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{{Short description|Historic luxury hotel in London, England}}
{{about|the hotel in London|other uses|Savoy Hotel (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2017}}
{{Infobox building
| name                = The Savoy
| logo                = Savoy Hotel logo.svg
| logo_size           = 
| logo_alt            = 
| logo_caption        = 
| image               = Hôtel Savoy The Strand Londres - edited.jpg
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| image_alt           = <!-- or | alt = -->
| image_caption       = The Savoy's main entrance from [[Strand, London|Strand]]
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| relief              = 
| etymology           = 
| status              = 
| building_type       = [[Hotel]]
| architectural_style = [[Art Deco]]
| classification      = 
| address             = [[Strand, London|Strand]], [[City of Westminster]], London, England
| location_city       = 
| location_country    = 
| altitude            = 
| current_tenants     = 
| namesake            = [[Liberty of the Savoy]]
| start_date          = 1886
| opened_date         = {{Start date and age|1889|8|6|df=y}}
| demolition_date     = <!-- or | destruction_date    = -->
| cost                = 
| owner               = [[Kingdom Holding Company|Kingdom Holding]] (50%)<br />[[FRHI Hotels & Resorts|FRHI]] and [[Katara Hospitality|Katara]] (50%)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.katarahospitality.com/press-office/katara-hospitality-adds-london-landmark-to-portfolio-with-investment-in-the-savoy/ |title=Katara Hospitality Adds London Landmark to Portfolio with Investment in The Savoy |work=Katara Hospitality |access-date=2018-12-15}}</ref>
| landlord            = 
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| weight              = 
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| grounds_area        = 
| architect           = [[Thomas Edward Collcutt]]
| developer           = [[Richard D'Oyly Carte]]
| other_designers     = [[Arthur H. Mackmurdo]] (interior consultant)
| awards              = 
| designations        = 
| parking             = [[Valet parking]]
| public_transit      = {{rint|london|underground|size=15}} {{stl|London Underground|Charing Cross}}
| operator            = [[Fairmont Hotels and Resorts]]
| affiliation         =
| number_of_rooms     = 267
| number_of_restaurants = 5 (Savoy Grill; [[Simpson's-in-the-Strand|Simpson’s in the Strand]]; River Restaurant; Restaurant 1890; Thames Foyer)
| number_of_bars      = 3 (American Bar; Beaufort Bar; The Bar at Simpson’s)
| facilities          = Swimming pool and gym
| website             = {{URL|https://www.thesavoylondon.com}}
{{Infobox designation list
| embed                   = yes
| designation1            = Grade II Listed Building
| designation1_offname    = The Savoy Hotel
| designation1_type       = 
| designation1_criteria   = 
| designation1_date       = 16 January 1981
| delisted1_date          = 
| designation1_partof     = 
| designation1_number     = {{NHLE|num=1236709|short=y}}
| designation1_free1name  = 
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}}}}

The '''Savoy Hotel''' is a [[luxury hotel]] located in the [[Strand, London|Strand]] in the [[City of Westminster]] in central London, England. Built by the [[impresario]] [[Richard D'Oyly Carte]] with profits from his [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] opera productions, it opened on 6 August 1889. It was the first in the Savoy group of hotels and restaurants owned by Carte's family{{efn|Carte is the family name. The biographer [[Arthur Jacobs]] emphasises that "D'Oyly" was his "forename (not part of a double surname)".<ref>{{cite ODNB|last=Jacobs|first=Arthur|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/32311|title=Carte, Richard D'Oyly (1844–1901)|date=September 2004|accessdate=12 September 2008|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/32311}}</ref>}} for over a century. The Savoy was the first hotel in Britain to introduce electric lights throughout the building, electric lifts, bathrooms in most of the lavishly furnished rooms, constant hot and cold running water and many other innovations. Carte hired [[César Ritz]] as manager and [[Auguste Escoffier]] as ''[[chef de cuisine]]''; they established an unprecedented standard of quality in hotel service, entertainment and elegant dining, attracting royalty and other rich and powerful guests and diners.

The hotel became Carte's most successful venture. Its bands, [[Savoy Orpheans]] and the [[Savoy Havana Band]], became famous, and other entertainers (who were also often guests) included [[George Gershwin]], [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Lena Horne]] and [[Noël Coward]]. Other famous guests have included [[Edward VII]], [[Oscar Wilde]], [[Enrico Caruso]], [[Charlie Chaplin]], [[Babe Ruth]], [[Harry Truman]], [[Joan Crawford]], [[Judy Garland]], [[John Wayne]], [[Laurence Olivier]], [[Marilyn Monroe]], [[Humphrey Bogart]], [[Elizabeth Taylor]], [[Barbra Streisand]], [[Bob Dylan]], [[Bette Midler]], [[the Beatles]] and many others. [[Winston Churchill]] often took his cabinet to lunch at the hotel.<ref name=Htimes/>

