Hemingway Design have been commissioned to turn the neglected 1958 Overstrand building on Boscombe seafront into ‘super surf pods’ to accompany Europe’s first artificial surf reef with all the mod-cons expected by the 21st century surfer and holiday maker.

Wayne Hemingway says: “We love Bournemouth and the Boscombe Overstrand project is ... the restoration of a cool, historic building. The Overstrand project excites us both as designers, and as people interested in seaside regeneration. It’s about celebrating mid-century modern architecture and allowing the local community to fall in love with the Overstrand all over again. We are designing wonderful, unique beach chalets for both surfers and beach lovers alike. We want to re-establish a sense of community on Boscombe seafront by creating something modern and unique, yet still retain the purity of this historic building.”

The seafront already has generated a number of hotel investments linked to the surfer market, characterised by the Urban Beach Hotel. This boutique property, with its bedrooms bar and bistro has been created in 2007 from a traditional Bournemouth seaside property built at the height of the Victorian development of seaside resorts linked to the growth of the railways. Each of the twelve rooms has been individually designed with walnut or oak furniture, the ultimate in mood lighting and extra touches of luxury from around the world, such as Egyptian cushions, oriental headboards and one-off pieces of art. In addition the rooms have wireless internet connections, flat screen TVs, DVD players with a wide selection of films to borrow, and slick bathrooms.

Always a busy resort, these type of developments will increase Bournemouth’s reputations as a destination for the young and funky, and place it not as Gods Waiting Room but as one of the South Costs boom towns