A Very British Hotel

The series starts with the hotel in the middle of its busy summer season. In the opening episode, the staff cater for an overseas royal visitor and her entourage, while coping with the challenges of facing directly onto one of the capital's busiest thoroughfares.

London's Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park host a flamboyant wedding ceremony, VIP guests including Morgan Freeman and Quincy Jones check in, and veteran concierge Francois-Xavier is asked to source a watch worth more than a quarter of a million pounds for one wealthy guest.

The hotel throws a party to celebrate the book launch of Mount, the latest novel by Jilly Cooper, but a gatecrasher has to be escorted off the premises. Meanwhile, some of the old fixtures and fittings are sold at auction to help raise money for refurbishing the rooms.