Traveling within the UK- do I need photo ID (passport)?

DH and I are going to Cambridge tomorrow, where we will be staying in a hotel for a few days.

The last time we went on a holiday was in August/September 2008, when we went to America, so obviously, I needed to take my passport. It has been a long time since I've stayed in a British hotel.

The only piece of photo ID that I have is my passport.

Will I need photo ID to get into the hotel, or for any other reason, in which case I will need to take my passport?

I would rather leave my passport at home and not worry about it being stolen from me while I'm on holiday. (DH has a driving license so he's not affected.) Would it be OK for me to go on holiday with my only forms of ID being my credit/debit cards - nothing with my picture on it?

The hotel is booked in DH's name.

I wouldn't take my passport with me for an internal UK trip.  Especially if I wasn't flying.  You won't need a passport for the hotel.

Oh, good.

I was worried that they might want to check my identity.

Thanks.

I can't imagine any reason why they'd want to see your passport.

I have had hotels ask me for my passport when I was living in the UK and traveling.  It was like they'd hear my American accent and instantly assume I was a tourist and then want to see the entry stamp that I had permission to be in the country.  I often did not have it with me and would tell them that I was a resident and didn't carry my passport with me.  That seemed to satisfy them (it was true!).

I think the last time we stayed in a hotel (in Oct 2009 in London) they did ask for a passport, and we showed them my husband's (as we were traveling as tourists).

One thing I would note, I always had a UK provisional driver's license on me which I figured I could always show if someone became uptight about it.  Sweetpeach, you should really look into getting one of those so that you'll have a government-issued photo ID that you can carry around with you.

I recently stayed at two B&B's while flying through England, one near Gatwick and one near Stansted.  Neither place asked for my ID or any personal info.