Ruth Watson checks back in
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 by Graham Kibble-White
Original Hotel Inspector Ruth Watson is returning to the hostelry trade on TV.
 Ruth Watson |
 Alex Polizzi |
Having presented three series of The Hotel Inspector for Five, in 2007 Watson quit the channel and signed a two-year deal with C4. The first fruit of this new partnership was 2008′s Hotel Inspector-alike, Country House Rescue.
Now the channel has announced Watson is to front Hotel SOS in which she uses “her expertise to transform the efforts of new hoteliers as they embark on setting up on their own” according to a press release from the channel.
It continues…
Famed for her sharp eye and attention to detail when it comes to perfecting hotel experiences, Ruth is determined to open the eyes of the six couples who all feel that running a hotel or B&B will be a piece of cake. Determined to shape the novices into professional hoteliers, Ruth visits and assesses each project, and in an effort to improve their plans sends the proprietors to Hotel Bootcamp at some of the UK’s top hotels to learn how the best in the business have earned their reputation.
For Ruth, the principles of a good hotel stay are the same regardless how big or small the business: a warm welcome, absolute cleanliness and a comfortable bed…
But upon meeting the six projects and their owners she soon realises she has her work cut out. From a run down 32-bedroom hotel in Blackpool taken on by two brothers, to a couple wishing to create a boutique B&B in Margate with a property they purchased at the height of the property boom, the problems and battles Ruth faces seem insurmountable.
Can she convince the owners round to her way of thinking? And will their new business ventures be the success they hope for?
Meanwhile, The Hotel Inspector continues in fine form on Monday nights on Five, now fronted by Alex Polizzi.
I’ve never seen any of her shows. Are they like a well-spoken version of Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares?
I actually prefer Alex. She’s basically a dark-haired Jilly Goolden, but that’s a good thing.
Well Chris, the accent is posher, but she does like a good swear to get her point across. But yes, failing hotel/country house, deluded owners and most of the show trying to get them to see where they’re going wrong. But good enough fare. I also like Alex a lot, and have found this series on Five very good so far. The hotels appear to have had different issues, rather than all being over-priced, manky dumps in god-awful locations.
Love the reference to Jilly Goolden…