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Christine and Stewart MacFarlane

6 tours from £365pp

Expert Overview

Christine MacFarlane – Bridge Director

Christine is originally from New Zealand and came across to London for a holiday in the 70’s but never returned. Being an engineer, she was immediately caught up in the booming offshore oil industry and was offered opportunities for progression that were not normally available to women at that time. Christine married an Englishman, had a family in London, and worked full time and life was busy!

However, Christine had always enjoyed playing social bridge. Her older brother taught her to play when she was a teenager, and she had opportunities to play when a fourth was needed to make up a table in the office at lunchtimes.

In 1998, Christine moved to the US and, after playing socially for a couple of years, joined a bridge club in 2000. It was there that Christine realised there was a whole world of bridge waiting to be taught, played and directed.

Upon returning to the UK in 2004, she joined the local bridge club and, a year later, the club offered TD training for anyone who was interested. Christine took up the challenge and moved up the ranks by becoming a County TD and then joined the EBU panel in 2010. During this time, she also completed my EBUTA teacher training and in 2008, started teaching people to play. This led to the creation of her own bridge school and club which was very successful, but sadly Christine took the decision to close it when the lockdown years started in 2020.

Christine's favourite bridge destination is Paignton; she has many fond memories of taking the students away on bridge breaks and playing bridge to the sound of waves crashing against the cliffs. The Sense de Luxe resort in Antalya was also high up in terms of places Christine loves to visit. The destination that is on her wish list is the French Chateau & Alps.

Her other interests and hobbies include; gardening, grandchildren, cooking and travelling.


Top Bridge Tip from Christine: Never grumble at your partner no matter how bad their bidding (you may be next!). If you dwell on past failures, you will never succeed on the next hand.


Stewart MacFarlane – Bridge Host

Stewart's formal career was Project Management as an Engineer in the international oil industry. He and his family were based in London, Aberdeen, New Orleans, Houston and finally settled in Somerset in 2004.

When he moved to Somerset, Stewart's main role was looking after the technical and administration aspects of running the bridge school and club. However, he also assisted in the lessons and ran gentle duplicate sessions for the newer players.

Outside of running bridge holidays, Stewart's main hobby is restoring a 1973 E-Type Jag.

6 Holidays available from £365pp

Premier Bridge

Join us in the heart of Torquay and enjoy a fantastic location just five minutes away from the stunning seafront.

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge sessions with Masterpoints and prizes awarded
  • 1 seminar
  • 4 nights half-board accommodation
  • Devonshire cream tea
  • Welcome drink
  • Complimentary car parking
  • No Single
    Supplement
  • Half
    Board

Availability:

  • 2025 20th October
  • 2026 23rd March 4th May 19th October
Travel
  • Join Direct
Premier Bridge
Festive Bridge
New Tour

Staying at the 4-star Cadbury House Hotel, nestled in the rolling North Somerset countryside, this Christmas bridge holiday is sure to be merry!

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge sessions with Masterpoints and prizes
  • 1 seminar
  • 4 nights half-board accommodation
  • Welcome drink
  • A light lunch on Christmas Eve
  • Christmas lunch with a glass of Prosecco and an evening buffet
  • Canapés and a buffet finger sandwich lunch on Boxing Day
  • New
    Venue

Availability:

  • 2025 23rd December
Travel
  • Join Direct
Premier Bridge
New Tour

Play bridge under the winter sun in beautiful Gran Canaria, with its sandy beaches, dramatic cliffs, traditional towns, and lush greenery.

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge programme with Masterpoints and prizes awarded
  • 2 weekly seminars
  • Return transfers between Las Palmas Airport and the hotel
  • 7 or 14 nights half-board accommodation
  • Welcome drink

Availability:

  • 2026 6th January 13th January
Travel
  • By Air
  • Join Direct
Premier Bridge
New Tour

Discover our winter sun bridge venue on the sunny north side of Tenerife, the 4-star H10 Tenerife Playa Hotel, and enjoy an all-inclusive stay.

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge programme with Masterpoints and prizes awarded
  • 2 weekly seminars
  • Return transfers between Tenerife South Airport and the hotel
  • 7 or 14 nights all-inclusive accommodation
  • All
    Inclusive
  • Masterpoints
    Awarded
  • Spa
    Facilities
  • New
    Venue

Availability:

  • 2026 21st January 28th January
Travel
  • By Air
  • Join Direct
Premier Bridge
New Tour

Join us on this early spring bridge holiday, staying at the Hotel Carlton in Bournemouth, set in an excellent location with views across the bay.

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge sessions with Masterpoints and prizes awarded
  • 1 seminar
  • 4 nights half-board accommodation
  • Welcome drink
  • Complimentary car parking at the hotel
  • New
    Venue
  • Half
    Board

Availability:

  • 2026 16th March
Travel
  • Join Direct
Premier Bridge
New Tour

From the Sprowston Manor, Golf & Country Club, play bridge and visit Sandringham, ride the Bure Valley Railway and cruise the Norfolk Broads.

  • Services of an EBU-qualified director and friendly hosts
  • Varied bridge sessions with Masterpoints and prizes awarded
  • 1 morning seminar
  • 5 nights half-board accommodation
  • Welcome drink
  • Excursions, visits and coach travel as described in the itinerary
  • Complimentary car parking
  • Excursions
    Included
  • New
    Venue
  • Half
    Board

Availability:

  • 2026 5th July
Travel
  • Join Direct

Meet the
Team

We’ve assembled a fantastic team of directors, hosts and teachers, all dedicated to providing an engaging and supportive bridge-playing environment.

Meet the Team
Christine and Stewart MacFarlane

Christine and Stewart MacFarlane

Christine and Stewart MacFarlane started their own Bridge School and Club in Bath. Together, they have taught and introduced many people to this wonderful game and started running weekends away for their students in 2009. This progressed to running bridge holidays and working on cruise ships as the bridge instructors.
James and Jane Tullett

James and Jane Tullett

Jane brings her organisational and interpersonal skills to the forefront to make an excellent hosting team with her husband James. James has been playing bridge for over 30 years and is regularly picked for his county. Jane and James have travelled extensively in recent years to explore exotic parts of the world, such as Peru, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
Anne Wright

Anne Wright

Anne is a host who works alongside our directors with the aim of ensuring that everyone enjoys their bridge holiday. She is friendly and approachable and enjoys her bridge, playing in several competitions near her home in Leicestershire. Anne is a qualified bridge director, and she looks forward to welcoming players of all standards.
Mark Hooper

Mark Hooper

Mark learned the basics of bridge in his early teens from his father, and later played informally at school. It wasn’t until university that he began playing regularly in clubs. Remarkably, Mark is entirely self-taught, having never taken formal lessons – instead learning through books and conversations with fellow enthusiasts. With over 50 years of experience at the bridge table, he has played continuously since university, including at EBU congress level and as part of his county team.
Maggie Pyner

Maggie Pyner

Maggie started learning bridge in 1980. She played with my future husband, John Pyner, at Congress level for several years and reached the level of Life Master – and will hopefully become a Premier Life Master.
Gary Conrad

Gary Conrad

Gary is a Senior EBU Panel Director, Chief Tournament Director for Hertfordshire, and a dedicated trainer for EBED.
Julia Brown

Julia Brown

Julia teaches bridge to beginners and runs a supervised play session once a week. It is important to her that people learn in a friendly, welcoming environment at the pace they feel happy with.
Ilona Buttinger

Ilona Buttinger

Ilona learnt to play bridge as a child round the kitchen table, but really started to adopt conventions during lockdown. She went on her first bridge holiday in March 2024, which was the Majorcan Congress.
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