Madonna hits Margate! Music megastar calls the Kent seaside town ‘my idea of heaven’ as she stuns locals by making a surprise visit to Tracey Emin’s art festival

Madonna’s usual haunts at this time of year are the front row of Paris Fashion Week or a glam awards season party. 

But the well-travelled superstar enjoyed a very different trip this week, heading to the Kent seaside town of Margate which she has gushed has become one of her favourite places.

The singer was in town to support her close friend Dame Tracey Emin, visiting the artist’s studio and art school programme – named the Tracey Emin Artist Residency.

Madonna shared a series of Instagram photos of her trip to the seaside spot, posing for snaps with artists who are based at TEAR.

In her lengthy caption, Madonna declared that her pal Tracey ‘is a Pearl. A precious necklace that has been draped around a seaside Town in England called Margate’.

She went on to rave about the town which is ‘inhabited and energized by creativity. Writers and performance artists, photographers, and painters. This is my idea of heaven. Whenever I go there, I feel like I’ve entered a dream’.

She added that she even has a favourite restaurant in the town, teasing: ‘On top of all of that, I get to eat at my favorite Italian restaurant which I’m not giving anyone the name of because then everyone’s going to go there and it only has one table!!’

Reflecting on her 25 year friendship with Dame Tracey, Madonna wrote ‘I’ve always been a fan of her extremely personal and provocative work. But what she has created in this community by the sea is quite remarkable.

‘She has an artist residency program where she invites young artists from all around the world to come and paint and live for several months, artist who otherwise would have no place to paint and develop their talent and be a part of the many exhibitions that happen around Margate.

‘I’ve been there a few times now and I’m always struck by the commitment and passion of all of these artists.

‘Hungry, possessed, and extremely grateful to have this opportunity. They all have very touching stories to share and honestly it’s so refreshing to witness them working in such a dedicated way.’

She concluded her post by writing that it was ‘good to share something in the news that is not about hatred and killing but celebrates human connection and the ability that Art has to elevate people. To bring people together.’

Dame Tracey posted her gratitude for Madonna’s visit on her own Instagram, thanking her friend for her ‘insightful conversations and generosity in discussing all the art and works’.

She also revealed that the superstar didn’t just visit TEAR’s studio but took the time to visit the artist’s individual exhibitions dotted throughout the town as part of the grassroots Off Season event.

Many of the artists couldn’t believe the A-lister, who boasts 20.3 million Instagram followers had tagged them and their work in her post.   

Artist Esme Keenleyside gushed on her page that Madonna had bought one of her paintings whilst Anderson Asteclines said that he was ‘feeling grateful and humbled. This small painting of cruising characters now belongs to her. So so happy xx’. 

Madonna isn’t the only famous face spotted at Tracey Emin’s art exhibitions in Kent with the likes of Kate Moss and the late Vivienne Westwood also showing their support over the years.

Margate residents were delighted to hear about Madonna’s visit, flooding her post with comments. 

One wrote: ‘So pleased you enjoyed yourself in our little town. We’re incredibly proud to be associated with Dame Emin.

‘She’s a huge support to the town and investing in our growth.’

Tracey purchased a derelict seafront building in Margate in 2023, to transform it into her community hub.

Prospective buyers are flocking to trendy Margate in Kent to purchase properties in the small coastal town, whose star-studded residents also include British indie rock legend and Libertines’ co-frontman Pete Doherty. 

Even secretive graffiti artist Banksy has made his mark on the town – literally – by spray-painting his latest artwork onto the side of a house two years ago, before it was unceremoniously wrecked by the local council. 

After enjoying decades as one of Britain’s favourite seaside destinations, Margate went into a period of decline.

But in recent years – especially post pandemic – it has become a fashionable magnet for Londoners, even nicknamed ‘Shoreditch-on-Sea’.

Nearly 6,000 people from London relocated to Thanet in the three years following the pandemic alone.

Across a 10-year period, from 2013, average asking prices in the seaside town more than doubled, up a staggering 102 per cent.  

Locals believe that, along with beach and sea views, facilities, good transport links and cheaper properties than the capital, have resulted in Londoners snapping up second homes and Airbnb rentals en masse.

Richard Thomas, 54, bought a property on the street within just 40 days of seeing it advertised last year.

The facilities manager said: ‘I came from Canterbury to be closer to the sea and better views. I’ve always loved the sea. I thought it would take a while.

‘It was so quick. I was warned the demand was big and I would need to act quick. So I did. I didn’t hang around, I couldn’t afford to.

‘It’s the sea air I think. People are laid back. They take pride in the town. It’s beautiful. It’s had a negative reputation in recent years but I think that’s moving on.

‘I know a couple and it took them just a month to buy. It’s incredible.’

Meanwhile, Linda Laslett, 82, has lived in the Margate area all her life and said homes sell ‘like hot cakes’.

She said: ‘They always have and always will. It’s a lovely area. I’d highly recommend it to anyone.’

But the skyrocketing attention towards the resort, dubbed the ‘Camden of the south-east’, has come at a cost, many residents insist.

Sections of the old town are now basically East London according to the mouths of locals through gritted teeth. Meanwhile, other locals spoke of being priced out of the housing market due to the unprecedented invasion of second home owners and Londoners.

Property in Clinftonville West, for instance, costs now double what it did in 2010.

Local resident Pauline Kirkwood, 72, who has lived in Margate for 50 years, previously told the Daily Mail that residents in the seaside town had become ‘abandoned’. 

The retired shop worker said: ‘There’s a lot of noise about everyone coming down from London and it all being a great thing. They bang on about the new cafes, art galleries and how it’s trendy.

‘But it’s just driven up the house prices of the homes around here, making it much harder for locals to buy. People who have lived here all their lives can’t afford to buy. So they rent or have to rely on the council, even though they work. It’s really sad.

‘Surely they should be the priority? There are also deep-rooted issues here. It’s rough. You can make it look as nice as you want but I feel more unsafe now than in the last 50 years of living here.

‘So what’s being done about that? If you go one street away from the coast, there’s drug dealing and drug taking everywhere.’