is the sixth Dickensian-style coffee house to be opened by the bakery, and follows its first move into North Yorkshire last year, when it opened Mr Jingles at the Brunswick complex in Scarborough.

Managing director Stephen Milligan said that since the company was formed in 1946 there had been a steady expansion, and the time was right for the company to make its second move into Yorkshire.

He said: "We believe the current trend is to move away from self-service cafes and back to table service. This site in Harrogate is ideal, as it is close to a very busy main street, and the premises was already an existing caf."

The coffee house has undergone an interior and exterior refit and is similar to Milligan's other Dickensian coffee shops - Copperfields, at Eldon Gardens in Newcastle, the Palm Court, at the Gateshead MetroCentre, Mr Pickwick's, in Carlisle, and Mr Bumbles, in Kendal.

Mr Milligan said: "Staff at Oliver Twist's, like our other five Dickensian coffee shops, are dressed in traditional black uniforms with white collars and aprons because this is the type of service people are expecting these days."

Oliver Twist's, previously known as le Soleil, was owned and run by Peter Rathbone, who has joined Milligan's as brand manager, in charge of all the Dickensian coffee shops.

He said: "It has been given a more olde worlde look in keeping with the Dickensian theme, which is very appropriate for a town like Harrogate. The emphasis is very much on being a family restaurant.

"There are entrances into the Victorian Centre and also on to the piazza. There are currently seats for more than 100 people, but in the summer we will be able to extend on to the piazza and serve outdoors."

* Milligan's was set up by Stephen's grandparents, Norman and Joan Milligan, who moved to Newcastle after being trained in the bakery department of Barrow-in-Furness Co-op.