Butlins has modernised. This is the Shoreline Hotel in Bognor Regis

Ben Bentley and family were happy campers at Butlins in Minehead.

Recession? What recession? Despite the doom and gloom, the joblessness and a general lack of money, Britain has gone on holiday – and it’s gone to Butlins.

Traditional holiday camps have seen a rise of around 40 per cent in bookings this year and with value for money being the key driver in people choosing where to go on holiday this year, you can understand instantly why Butlins is a top choice for families with children of all ages.

My wife and I, along with our two daughters, five and 18 months, spent four nights and five days at Butlins in Minehead. Now, I’ve got ‘previous’ with Butlins, Minehead, having worked here 20 years ago as a waiter.

And although it has changed, in many ways it has also stayed the same. Accommodation is generally of a better standard and there is far more choice. You can even have a luxury timeshare apartment. Then again you can camp, caravan or do the traditional chalet thing as it was portrayed on Hi De Hi.

We stayed in a deluxe chalet with three bedrooms, smart carpet and a flat screen TV. It held up well against most accommodation at, say Center Parcs, generally considered to be more upmarket.

But with so much to do, accommodation for most people going to Butlins is simply a base, a place to lay their weary heads in between partying and having a knees up.

So to this end there are still a lot of basic chalets at the budget end of the spectrum, even if they are slightly reminiscent of Ted Bovis in Hi De Hi.

The key thing is that much of the entertainment is included, so there’s no need to splash out a small fortune once you’ve booked your holiday.

On the other hand, there’s plenty to spend it on if you’ve got any spare pennies, and mums and dads will soon be parted with their cash if they succumb to the wailings of normal children who suddenly become beggars at the sight of plastic butterflies that light up in the dark.

But I asked my daughter what she liked most about Butlins, and she said it was the shows. And Butlins was built on showbusiness. Red coats still do their bit, but now there are stars of TV shows plying their trade at Butlins.

Butlins, and in particular, its evening shows are fantastically popular. And here’s how popular – more popular than Manchester United and Barcelona put together with knobs on.

On a night of the European Cup Final in the Champions League, the appearance on stage of George Sampson from Britain’s Got Talent knocked the two biggest football teams in the world into a cocked Kiss-me-quick hat.

Queues snaked around half the campsite, while the bars screening Ronaldo, Xavi, Rooney and co were half empty.

And so Butlins remains faithful to its original ideals, it seems to me – to entertain a nation. In the post war years it put the smiles back on a nation recovering from rations and death, a nation on the backfoot; today it’s putting the smiles on the glum face of a nation struggling with having no money but a desire to carry on going and clap itself daft at talent stars off the telly.

And you can’t argue with that.

Butlins is Alton Towers; it’s Britain’s Got Talent; it’s bingo and paintballing; it’s Benidorm without the guarantee of sunshine; it’s red coats and singing, donkey rides and trampolines.

I didn’t see a knobbly knee or a glamorous granny contest, but apart from that it had the lot.

Everything is set up ready to go from dawn ’til dusk. Swim, dodgems, face-painting, lunch; swim, dodgems, tea; swim, club, George Samson, disco, sleep.

And if Britons have steered away from British holidays because of the weather, it should be pointed out that the show goes on whatever the weather at Butlins, with some of the best entertainment and activities held indoors or in a giant, big top-like tent.

One area of great value is the food if you go half board. We were bed breakfast and evening meal and even though there was a stampede in the dining hall – which got stressful and tense at times, argumentative even – you could not argue with the value.

Some were greedy. I thought they had eyes bigger than their bellies, but I was wrong. My wife pointed out that their bellies were definitely bigger.

And they kept going up for more. And more. And more.

In a recession I thought some were going for stockpile and hibernation status. But that is no fault of Butlins, it’s simply giving people what they want.

A British summer holiday is nothing without a few hours spent building sandcastles on the beach, and Minehead has a splendid beach, after millions were spent on new sea defences.

Ten years ago it had sand harder than Blackpool rock; now Minehead sand is soft and golden with areas of top grade castle-building sand. Which means on a sunny day dad can sit back with his trousers rolled up, hanky on head, and daydream he’s far, far away.

Until he wakes up to find he’s buried up to his neck in sand and surrounded by a load of pesky kids laughing at their handiwork.

The Great British holiday, Butlins, is back.

Travel Facts

• Butlins has resorts at Minehead in Somerset, Bognor Regis on the south coast, and a Skegness on the east coast.
• A four-night deluxe chalet from Monday to Friday, with half board, for a family of four is £700.
• Silver standard accommodation is the most popular with families and a four-night midweek stay in a silver room for a family of four is £436, including breakfast.
• For more information or to book a holiday at one of the Butlins resorts call 0845 070 4730 or visit www.butlins.com