Sunday, 26 May 2013

Lorton hotel in Channel 4's Four in a Bed show

A Lorton hotel has featured on Channel 4’s Four in a Bed reality TV programme.

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CHANGING ROOMS: Kate Wilson and Nick Lawler, of Winder Hall, Lorton, recently appeared on the Channel Four television programme Four in a Bed

Winder Hall Country House Hotel was pitted against three other hotels and B&Bs and was rated by their owners for its services, including breakfast, facilities and cleanliness.

Despite coming last in the daytime TV competition, owner Nick Lawler said he would definitely do it again.

Nick took part in the show with the hotel’s business development director, Kate Wilson.

She said: “When we were asked about it I said ‘over my dead body’.

“I didn’t think it was the kind of show geared for this kind of place but as usual, I ended up saying okay.”

Nick added: “The programme has between two-and-a-half and three million viewers and even a tiny percentage of that to a business like ours is a lot of people. I would do it again, I absolutely loved it.”

Since the show was aired last week, the pair said the hotel had received several positive messages from past customers and TV viewers.

Nick and Kate were filmed over 10 days in February and March this year for two hours of television, and competed against bed and breakfasts in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Blackpool. The Blackpool bed and breakfast won the show.

Kate said the only thing they were disappointed with was not being able to take their guests out to show off more of the area.

She added: “We were planning to take everyone on the Derwentwater steamer but they said there wasn’t enough time, but I think they just wanted to trap everyone in here for three days to see if tensions boiled over.”

The pair were instead asked to be filmed doing one of their courses about running a bed and breakfast. The course is not meant for people who already have their own hotel business.

Nick said: “They really stitched us up with that. Looking at how many people have made contact since, we haven’t hurt the business at all and we enjoyed it and had a laugh along the way.”

Kate added: “We might have looked foolish at times but we have shown off the area and marketed Winder Hall.”

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