The £11m investment at the hotel still setting records
odd way so that you stand helplessly in the middle still looking for table 38 even though you can see tables 37 and 39? But I digress.
Initially, back in the early eighties, it was the Skean Dhu Hotel. Now this is when my memory gets a bit hazy. There is the old gag about the Glasgow businessman who was told by his young daughter she thought he was allergic to bow ties. When he asked what she meant, she explained that whenever he wore one, he always woke up the next day with a sore head.
So apologies if this is wrong, but I was once at a charity dinner there sitting next to Alastair McMurrich, the hotelier who was brought in to save the Skean Dhu as it was losing thousands of pounds a month. Alastair, I recollect, told me the Skean Dhu was financed by a rich American oilman who built hotels in the Aberdeen area because of the oil boom, and then opened the Glasgow Skean Dhu as he felt the Clyde coast would have a similar oil industry. Well, that never quite worked out and the Skean Dhu was sold on. Remember, this was before budget airlines, so Glasgow did not have the hotel trade it has now. I was told recently there are now more people working in Glasgow’s hotels than worked in the shipyards at their peak.
But back in the eighties it was more difficult. Alastair though, after a colourful career, turned the Skean Dhu around. Oh and the name. Skean dhu might sound Gaelic, but it is actually the Anglicised version of sgian dubh, the small dirk you stuff down the sock when you are wearing a kilt. I think there was a spirited debate in The Herald’s letters
‘‘ Alastair worked in hotels all over the world before becoming head of the royal palaces of the King of Jordan
page about the missing “b” in the hotel’s name.
So Edinburgh-born Alastair had worked in hotels all over the world including Switzerland and Paris, before becoming head of the royal palaces of the King of Jordan, which meant looking after numerous world leaders including Margaret Thatcher. Running a hotel in Glasgow must have seemed a breeze after that.
It was then the Mount Charlotte Hotels Group tempted him back to Scotland to run the Skean Dhu, which they renamed the Hospitality Inn. This was before the SEC was built so events such as the Scottish Snooker Masters was held at the Hospitality Inn, which later became the Thistle Hotel.
My temperamental memory also reminds me of a Scottish Chambers of Commerce dinner where the American Ambassador to Britain spoke after he and his security detail roared up to the hotel in giant tank-like Hummers.
Now the hotel is looking its best after the DoubleTree investment. I ask if Mr Doubletree is coming to see it. Rookie mistake. DoubleTree is one of 13 Hilton brands with over 400 hotels worldwide. It is owned by Amaris Hospitality, which is a hotel group formed by the investment fund in America, Lone Star. So no Mr Doubletree.
Oh and you get a chocolate chip cookie when you arrive. Who knows, perhaps starting the evening with a cookie will stop that bow tie from giving me a headache. ST. ANDREW’S HOSPICE: Whisky Tasting event, The Western Club Restaurant, Glasgow, February 24. KILBRYDE HOSPICE: Annual Ball, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Glasgow, February 24. SYRIAN REFUGEES: Cycling Home, Luthrie Village Hall, Cupar, February 25. PAMIS: Grand Central Glitz, Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow, February 25. EDINBURGH DOG & CAT HOME: Doggy Fun Day, The Mercat Bar & Grill, Musselburgh, February 26. CANCER RESEARCH UK: Laugh For Research comedy night, Liberte, Glasgow, March 11. THE PRINCE & PRINCESS OF WALES HOSPICE: (A Little Less) Strictly Come Dancing, Hilton Hotel, Glasgow, March 11. THE PRINCE & PRINCESS OF WALES HOSPICE: Sportsman’s Dinner, Hilton Hotel, Glasgow, March 23. CHEST HEART AND STROKE SCOTLAND: The Big Abseil In The Dark, Titan Crane, Clydebank, March 25. BEATSON CANCER CHARITY: Round The Clock Comedy Roadshow, various locations, Glasgow, March 25 CANCER RESEARCH UK: Peter Kay’s Dance For Life, SSE Hydro, Glasgow, March 25. QUARRIERS: Ladies’ Lunch, Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow, April 23. COSGROVE CARE: Sporting Dinner, Grosvenor Hotel, Glasgow, May 11. THECAPTAINDAVIDSEATH MEMORIAL FUND: Golf tournament, Fairmont Hotel, St Andrews, August 31.