Filey is the eighth best seaside resort in Britain according to a poll conducted by the consumer group Which.

Nearly 5,000 respondents ranked seaside resorts on numerous facets from beaches to attractions, peace and quiet to food and drink. Bamburgh in Northumberland topped the poll with an 85% satisfaction rating. It also received five stars for its beach, tourist attractions, scenery and value for money. Northumberland did well in the poll with Tynemouth coming second.

By comparison Yorkshire fared fairly poorly, although Filey soared in at number eight, other White Rose resorts trailed in far behind: Saltburn with its lovely cliff lift and pier was 19th; Gothic Whitby a surprising 22nd, the stunning Robin Hood’s Bay 29th and poor old Scarborough a mere 64th.

Whilst it is nice that Filey has appeared is highly in the poll, whether it reflects the reality on the ground is a moot point. Ranking towns, cities, beaches has become a stock for media outlets. Often little more than click bait (the ‘worst town in Britain to live’ type being a case in point), there are so many of these ‘awards’ it is sometimes hard to shift the wheat from the chaff.

The Which survey does have a star rating that adds some meat to the bone. But even then, comparing Bamburgh to Skegness seems ludicrous. Yes, both are by the sea, but that is where the comparison ends. What makes the British seaside such a wonderful place is the fact that we have such a varied coastline. There is literally something for everyone. Even within a resort there can be huge differences. Here in Filey there is the elegant Crescent, yards from the bucket and spade honesty of the beach, itself overlooked by the working boats of the Coble Landing. But we digress, what you want to know is how many stars we got.

We are straight into a minor controversy, the beach received four stars. Only four? This was the Sunday Times Beach of the Year. It would be beach of the millennium if there was such an award. In click bait fashion, we are outraged. Go sit on the horrid stones of Brighton beach and then think about our lovely sweeping golden sands. Four stars indeed.

More four stars follow, for the scenery. The huge expanse of the bay, sweeping around to the highest chalk cliffs in Britain, home to the world-renowned Bempton seabird sanctuary. To the north Carr Naze, jutting out into the North Sea, home to the Emperor’s Pool and breezy views into 64th placed Scarborough. They’re tough these Which correspondents. We say, go to Great Yarmouth, survey the endless flat horizon, then come back and talk to us about scenery. And give us five stars.

You may well be surprised to discover that we are delighted that Filey was awarded a mere two stars for attractions. We, and we suspect you dear readers, are overjoyed that there is virtually nothing on the promenade. Not for us the vulgar, attention seeking, instant gratification, flashing lights and pumping loud music of the ‘attractions’. There is a place for all this sort of thing, it is called Blackpool.

In a not unrelated section, Filey scores highly for ‘peace and quiet’. Yes, without the doleful litany of the bingo callers and the screams of kids being plunged to their doom on the Krypton Super Max Coaster, you have more far more chance of peace and quiet.

So there you have it, Filey is the eighth best seaside resort in Britain. We like that. But we all know that if you are the sort of person that enjoys walking your dog on the wide sandy beach, poking about in rock pools, sit listening to the band in the elegant Crescent Gardens, taking the long tramp to the ‘white rocks’ and gawping at the wrecks beneath the towering chalk cliffs, exploring the quiet roads and villages of the Wolds, watching the puffins at Bempton, then Filey is the place for you.

Filey’s elegant Crescent