Cleethorpes Pier sold at auction

A Victorian pleasure pier has been sold at auction.

At 335ft (100m), Cleethorpes Pier in North East Lincolnshire is one of the shortest in the UK.

Auctioneers Swindells said the structure had been sold to a "venture partnership" in excess of the guide price, but provided no further details.

Last month the pier - which was built at a cost of £8,000 and opened in 1873 - failed to reach its £400,000 guide price at auction.

The structure has twice been sold in the past for more than £1m, the auctioneers have claimed.

Cleethorpes Pier was mainly financed by a railway company in an attempt to attract Victorian tourists to the resort.

When it first opened, the walkway was 1,200ft (365m) long but in World War II a section of the pier was removed amid fears of German invasion.

After the war the isolated part of the pier was demolished, reducing it to its present length.

In 2011 the pavilion underwent a £250,000 refurbishment.

The new owners will take possession on 30 April, the auctioneers said.