“The Great White Palace” by Tony Parker

This very enjoyable slice of memoir was chosen for one of my reading groups. It is the story of how a couple in their fifties sold everything in the mid 1980s in order to buy Burgh Island, a few miles down the coast from where I live in south Devon, and to restore the hotel that was built there in the 1920s.

The island is one of those which only gets cut off from the mainland when the tide is high. You can walk or drive across when the tide is out, but require the aid of a somewhat unreliable contraption called a sea tractor to g back and forth when it is in. It is a beautiful spot with uninterrupted views out to sea and public rooms that are perfect for private parties and smaller weddings etc. There is also a pub on the island called The Pilchard Inn which was included in the sale.

Originally a plush, art-deco building, by the 1980s the hotel had fallen into disrepair and was just about limping along with its suites now operating as holiday flat lets.

Tony Parker, a PR man who had previously helped to establish London Fashion Week, together with his wife Beatrice, bought the island in 1985 and they invested all their time and effort into turning it back to what it had been previously, namely a very expensive bijou hotel of the very highest quality.

Ultimately they succeeded but the financial pressures at times were huge, not to mention the stresses of dealing with difficult staff and guests. Eventually in 2003, with degree of relief, they sold up and passed the responsibility to another couple.

The story is told in a very relaxed and light hearted way. This is basically a book of anecdotes weaved quite skilfully together to form a narrative with a splendidly eclectic and large cast of characters.

Tony Porter is an entertaining writer who puts a positive spin on everything, always keeps things in perspective and sees no need at all to hide from his readers his obvious love of attractive women.

The one serious point I took from this in terms of building a business is the immense significance of good PR. Tony Porter was brilliant at that, securing what would now be called ‘positive media coverage’ continually and hence avoiding having to spend a ton of money on advertising. He and Bea got interest going, gave their guests a fantastic experience and let word-of-mouth reputation to do the rest.

A highly engaging and pretty speedy comfort read.