Until 15 years ago, for me to have a holiday was like giving caviar to a pig. It was totally wasted. I started working when I was 14, and I love working. Work is my way of expressing myself, and if I went on holiday and could not do that, I would get very depressed. So I tended to avoid holidays as much as possible. Then, in 1999, I lost everything and had a breakdown, so my brother and my ex-wife forced me to go away.
I was very unwell, and they had to tie me into the back of the car and force-feed me sweet drinks, while I stared out of the window with no idea where I was going or what was happening. They drove me to Ronda, in Andalusia, which I found to be one of the most beautiful and inspiring places in the world. When we stopped in the mountains, it was as if someone had switched the light back on. I slowly began to start living once more.
Ronda is a beautiful town. It’s built on a ridge in the midst of the Serrania de Ronda mountains and is split in half by a great, gaping river gorge. We stayed in El Juncal, in the middle of the mountains. It’s a very modern place, like a boutique hotel. Not what you would expect to find, but a very pleasant surprise.
What really got me excited were the local specialities and produce. In all the restaurants, you find wonderful cooking — with olive oil, pork, cheese, fruits and honey — but the best is a place called Tragabuches. It got a Michelin star in its first year, which is very rare in Spain — especially in a small place such as Ronda.
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One of the ironic things about Spain is that what you actually eat is usually far superior to what you read you are going to eat on the menu. This is the opposite of where I come from.
Katie Melua, singer-songwriter
THE ONE thing that really impressed me when I was in Alicante a couple of years ago was the music.
We went to a local restaurant one evening where there was a family of flamenco players who were so amazing, I felt that they should have been playing at the Albert Hall, not in the local tapas bar. A 12-year-old girl was singing and dancing, and other family members were playing guitar and castanets. They played with such great emotion and zest that I couldn’t believe all of this was going on while people were dining.
Ricky Tomlinson, actor
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WE GO TO a caravan half a mile outside Benidorm three times a year. It’s probably the oldest caravan in Spain.
People expect me to have a villa, but what do I need a villa for? The site is one of the top holiday resorts in Europe, with three pools and a great restaurant where you can get a four-course meal for a fiver.
Rita likes the sun, but I don’t. I see some of those young fellas running along the beach in their thongs. I was going to get one, but Rita said: “It’ll cost £20 for a thong, and every time you bend over, £20 worth will be up your arse.”
Peter Hain, politician
I LOVE Spain. It has a special informality and sense of welcome. There’s no prissiness when you go into bars and restaurants. Elizabeth and I often go to Estepona, southwest of Malaga. It’s still quite Spanish, nothing like Torremolinos. Then, in the mountains behind, you’ve got beautiful white hilltop villages such as Casares and Gaucin.
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We are really boring slobs when we’re there. We both like hot weather, so we get next to a pool with a few beers or a bottle of wine and read. I love thriller writers like Gerald Seymour and Craig Thomas. It’s perfect, really — as a cabinet minister, by the time you get to August, you’re so knackered that you’re looking for total chillout.
Rosemary Leach, actress
THE FIRST time I was in Spain was in the 1970s. I was filming Don Quixote, and we were based in La Mancha, which was very hot and dusty. I hired a car and went off to explore wonderful places such as Toledo, Guadalajara and Cuenca.
Spain was relatively unspoilt in those days — it was like stepping back in time, wandering through these narrow streets lined with medieval houses. There are parts that still have that slightly forgotten quality. I also find the fact that it’s right on the end of Europe rather magical.