YORK has a Minster, Thixendale now has three famous trees, since David Hockney presented his painting of them to a global audience, and tourists flock to the Wolds village just as they do to the largest gothic cathedral in northern Europe.

Indeed, since Hockney exhibited his East Riding collection, other hidden settlements such as Warter, Millington and Fridaythorpe have also become household names and people are discovering the beauty of the area’s steep-sided dry chalk valleys.

This part of Yorkshire had long been a Cinderella sister to the Dales, coast and moors, but no more. The Hockney influence saw visitor numbers rise by eight per cent last year, bringing in almost £500 million to the East Riding economy. It’s good to see this region’s beauty finally being recognised.