270 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
270 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
sponsored
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offers
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best-deals-of-the-day
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8535104
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-----
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# Stoke Park: backdrop to the blockbusters
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## Stoke Park Country Club and Resort's Hotel Director, Giammario Ragnoli,
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takes Katy Gwilliam on a tour of the five-star country estate and explains why
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you might recognise it from the big screen.
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![Stoke Park's five-star country estate][1]
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Stoke Park's five-star country estate Photo: Stoke Park
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By Katy Gwilliam 9:43AM BST 25 May 2011
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The journey up the long drive to Stoke Park Country Club and Resort is as
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enlightening as it is impressive. As golfers amble leisurely through the
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grounds, we get the impression they are just as interested in absorbing the
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scenery as on improving their game. We pass carefully manicured gardens,
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undisturbed lakes and majestic monuments that all punctuate the estate's
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splendour. A momentary pause for a speed bump gives us time to appreciate a
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beautiful bridge in the distance.
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![Stoke Park is set in 350 acres of beautiful countryside][2]
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Stoke Park is set in 350 acres of beautiful countryside
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A little further and suddenly the White House-esque façade of Stoke Park's
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mansion creeps into sight. Once stationary on the gravelled-drive, we alight
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to find a friendly face from the reception desk awaiting our arrival. We
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already feel at home. Before meeting Giammario, we seize the opportunity to
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look at the lounge and dining areas. Fine art and antique furnishings adorn
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the rooms, while a sweeping staircase stands invitingly in the main hall.
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Giammario catches us admiring the chandeliers in the Great Hall and whisks us
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off to one of the many meeting rooms in The Mansion. Before the interview
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begins, we comment on the hotel's pristine appearance. Giammario explains:
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"For us it is key that everything is perfect. Our guests expect a five-star
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service so it's important that we are always on the ball to ensure they go
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home having had a first-class experience." When we later explore the building,
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this commitment to sky-high standards comes to the fore as Giammario greets a
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regular guest before checking that a painting is hanging straight.
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Back in the meeting room, he elaborates on the history of Stoke Park. Dating
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back over a thousand years, the estate has served a host of eminent historical
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figures including Siret the Saxon, vassal to King Harold and Sir Christopher
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Hatton, a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. More recently, the building has
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become a popular filming location for top blockbusters such as Goldfinger,
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Layer Cake and Bridget Jones's Diary. Giammario reveals, "My favourite room
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has to be The Pennsylvania Suite where Bridget Jones's Diary was filmed. It's
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a great room with a four-poster bed, a massive bathroom and a beautiful
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balcony overlooking the grounds."
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As Giammario offers to take us on a tour of the estate - not a quick task
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given that Stoke Park is set in a cool 350 acres - we are keen to find out how
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the hotel has changed over the years. In 1908 the estate was transformed into
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UK's first Country Club with a golf course attracting some of the world's top
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players. Having filled the role of Hotel Director since February 2009,
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Giammario explains that his main objective was to raise Stoke Park Country
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Club and Resort to the next level and achieve its official five-star status.
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"Although we've always been acknowledged as a five-star hotel, we were never
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officially rated until May 2010."
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Meandering through The Mansion's palatial rooms, we cannot help but be
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overcome by delusions of grandeur when encountering seemingly royal treatment
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from the staff. It's only when we witness all guests receiving such star
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treatment that we remember every visitor is special at Stoke Park. Secretly
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our hopes are dashed.
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Back to reality and Giammario tells us: "We have two styles of building here:
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The Mansion and The Pavilion. The Mansion is very traditional and many movies
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have been set here. The Pavilion was built nine years ago and has a much more
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contemporary look and feel." And is either more popular? "Not really, but the
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older generation tends to prefer The Mansion and the younger generation The
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Pavilion. Then again, sometimes they like to mix. We're very lucky because we
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almost offer two different products."
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Before we move into The Pavilion, we take a peek at the award-winning
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restaurant, The Dining Room. Giammario explains: "Our chef, Chris Wheeler, has
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been working with us for a long time now. Prior to us, he worked with Jean-
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Christophe Novelli so his standards are very high, as well as the service to
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go with it."
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The Pavilion houses the hotel's health and racquet facilities. Rooms here echo
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the opulence and elegance of The Mansion but are much more nouveau in style.
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Once inside, we explore the spa and sports facilities and discover a gym of
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epic proportions boasting two floors and state-of-the art equipment. The
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indoor swimming pool is equally impressive, while the 13 tennis courts mean
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guests are never short of space to practise their serve. Giammario can
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certainly vouch for the quality of the courts, disclosing: "I play tennis here
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every week."
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We go on to discuss the annual Boodles Tennis Tournament, which is held at
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Stoke Park every year and celebrates its 10th anniversary from 14 - 18 June
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this year. "This is a really big event with 1,500 visitors. It's a nice day
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out and a great opportunity to actually see professional tennis players up
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close. You can see everything very easily. The players also stay here, mostly
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in The Pavilion, because they have easy access to the tennis courts and gym.
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They're very friendly and it's a relaxed atmosphere; a really good week."
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A whistle-stop tour of the spa reveals a series of tranquil treatment rooms, a
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hair and nail salon and a shop selling Stoke Park's very own SPC Skincare
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range. As one of the UK's most highly-acclaimed spas, it's no surprise that
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people often visit the hotel purely for its health and beauty facilities.
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However, Giammario expands: "Once they see the place and discover everything
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else the hotel has to offer, they become part of the whole experience. Some
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people don't even know that we have golf here or those who visit the spa don't
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realise we have bedrooms. I think people mainly come for the experience as a
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whole though because they know Stoke Park's reputation or have been here
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before."
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As we reach the end of our tour, the time comes to leave the estate and bid
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our goodbyes to Giammario. With unmistakable sincerity, he insists that we
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visit again soon and we depart with the feeling of having left a mini
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community behind. Doubtless, this is Stoke Park's sneaky way of imprinting an
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everlasting impression on our subconscious but, at the risk of sounding
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sycophantic, we are more than happy to oblige.
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