Rooms With A View
My home from home in Manchester was the Britannia Hotel. This grand old lady's elegant facade belies its former existence as a 19th century textiles warehouse. But as industrial Manchester was trying to give off an air of refinement, the architect designed the building in three styles - French Renaissance, Elizabethan and Italian Renaissance. A style better known as "showing off". At night, a thousand lights illuminate the building like a Christmas tree. But like most Christmas lights, not all of them work. Inside, the foyer is dominated by a chandelier straight out of Phantom of the Opera. But, as you can see, while no expense was spared on the front of the Britannia, a minimalist approach was adopted at the back.
The big office block which overlooks the Britannia really does overlook it. At breakfast, I heard one man say that when he opened his bedroom curtains, the woman at the computer got a nice surprise. A lady at the breakfast table responded: "Yes, but was she smiling or laughing?".
Of course, if money were no object, I'd have stayed here. The Midland Hotel is THE residence of choice for the great and the good. And the bad too, it seems. Apparently, Hitler excused the Midland from bombing raids because he planned to make it his North of England Reich Headquarters.
He never made it, but one famous name who did was Laurence Olivier. He stayed here while making Brideshead Revisited. One night, the fire alarm went off, and after Sir Larry had failed to appear, a hapless hotel functionary was despatched to his room. "Sir Laurence, I'm afraid there appears to be a fire", he gasped, after climbing seven flights of stairs. Olivier, still in his dressing gown, responded with aplomb: "Oh really? Well, do let me know if there's anything I can do." And shut the door in the flustered flunky's face.