‘Heart of hotel’ has met them all
AT the age of just 15, Paul Costello started his first shift at the Hotel Piccadilly as a page boy. That was in December 1970. Next month, Paul will mark his 47th year at what is now The Mercure Manchester Piccadilly Hotel – making him one of the longest-serving employees in the company’s history.
Now head concierge, Paul has been described as ‘the heart of the hotel.’ He has watched it transform through the decades, while welcoming guests through the door every day. And they include plenty of famous faces – not least the President of the USA.
From George Bush Senior to pop stars Rod Stewart, Elton John and Meatloaf, Paul has spent years showing the great and the good true Mancunian hospitality. He said: “It was very different in the 1970s to how it is now. When I started we were the only five-star hotel in Manchester, so we had lots of famous people, like pop stars, who used to visit, as well as plenty of business people.
“The one that really stands out for me was when I met the President of the United States and the First Lady. I showed them up to their suite and chatted to them. That was very special.”
Other famous faces include Welsh singer and heart-throb Tom Jones, comedian Tommy Cooper, actor, comedian and singer-songwriter Sir Norman Wisdom, and comedian and actor Les Dawson – and Paul has greeted them all.
He says the hotel has undergone so many changes over the years it is almost unrecognisable.
“The restaurant used to be called the Ambassador, and we had the King Cotton bar,” he said.
“When I first started there was a cafe in what is now the lobby that the locals called the Horseshoe Bar. It was open 24 hours so people used to come in from the nightclubs in the early hours for something to eat.”
Paul, who lives in Withington, worked his way up the ranks, becoming head concierge around 10 years ago, and he says it is a very busy life with no two days the same.
“It’s no wonder I’m only 5ft 5ins – I have been worked into the ground!” he joked.
Steve Dunford, hotel general manager, said: “Paul Costello, whether he likes it or not, is the heart of this hotel. He has served the test of time and he stands as proud today as he did all of those years ago as a 15-year-old lad.”