My Yorkshire: Tony Earnshaw

What's your first Yorkshire memory?

Paddling around and splashing about in the rock pools at Robin Hood's Bay. I must have been about three. I remember both the cliffs and all the detritus left by the sea. When I went back there about three years ago, all those memories came flooding back. Funny what a whiff of the ozone does to you.

What's your favourite part of the county – and why?

Whitby, purely by accident I've found myself there at various periods and times in my life – as a toddler, as a pupil at primary school, as a teenager, in later years with various friends, and lately and most recently with my wife Danni. There's always something magical about Whitby, especially out of season.

I love wandering through the cobbled alleyways, browsing in the shops and drinking in the pubs. Danni and I once sought shelter in one of the pubs when a violent storm hit the harbour, and from a place of safety it was one of the most spectacular things that I have ever seen. I vividly recall seeing the mast of a boat bounce 30 feet up from the harbour to rocket past the window of the bar, as we huddled in its bay window.

What's your idea of a perfect day, or a perfect weekend, out in Yorkshire?

It all depends on my daughters' moods. They are aged three and 18 months, and they can be quite a handful.

On a good day, they can be angels. They are both real outdoor types, so we often take them to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park. They can explore the grounds, we can have a big family picnic, and they can collect leaves and flowers to their heart's content.

Do you have a favourite walk – or view?

I love Hardcastle Crags, up by Hebden Bridge, because it is untouched by either time or progress. There's always something new to discover. I went there some time in the Seventies with my parents, went off exploring, and managed to get myself stuck on a rock ledge about 40 feet above the ground. My dad managed to get me down and hugged me in relief, as did my mum, who then gave me a back-hander for being so daft. My favourite view would be a toss up between Buckstones, near Huddersfield, looking across the rolling moors, or down from the Abbey at Whitby. I never tire of that.

Which Yorkshire sportsman, past or present, would you like to take for lunch?

Darren Gough, because I'd like him to explain the rudiments and rules of cricket. I never really "get" cricket. It's always passed me by.

Which Yorkshire stage or screen star, past or present, would you like to take for dinner?

I'd like to go back in time and meet that man from Scarborough, the amazing Charles Laughton, the epitome of the character actor, the man who could play anything. He was a barnstorming performer equally as comfortable playing Rembrandt as he was Quasimodo, and then there was

the Emperor Claudius and Captain Bligh as well! He was an unusual man, tortured by his sexuality and haunted by his lack of handsome looks, in an industry that at the time was populated by matinee idols.

If you had to name your Yorkshire "hidden gem", what would it be?

I am a real ale fan, so the Tennant's Arms at Kilnsley, which is a genuine pub, with first rate beers, great food, well-run and with a superb atmosphere.

What do you think gives Yorkshire its unique identity?

The people. At one and the same time friendly, open, blunt, loyal. Wherever you go in the world you know that, if you wear or mention a white rose, you will find another tyke. It's like an entrance card for a very exclusive club.

Do you follow sport in the county, and if so, what?

Not much. I follow the big games and the rugby, and I hope that all the local teams do well, but apart from that...

Do you have a favourite restaurant, or pub?

Anywhere that serves real ale gets my vote and my seal of approval. I'm very fond of the Three Acres in Shelley, near my home town of Huddersfield and the aforementioned Tennant's Arms. I'm very picky about my pubs. I do like going out to a nice restaurant, but again, it has to be somewhere genuine, and not "all fur coat and no knickers". The food has to match the price, and vice versa.

Do you have a favourite food shop?

We are huge fans of farm shops and farmers' markets, and we are blessed with quite a few near us. The Three Acres also has a great deli attached to it.

How do you think that Yorkshire has changed, for better or for worse, in the time that you've known it?

Things change, like it or not. I do try not to get too sentimental when I return to some old haunt and I find that it has irrevocably altered. It's like trying to re-start an old love affair and going back to the same restaurants that you went to when you first met. How can it be the same? Yorkshire is constantly evolving – look at the changes in Leeds in the past quarter of a century. That can only be a good thing. But the people, the mood, the feel – that's something that always stays with you. You can't destroy quality, because it is timeless.

Who is the Yorkshire person that you most admire?

My parents, Brenda and Trevor. My father is an upholsterer and a very fine one. He's been in his trade for 50 years and he can turn his hand to anything. Sadly, I have inherited none of his many skills. I can't lay a brick, hang a door, wallpaper a wall, do plastering. My dad always tells me that he couldn't write a book (and I've done three to date) but as far as I'm concerned that's just words. To be able to create something as he can, something tangible, that's way beyond impressive. Mum sadly died suddenly in 1998; she was a hard-working lass and believed passionately in the work ethic: work hard, play by the rules and reap the reward. I've tried my darnedest to follow her example, and I'll also do my very best to instil her philosophy in my children, as well.

Has Yorkshire influenced your work?

I'm not easily impressed and that's a Yorkshire trait, I think. I try to back away from things, rather than to run to them. That's been a benefit to me when dealing with some of the monstrous egos in the film industry. I don't suffer fools, and I will admit that I can be very impatient and unforgiving. People tell me that I have mellowed since I married Danni and our girls were born but I still think long and hard before I allow my guard to fall. I think that a healthy dose of disrespect is no bad thing.

Name your favourite Yorkshire book/author/artist/CD/performer.

I love Robert Palmer and I was devastated when he died. As for books, well, there's none better than Wuthering Heights. My late father-in-law introduced me to the paintings of the wonderful John Atkinson Grimshaw. I love those moody, misty images of Victorian Yorkshire.

If a stranger to Yorkshire only had time to visit one place, it would be?

Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay, via Pickering and the North York Moors. Take a copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula to read by candlelight as the shadows lengthen in the ancient Abbey and let your imagination run riot.

Bradford Film Festival runs from March 18-28.