IN EVERY room at the five-star Athenaeum in Mayfair, there's a scarlet book. Snuggle on your goose-down pillows, order the hotel's home-made cookies and milk and prepare for a cracking bedtime read.
Say Hello to Sally for Me is the tale of the hotel and the woman who loved it most: Sally Bulloch, the executive manager for more than 20 years. Tiny, red-haired Bulloch and the small but opulent Athenaeum together enchanted movie legends, rock royalty and world leaders in a non-stop party spanning the 1970s, '80s and '90s.
Celebrity names populate the pages, as they have the hotel: Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall, Cary Grant, Michael Douglas. Boy band Take That announced their split while staying in the penthouse suite.
Some, such as Robert Wagner and Steven Spielberg, stayed for months here with their friend Bulloch, who organised, mothered, soothed and even chastised them (Russell Crowe was once gently admonished for his untidy room) in a way no other hotelier dared. This was hospitality in the true old English style: indulgence without fawning or fanfare; rare malt whiskies and fine linen alongside dogs, children, nannies, comfort food and pranks.
Bulloch diesy in 2008 yet she lives on in her beloved hotel, known as "Tinseltown on the Thames". The book was released last Christmas as the hotel's tribute to the woman whose motto was: "In every man there's a child who wants to play." The Athenaeum's unique personality, an amalgam of Mary Poppins, Peter Pan and Keith Richards, is pure Bulloch.
When you arrive, a little projected sign on the pavement reminds you that this is "your home in London". "Welcome home," adds Jim, the towering doorman elongated to improbable heights by his top hat.
Inside, we spot Little Britain's David Walliams and Matt Lucas delving into the tub of jelly babies at reception. On checking in, you're invited to Wednesday cocktails in the Garden Room, where Bulloch once sipped champagne with Joan Collins. Waiting by your bed is Arthur Naeum, the hotel's resident teddy bear - another creation from Bulloch, who collected teddies and was related to US President Theodore Roosevelt, after whom they were named. In honour of Bulloch's ability to get absolutely anything for her guests - she had an editing suite installed for Steven Spielberg and found a solicitor for Stacy Keach - there's a 24-7 menu of handy items: black business socks, cufflinks, tights, camera cards. For trips into Green Park: kites, birdseed, bikes and picnics. And in a disarmingly friendly gesture, all rooms have complimentary soft drinks, water and snacks.
The Athenaeum began life 170 years ago as an extravagant Victorian mansion. Back then, Piccadilly was where posh chaps went for discreet sex and gambling and the building was a gentlemen's club for a while. Around the corner on Down Street is the disused Underground station commandeered by Winston Churchill as a secret World War II bunker. The Victorian townhouses opposite are now the Athenaeum's 34 serviced apartments.
Buckingham Palace is a stroll across Green Park and you're within walking distance of Westminster, Trafalgar Square, Soho and Covent Garden. All around are the exclusive gentlemen's clubs of Mayfair and at night the streets are lined with Bentleys, Rolls-Royces and liveried drivers waiting for their charges.
It's prime hotel real estate, housing some of the capital's most starchy establishments. But the Athenaeum refuses to be stuffy - literally. In every room, the windows can be thrown open and if you're on the park side, you'll hear birdsong. We can pick daisies from our fifth-floor window, thanks to the hotel's eight-storey "living wall" of 12,000 plants created by artist and research scientist Patrick Blanc. At night it glows like a magic forest.
Inside, a recent redesign by Martin Hulbert in "groovy grand" style has allowed light to flood the old building and joyous colours and prints - bumblebees, florals - reflect the hotel's quirky soul. The wall behind reception is covered in sparkly buttons. Textures and fabrics - mohair, silk, velvet - cuddle up together in rooms filled with playful art. Ours has a Perspex wall box filled with little red soldiers and a tiny Queen.
When I stayed at the hotel, former Blur bassist Alex James checked in with his wife and three kids on a "family-moon", a British phenomenon whereby busy clans get away for quality time together.
The Athenaeum is fiercely family-friendly. It was the first hotel in London to hire a kids' concierge - a uniformed Pied Piper with a magic supply of toys, insider knowledge of child-friendly venues and ways to entertain littlies in London.
In August, the hotel recruited three resident nannies and the queue of hopefuls stretched along Piccadilly. They were interviewed by two children aged six and 12, who lobbed tough questions such as: "How would you persuade me to go to bed?" and "If you were gardening, what vegetable would you grow?"
The hotel's Winter Wonderland playroom opened last November. It's kid heaven, with a child-height buffet and goodies from Hamley's toy store. Santa could drop in - but as this is the Athenaeum, it's just as likely Robbie Williams or Harrison Ford will.
The water bowl in the bar reminds you that furry family members - and furry celebrities - are embraced here, too. Last December, the dog-friendly hotel hosted a party for the nominees of the Fido Awards - the "dog Oscars" for canine movie stars.
The ground floor houses the hotel's real gem: The Whisky Bar, housing more than 270 whiskies - the largest collection in England. Robert Mitchum and Richard Dreyfuss have nursed a dram here but the whiskies, such as a Springbank 31-year-old Chieftain's bottling single malt, are stars in their own right. They're tended by another of the Athenaeum's pleasant surprises: an Italian whisky sommelier named Angelo Gobbi. "My father produced wine and of course I've always loved it," he says. "But whisky stole my heart." He's created a Whisky Passport with 24 drinks to sample and stamp. I choose a Bunnahabhain 18-year Islay single malt as aperitif for a special night. Say Hello to Sally for Me is launching with a glittering party in the hotel. Famous faces and tributes from Hollywood pour in.
Executive chef David Marshall dishes up gourmet comfort food and champagne flows. This is The Athenaeum in full celebration just the way Bulloch liked it and you can imagine she's somewhere in the crowd. Of course she is, say her friends. As long as there's laughter in this "London home", it means she's in residence.
The writer was a guest of the Athenaeum.
Trip notes
Where The Athenaeum, 116 Piccadilly, Mayfair, London. +44 20 7499 3464, athenaeumhotel.com.
Getting there The Athenaeum's Tube stop is Green Park, on the Piccadilly line direct from Heathrow Airport - about 40 minutes. London's main stations are within 20 minutes by cab and access various British regions.
How much Rooms start at £285 ($450) a night, with apartments starting from £350.
Top marks The friendly, personal service stands out.
Black mark The concealed, slide-out bidet in the bathroom cabinet was a little weird.
Don't miss Within walking distance are: Selfridges' new Shoe Galleries (Oxford Street): at 3250 square metres, it's the world's biggest shoe destination. Fortnum and Mason's new ice-cream parlour: a Willy Wonka-style heaven for the whole family, on Piccadilly. Breakfast at The Wolseley - food critic AA Gill wrote a whole book on breakfast at this Piccadilly institution. The Athenaeum's concierge can help you score an elusive table.
- Sun-Herald
