Adelphi: a new Fawlty Towers

Readers might remember a docu-soap that ran a few years ago about the Britannia Adelphi hotel in Liverpool. For those that didn't see it, the series centred on the bizarre goings on at the hotel, particularly the attitude of employees who were often rude or unhelpful towards customers. Well, Snifter stayed at the hotel last week and can report that it is as uninviting as ever. On seeing Snifter approach the check-in desk, the receptionist turned tail and disappeared. Eventually, she reappeared only to bark in a most unwelcoming way that the room wouldn't be available until 2:30pm. That was just the start. Press the lift button to descend and the "going up" light comes on. The en-suite bathroom had a pool of water on the floor, a wickedly sharp broken panel to the bath, and was in need of much tender loving care, including a long overdue appointment with a bottle of Cif. The TV aerial cable had come apart at the socket, so the picture was fuzzy. The management obviously had a low regard for its clientele, judging by the sticker in the room that warned an alarm would sound in reception if any electrical appliance was removed from the room. Sleeping was nigh impossible because the door to the room rattled incessantly until it was jammed with a rolled up newspaper. As for the hotel bar, even though it wasn't too busy, it took at least 15 minutes to get served because only one barmaid was on duty. Also, other guests spoke of a car park attendant as being a direct descendent of Blakey from On the Buses. All in all, it was an interesting experience. So what brought Snifter to the Adelphi ­ well it was chosen as the venue for the British Institute of Innkeeping's forum on the tied estate. We can only hope the delegates learned a lesson or two about how not to do things in the hospitality industry during their stay.