The hotel is managed by [[Fairmont Hotels and Resorts]]. It has been called "London's most famous hotel".<ref name=billions>Prynn, Jonathan. [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23676788-details/Savoy+%27up+for+sale%27+as+Saudi+owner%27s+billions+dwindle/article.do "Savoy 'up for sale' as Saudi owner's billions dwindle"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419060158/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23676788-details/Savoy+%27up+for+sale%27+as+Saudi+owner%27s+billions+dwindle/article.do |date=19 April 2009 }}, 16 April 2009</ref> It has 267 guest rooms and panoramic views of the [[River Thames]] across [[Savoy Place]] and the [[Thames Embankment]]. The hotel is a [[Grade II listed]] building.<ref>{{NHLE|num=1236709|desc=The Savoy Hotel|access-date=30 September 2015}}</ref>

==History==

===Site===
[[File:Peter Count of Savoy (39671540911).jpg|thumb|left|Statue of [[Peter II, Count of Savoy|Peter]], Count of Savoy, located at the entrance of the Savoy Hotel.]]
The [[House of Savoy]] was the ruling family of [[Savoy]], descended from [[Humbert I of Savoy|Humbert I, Count of Sabaudia]] (or "Maurienne"), who became count in 1032. The name Sabaudia evolved into "Savoy" (or "Savoie"). [[Peter II, Count of Savoy|Peter]] (or ''Piers'' or ''Piero'') Count of Savoy (d. 1268) was the maternal uncle of [[Eleanor of Provence]], queen-consort of [[Henry III of England]], and came with her to London.

[[File:Savoy Palace.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Savoy Palace]]]]
[[Henry III of England|King Henry III]] made Peter [[Earl of Richmond]] and, in 1246, gave him the land between the [[Strand, London|Strand]] and the [[River Thames]], where Peter built the [[Savoy Palace]] in 1263. Peter gave the palace and the [[Liberty of the Savoy|manor of the Savoy]] to the Congregation of Canons of the [[Bernard of Menthon|Great Saint Bernard]], and the palace became the "Great Hospital of St Bernard de Monte Jovis in Savoy". The manor was subsequently purchased by [[Eleanor of Provence|Queen Eleanor]], who gave the site to her second son, [[Edmund Crouchback|Edmund, Earl of Lancaster]].<ref>Thornbury, Walter. [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45137 "The Savoy"], ''Old and New London'', Vol. 3 (1878), ''British History Online'', University of London, accessed 6 October 2015</ref> Edmund's great-granddaughter, [[Blanche of Lancaster|Blanche]], inherited the site. Her husband, [[John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster]], built a magnificent palace that was burned down by [[Wat Tyler]]'s followers in the [[Peasants Revolt|Peasants' Revolt]] of 1381.<ref name=FineRefurb>Peck, Tom. [https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/hotels/savoy-refurb-rather-fine-guests-agree-2103171.html "Savoy refurb: rather fine, guests agree"], ''The Independent'', 11 October 2010, accessed 6 October 2015</ref> King [[Richard II of England|Richard II]] was still a child, and his uncle John of Gaunt was the power behind the throne, and so a main target of the rebels.

About 1505, [[Henry VII of England|Henry VII]] planned a great hospital for "pouer, nedie people", leaving money and instructions for it in his will. The hospital was built in the palace ruins and licensed in 1512. Drawings show that it was a magnificent building, with a dormitory, dining hall and three chapels. Henry VII's hospital lasted for two centuries, but suffered from poor management. The sixteenth-century historian Stow noted that the hospital was being misused by "loiterers, vagabonds and strumpets". In 1702, the hospital was dissolved, and the hospital buildings were used for other purposes. Part of the old palace was used as a military prison in the eighteenth century. In the nineteenth century, the old hospital buildings were demolished, and new buildings were erected.<ref>Somerville (1960), p. 89</ref>

[[File:RichardD'OylyCarte.jpg|right|thumb|upright|Richard D'Oyly Carte]]
In 1864, a fire burned everything except the stone walls and the [[Savoy Chapel]]. The property sat empty until the [[impresario]] [[Richard D'Oyly Carte]] bought it in 1880, to build the [[Savoy Theatre]] specifically for the production of the [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] operas, of which he was the producer.<ref name="Hotel History">[http://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/hotelhistory "Savoy: Hotel History"], Fairmont.com, accessed 15 December 2018</ref>

