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Have you noticed that when you check out of a
hotel these days you are reminded that you can
buy all the things you used to pinch? It seems
the hospitality industry has finally grasped the
great truth - that guests can be as law-abiding
as the lord chancellor in every other area of
life, but once they check into a three-star establishment
or above, their morals fly out of the window-with-a-sea-view.
Even the fattest cats will leave conferences with
their briefcases bulging with shower caps and
shampoo bottles. If you want further proof, check
your wardrobe. Be honest, weren't those coat hangers
you can see lurking at the back purloined from
the Majestic, Cockleshell-on-Sea?
Not that I am suggesting that chambermaids at
the Savoy were in the habit of walking into rooms
to discover that, along with the odd hand towel,
the bed had gone missing. But after guests such
as Liza Minnelli, Emma Thompson and King Hussan
of Jordan insisted on buying the bed they had
slept on during their stay at the venerable London
hotel, the management realised it was onto a good
thing. Now anyone with a spare £4,000 can
buy a king-sized Savoy bed.
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The Savoy's beds have been made in the same way
since 1905; those on sale will be tailor-made
to the requirements of each customer. A double
mattress and divan contains 1,600 individually
pocketed springs, takes more than 60 hours to
put together, and uses 32lb of teased natural
hair - the equivalent of the tails of 20 horses
- all finished off with custom made Irish linen
and cotton ticking. If the price is giving you
nightmares, the twenty five year life should help
you sleep more easily.
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Should you need anymore encouragement, March has
been declared National Bed Month, so you can throw
out that terrible old futon you have had since
your student days with a clear conscience. Just
don't start expecting room service.
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