Grosvenor House Hotel
JW Marriott Grosvenor House London
1929
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420
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JW Marriott Grosvenor House London, formerly the Grosvenor House Hotel, is a luxury hotel that opened in 1929 in the Mayfair area of London, England. Across from Hyde Park, the hotel is built on the former site of the 19th century aristocratic Grosvenor House residence. The hotel is managed by JW Marriott Hotels, which is a brand of Marriott International, and it is owned by Katara Hospitality.[1]
Great Room[edit]
The Great Room (which is a separate room from the Ballroom) at the Grosvenor House is the venue of many prominent awards evenings such as The Asian Awards, Pride of Britain Awards, and the O2 Silver Clef Awards, as well as charity balls and other events, and it is often seen on British television. For example, the UK Chamber of Shipping hosts an annual maritime gala dinner at the hotel.[13] Since the 1930s, the Great Room has hosted the world's oldest charitable ball, the Royal Caledonian Ball, and it is one of the largest ballrooms in Europe, with a maximum capacity of 2,000 seated (200 10-person tables) or 1,100 theatre style.
Although now not used as such, the Great Room was originally built as an ice-rink, and much of the machinery lies dormant under the current flooring. In 1933, Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II, learnt to skate at the hotel at just seven years of age. Sonja Henie, Cecilia Colledge, and other famous skaters frequently displayed their skill. International ice hockey matches were played there, and the newly formed Grosvenor House Canadian hockey team, recruited from Canadians living in London, played the Queen's Ice Hockey Club on the rink, the first of a series of matches against teams from the United Kingdom and the Continent.
Anticipating competition from other ice rinks, the rink was converted in 1935 into a banquet hall measuring 1,902 square metres (20,454 square feet).
Tenants[edit]
Richard Corrigan rents space within the hotel and runs the restaurant Corrigan's Mayfair.[14]