A round-up of the weekend's news affecting the hospitality industry...
Throne nailed to pub wall instead of phone
Tony Callaghan, boss of Yesteryear Pub Company, phoned contractors and asked them to install a phone by the door of his new bar, Number Fifteen in Bolton, while he was out of the country. The bar fitting contractors misheard and instead fitted a throne five feet up a pillar by the door. It is to be kept as a quirky feature. – Daily Telegraph, 20 November.
Four bidders named for InterContinental
Four of the world’s most powerful investment firms, including Blackstone Group and GE Capital, are vying to buy the £1b package of UK hotels put up for sale in September by InterContinental Hotels Group. – The Times, 20 November.
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Eldridge Pope announces pub redundancies
Eldridge Pope, the pub operator recently taken private by entrepreneur Michael Cannon, has laid off 17 of its 52 head office staff in Dorchester. The move comes as the group launches a £14m capital investment programme across its pub estate. – The Times, 20 November.
Call to end serving fish in restaurants
An animal welfare group has demanded a ban on fish in restaurants because cod, haddock and plaice feel pain and distress when caught. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said that the amount of suffering felt by fish should put people off eating them. The campaign, whose supporters include Sir Paul McCartney and the Dalai Lama, suggest that restaurants should serve fish substitutes instead. – Sunday Telegraph, 21 November.
New boutique hotel planned for Edinburgh
Montpeliers, the Scottish leisure group that owns the Opal Lounge in Edinburgh, has unveiled plans for its biggest development - a £5m, 33-bedroom boutique hotel on George Street in the centre of the capital. The five-storey Georgian townhouse, which has been lying empty for nine months, was formerly an office occupied by Standard Life. – Scotland on Sunday, 21 November.
On-line booking agency seeks extra funding
The online restaurant booking company, 5pm.co.uk, is to seek venture capital finance to fund expansion plans after completing deals with Virgin and Wanadoo. The UK’s leading online restaurant reservation company has signed partnership deals with the internet service provider and online portal that sees its booking system and branding used to provide services to Virgin and Wanadoo customers. A similar deal has also recently been agreed with VisitScotland and Les Routiers. – Sunday Herald (Scotland), 21 November.
GNER to introduce total smoking ban
Smoking is to be outlawed on train services between England and Scotland in preparation for the ban north of the border. GNER has decided it is not feasible to impose a partial ban on its East Coast Mainline service between London and Edinburgh. The operator is one of only two that still has smoking sections on its trains. – The Observer, 21 November.
Sports club chain to open in Dubai
The sports club chain owned by Irish tycoons John Magnier, JP McManus and Dermot Desmond will this week announce a deal to open a site at a giant new sports resort in Dubai. Next Generation, which has 13 clubs in the UK and five more under development, has agreed to open a £15m luxury sports centre in Dubai Sports City. The huge resort will be a self-contained metropolis covering 50 million square feet and including a series of stadiums, training facilities, sports schools and hotels. – Sunday Telegraph, 21 November.
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