Fire forces Malmaison Oxford to close

Oxford’s Malmaison hotel has been closed following a fire at the five-star property earlier this week.

The fire started in the main electrical switch room on the second floor of the hotel on Monday morning.

While no guest rooms were affected by the blaze, all guests were evacuated from the property and moved to surrounding hotels in Oxford.

Regional operations director Mike Warren told Caterersearch the hotel would remain shut for the rest of this week.

“While there hasn’t been any damage to the front of house, the damage to the electrical supply of the hotel has meant we have had to evacuate all hotel guests.”

Malmaison Oxford is housed in a former prison and was last year ranked second in a list of the world's top 10 quirkiest places to stay.

Visitors to the Malmaison Oxford Castle can choose to stay in A Wing, C Wing or the Governor's House and can use the "House of Correction" gym.

Originally built by William the Conqueror in 1071, the prison closed in 1996.

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By Kerstin Kühn

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