Old Windmill Theatre, Great Yarmouth

The Old Windmill Theatre sits on Marine Parade, right on Great Yarmouth's Golden Mile, and is one of the few surviving family-run variety venues on the English seaside. Housed in a distinctive building topped by mock windmill sails, it has been staging traditional summer-season variety shows for decades: a mix of comedy, magic, music, tribute acts and speciality performers, presented in the classic seaside format of two houses a night.

Inside you'll find an intimate auditorium that keeps the audience close to the stage, which suits the fast-paced patter of variety comics and the sleight-of-hand routines the venue is known for. The programme changes across the season and often features long-standing resident performers alongside guest acts, giving the theatre a strong sense of continuity with the golden age of British seaside entertainment.

It's an easy walk from the Britannia Pier, Pleasure Beach and the seafront gardens, so a show at the Old Windmill fits neatly into a traditional day out in Great Yarmouth. Performances run mainly through the summer months, with occasional shows outside the main season. Check current listings before travelling, as the schedule varies from year to year.