The Hotel Inspector Revisits

Five’s documentary series examining failing British hotels revisits one of the establishments that featured in an earlier episode. This week’s show sees the cameras return to Bournemouth to visit Vincent and Lidy Van Nuyk, the Dutch owners of the 14-bedroom Safari hotel. When hotelier Ruth Watson first met them, Vincent and Lidy were deep in debt and in danger of losing their business.

Five’s documentary series examining failing British hotels takes another look at one of the establishments that featured in an earlier episode.

Following on from Ruth Watson’s first visit, this week’s show sees the cameras return to Mark and Heidi’s large Victorian hotel in Eastbourne. When Ruth first met Mark and Heidi Cowderoy, they had owned the Weyanoke – a beautiful, 33- bedroom Victorian hotel situated on the Eastbourne seafront – for three years, having bought it after a short stint running a small B&B. In the past, the hotel had catered mainly for coach parties of pensioners paying as little as £20 for a room, but this business was quickly dying out.

Heidi and Mark decided to refurbish the hotel to take it upmarket, but their spending meant that they had failed to make any profit since the beginning of their venture. Since buying the hotel, the couple had spent in excess of £1million on what Mark called a “Victorian money pit”.

Five’s documentary series examining failing hotels in the UK takes another look at one of the establishments that featured in an earlier episode.

Following on from the first visit of hotelier and author Ruth Watson, this week’s show sees the cameras return to the Haven in Great Yarmouth to see if owners Elly and Rob have completed their hotel’s much-needed redesign.

When Ruth first visited the nine-bedroom Haven Hotel in Great Yarmouth, her mission was to rescue the fortunes of owners Elly Koopman and Rob Farrow. The couple bought the hotel a mere four months before they called on Ruth for help, after realising that they were out of their depth and desperately needed classes in running a hotel.

Five’s documentary series examining failing hotels in the UK takes another look at one of the establishments that featured in an earlier episode.

Following on from the first visit of hotelier and author Ruth Watson, this week’s show sees the cameras return to the Grand Hotel on the East Sussex coast to see if owner Peter Mann has made the changes necessary to save his establishment from ruin.

When Ruth first visited the 17-room Grand Hotel on the Hastings seafront, it was rapidly losing business to the newer budget hotels elsewhere in the town. Owner Peter Mann, who had been running the hotel for 18 years, was keen to reverse his fortunes, but was wary of Ruth’s infamous no-nonsense approach even before her arrival. “If she’s going to come here a cross between Darth Vader, Genghis Khan and Gordon Ramsay,” he warned, “then that’s not going to work at all!”

Five’s documentary series examining failing hotels in the UK returns to take another look at some of the establishments that featured in earlier programmes. Following on from the first visit of hotelier and author Ruth Watson, this week’s show sees the cameras return to Greenwich in South London to see how actor-hotelier Robert Gray has changed his three-bedroom B&B.

Actor Robert Gray turned his home into St Alfeges B&B five years ago to maintain the cashflow between acting jobs. A former antiques dealer, he filled his house with unusual art and objects and decorated with flair and personality – but he was the first to admit that the ‘shabby-chic’ look was starting to just look shabby. “I think we need a facelift,” he confessed before Ruth’s first visit.

Five’s documentary series examining failing hotels in the UK returns to take another look at some of the establishments that featured in earlier programmes. Following on from the first visit of hotelier and author Ruth Watson, this week’s show sees the cameras return to Langtry Manor in Bournemouth to see if the staff have managed to turn around the hotel’s fortunes.

In this week’s instalment, the hotel inspector heads back to Langtry Manor, a three-star hotel in the resort town of Bournemouth. Originally built by King Edward VII for his mistress, actress Lillie Langtry, it was bought by Pamela Howard more than 30 years ago and has been run as a hotel by she and her family ever since.

Five’s documentary series examining failing hotels
in the UK returns to take another look at some of
the establishments that featured in earlier
programmes. Following on from the first visit of
hotelier and author Ruth Watson, this week’s
show sees the cameras return to Langtry Manor
in Bournemouth to see if the staff have managed
to turn around the hotel’s fortunes.
In this week’s instalment, the hotel inspector
heads back to Langtry Manor, a three-star hotel in
the resort town of Bournemouth. Originally built by
King Edward VII for his mistress, actress Lillie
Langtry, it was bought by Pamela Howard more
than 30 years ago and has been run as a hotel by
she and her family ever since.
When Ruth first visited the hotel two years ago,
her initial impressions were mixed: “It’s a really fine
Edwardian house, but I don’t know why they’ve
painted the bricks,” she said. Things soon got
worse when she inspected one of the hotel’s 27