IN AN almost comparable way, The Londoner, Singh’s latest flagship London hotel, in Leicester Square, will herald a new era – in the same manner that his other great glamourous London hotel, The May Fair, ushered in the 1920s.
Then too, this newly built hotel captured the spirit of the Roaring Twenties in London after a similar global health crisis (in the Spanish Flu) and a country and society gallantly and energetically trying to renew itself following a bloody and drawn-out war (1914-1918).
Brexit might not have been a war, but for some it was a lurch backwards rather than forwards and in the capital itself, the decision remains an unpopular and a backward-looking move – at least once the dust settles over the pandemic and respective vaccine rollouts across Europe.
But the past is precisely that – and The Londoner is at a stroke a vision of Global Britain writ large – and metaphorically, the lights coming back on after a terrible pandemic which has claimed more than 125,000 British lives.
The success of the UK’s vaccination programme and the gradual lifting of lockdown restrictions meant at the time of going to press – The Londoner was readying for its official unveiling this Spring.
It had originally been earmarked for a December 2020 launch – but a lockdown in the capital put paid to that and since then all plans were put on hold.
Jasminder Singh’s Edwardian Hotels London, which has developed the old Odeon Cinema site, comprises several leading establishments in the capital and one in Manchester.
Singh, now the billionaire owner of the group, started out as a qualified accountant, investing in a rather run-down property in Kensington, west London and began to build a portfolio of hotel properties that developed into Edwardian.
He had first come to the UK in 1968, aged 17, having been born in Dar-es-Salaam in modernday Tanzania.
Like many he came intent on studying and gaining professional qualifications. His parents joined him in 1973 and initially ran a post office in Stamford Hill, north London.
The Londoner is very much a pinnacle property and an emblem of how far Singh has travelled. He was awarded an OBE in 2007 and it would be no surprise to see further accolades flow his way as The Londoner establishes itself this year.
This is a statement hotel, if ever there was one, and it has already generated heaps of column inches.
The Telegraph referred to it as “A Blockbuster new opening is coming to Leicester Square,” while The Times stated: “It’s intent on keeping you entertained within its four walls”, while British Airways inflight magazine, BA High Life concluded: “The capital’s most talked about new hotel”.
Described as a super boutique hotel and an urban resort by the hotel itself, Singh told the GG2 Power List last year: “It has long been a vision of mine to create a lifestyle hotel destination in a prime central London location.”
It’s 16 storeys and descends downwards nine floors – more than any other structure in the fabled square. It has a tower penthouse with panoramic views, two private screening rooms, a mix of six concept eateries with bars and a tavern and there is both an alfresco dining area on the ground level and a rooftop terrace with a fire pit at the top.
Taking its aesthetic cue from designers Yabu Pushelberg, which built the iconic Four Seasons in downtown Manhattan, it also took inspiration – from Jean George’s The Fulton and luxury retailer Lane Crawford’s 150,000 squarefoot Shanghai retail space and architecture by Woods Bagot – to combine the best of modern contemporary enterprise with a very distinct eye and flair for art and beauty.
Indeed, the blue faience exterior tiling has already won admirers and was the result of local artist Ian Monroe winning a competition.
Westminster Council state that new buildings must contribute an artwork for the local community and it was decided that this art should be welded into the fabric of the building itself.
This exterior tiling design is itself inspired by art deco DNA of Oscar Deutsch’s original Odeon cinema chain.
This was not just a major artwork in its own right, but a creation that required digital modelling and unprecedented collaboration between designers, IT experts, architects, builders and the artist himself. Some have already started calling it the Blue Tower.
Costing £300 million, there is a state-of-theart ballroom which will be able to accommodate just over 850 diners, while there is smaller space for events and shows, seven meetings rooms, a spa, swimming pool and gym, hair and nail salon, and barber shop.
Expect to see celebrities and the rich and the powerful – it is already oversubscribed according to early reports.
The Londoner is reportedly the first to receive a £150m Green Loan from HSBC UK for such a hospitality project.
Singh told the GG2 Power List: “We react to new trends, but also remain confident that the essence of Edwardian Hotels London is upheld. It is important that visitors trust in the quality of the experience we provide. For more than 40 years, we have updated the products we offer to guests, developing a reputation of surprising and delighting them.”
Singh’s The May Fair is also no stranger to glamour or high-fliers from the world of cinema and fashion either.
It is one of the venues for London Fashion Week and also hosts London Film Festival events with many directors and some actors put up there during festival time traditionally in October.
It has also been home to Eastern Eye’s very own star-studded Arts, Culture and Theatre Awards. The hotel group has placed great emphasis on technology and has reaped the benefits – it has 32 of its own apps and is among the front-runners in the industry for its ‘virtual’ butler, “Edward” – which can be easily accessed through a mobile phone and is helpfully on call 24/7 and doesn’t get tired or irritated.
Singh explained: “Today’s guests expect to be connected at all times and they want a seamless experience they can trust.”
Edwardian Hotels London is one of the UK’s largest privately owned hotel groups and owns and operates 10 Radisson Blu Edwardian hotels across the capital as well as the Edwardian in Manchester. It also has a number of signature restaurants and bars attached to the hotels and a chain of London eateries, imaginatively named Scoff and Banter.
