A great hotel is a performance in progress. More than merely a place to lay one’s head, it’s a stage on which endlessly intersecting narratives play out to a backdrop of meticulous set and sound design, expertly calibrated lighting and some careful casting in the form of beautifully turned out, genial staff. When whoever is overseeing the production gets it all ineffably, gloriously right, you perceive not the slightest hint of effort. Whether you’re a Hollywood auteur, an art-world iconoclast, a fashion creative or merely a sixtysomething Home Counties barrister who’s trundled into town for Sunday lunch at the restaurant, you just know it feels spot on. Comfortable. Chic.

The guests around you are aglow with the energy of knowing they’re at the centre of something special; ... Permeating this is, above all, a sense of place