DIPLOMATIC CONCIERGE

Venetia van Kuffeler has a chance to experience the next chapter of the press baron and wartime MP at the chic, but discrete Beaverbrook Town House on Sloane Street.

My greatest treat over the festive season was visiting Beaverbrook Town House, the new metropolitan sibling of the glamorous country house hotel, Beaverbrook, found nestling in 470 acres in the Surrey Hills. Since my stay in December, I’ve been raving about Beaverbrook Town House to anyone who will listen, and with good reason.

The heritage property spans two perfectly refurbished Georgian townhouses, originally commissioned by Charles Sloane Cadogan at the end of the eighteenth century. Sitting in prime position on Sloane Street between fashionable Sloane Square and the embassies of Belgravia and Knightsbridge, many of the bedrooms overlook the leafy, Grade-II-listed Cadogan Gardens.

Just as Beaverbrook in Surrey rekindles the spirit of the roaring twenties, Beaverbrook Town House also salutes its infamous former owner, the press baron and wartime MP, Lord Beaverbrook. The hotel recalls his colourful residence in London, where he reportedly hosted glamorous friends including Ian Fleming, Winston Churchill, Rudyard Kipling, Elizabeth Taylor and Laurence Olivier.

This creative flair prevails throughout the property, with vibrant, life-enhancing interiors, which had me taking notes. Wonderfully luxurious, but not taking itself too seriously, the hotel draws upon Lord Beaverbrook’s fondness for mischief and London’s cultural attractions. Beaverbrook provides guests with the feeling of being welcomed into a private home, decorated with antique treasures, lively statement wallpapers, thoughtful books and sofas to sink into. A cosy library replaces a formal reception area, where friendly staff check you in, and are on hand to offer recommendations for activities in the capital.

Lord Beaverbrook was known to relish attending shows in the West End, and upstairs, each of the hotel’s 14 suites are named after a London theatre. Beautifully decorated with posters and prints of its playhouse past, I stayed in The Savoy, full of lush fabrics, furnishings and fittings mostly sourced from an array of London-based suppliers, including a grand four-poster bed, an antique bureau and lavish, theatre-style blinds. Thoughtful touches included a personalised minibar stocked with guests’ preferred treats: in my case, some ready mixed premium cocktails with a cocktail shaker. I could have spent all day in the glorious turquoise-tiled bathroom stocked with fragrant Bamford products. At bedtime, I found my pillow adorned with a bookmark- The Mikado by Gilbert & Sullivan at THE SAVOY (no less), along with some Bamford Pillow Mist. At the touch of a button, a swivelling television appeared from an upholstered ottoman at the foot of the bed. I was in heaven.