===Early years===
Having seen the opulence of American hotels during his many visits to the United States, Carte decided to build a luxury hotel in Britain, to attract a foreign clientele as well as British visitors to London.<ref name=FineRefurb/> Opened in 1889, the hotel was designed by architect [[Thomas Edward Collcutt]], who also designed the [[Wigmore Hall]]. Carte chose the name "Savoy" to commemorate the history of the property. His investors in the venture were, in addition to his relatives, [[Carl Rosa]], [[George Grossmith]], [[François Cellier]], [[George Edwardes]], [[Augustus Harris]] and [[Fanny Ronalds]]. His friend, the composer [[Arthur Sullivan|Sir Arthur Sullivan]], was a shareholder and sat on the board of directors.<ref>Ainger, p. 281</ref>

The hotel was built on a plot of land, next to the Savoy Theatre, that Carte originally purchased to house an [[electrical generator]] for the theatre (built in 1881), which was the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity. The construction of the hotel took five years and was financed by the profits from the Gilbert and Sullivan partnership, particularly from ''[[The Mikado]]''.<ref>[http://www.inlondonguide.co.uk/london-hotel-accommodation/historical-london-hotels/savoy-hotel-strand-london.html "The Savoy"], ''InsideGuide to London'', accessed 5 October 2015</ref> It was the first hotel in Britain lit by electric lights and the first with electric lifts.<ref name="Historic Hotels">[https://web.archive.org/web/20170204122407/http://www.historichotelsworldwide.com/hotels-resorts/the-savoy-london/history.php "The Savoy London"], ''Historic Hotels Worldwide'', accessed 7 October 2015; [https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4042822.html "The Savoy – One Hundred Firsts"], Hospitality.net, 10 August 2009, accessed 30 April 2023</ref> Other innovations included en-suite marble bathrooms with hot and cold running water in most of its 268 rooms; glazed brickwork designed to prevent London's smoke-laden air from spoiling the external walls; and its own artesian well.<ref>Richardson, Tim. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/gardenstovisit/3296967/Out-of-time.html "Out of Time"], ''The Telegraph'', 26 January 2002, accessed 7 October 2015</ref>

[[File:GondolaPartyatSavoy.JPG|left|upright|thumb|Gondola party, 1905]]
At first the Savoy did well, but within six months of opening, the hotel was losing money. The board of directors instructed Carte to replace the management team, headed by W. Hardwicke as manager and M. Charpentier as chef de cuisine.<ref>Barr, p. 40</ref> As manager he engaged [[César Ritz]], later the founder of the [[The Ritz London Hotel|Ritz Hotel]]; Ritz brought in the chef [[Auguste Escoffier]] and the [[maître d'hôtel]] Louis Echenard<ref>Barr, pp. 41–43</ref> and put together what he described as "a little army of hotel men for the conquest of London"; Escoffier recruited French cooks and reorganised the kitchens. The Savoy under Ritz and his partners soon attracted distinguished and wealthy clientele, headed by the [[Edward VII of the United Kingdom|Prince of Wales]]. Aristocratic women, hitherto unaccustomed to dining in public, were now "seen in full regalia in the Savoy dining and supper rooms".<ref name=dnbE>Ashburner, F. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/50441 "Escoffier, Georges Auguste (1846–1935)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, May 2006, accessed 7 October 2015{{subscription required}}</ref> The hotel became such a financial success that Carte bought other luxury hotels.<ref name="Savoy Group">[https://math.boisestate.edu/gas/carte/burleigh.html "Richard D'Oyly Carte and the Dynasty He Founded"], Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, Boise State University, 30 August 2011, accessed 7 October 2015; see also  ''The Times'', 21 July 1896, p. 4; and 20 December 1919, p. 18</ref>

At the same time, Ritz continued to manage his own hotels and businesses in Europe. Nellie Melba, among others, noted that Ritz was less focused on the Savoy.<ref>Augustin, Andreas. [http://www.famoushotels.org/article/1157 "César Ritz: The Savoy – 1889–1900"], ''The Most Famous Hotels in the World'', accessed 4 September 2013</ref> In 1897, Ritz and his partners were dismissed from the Savoy. Ritz and Echenard were implicated in the disappearance of over [[Pound sterling|£]]3,400 (equivalent to £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|3400|1897|{{Inflation-year|UK}}|r=-4}}}} at {{Inflation-year|UK}}),{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}} of wine and spirits, and Escoffier had been receiving gifts from the Savoy's suppliers.<ref>Brigid, Allen. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48534 "Ritz, César Jean (1850–1918)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edition, May 2006, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> In a 1938 biography of her husband, Ritz's widow maintained that he resigned and that Escoffier, Echenard, and other senior employees resigned with him.<ref>Ritz, p. 228</ref> This fiction was perpetuated for many years, with the consent of the Savoy company. In fact, however, after a damning report by the company's auditors and the advice of the prominent lawyer, [[Edward Carson|Sir Edward Carson]], that it was the board's "imperative duty to dismiss the manager and the chef", Carte handed Ritz, Escoffier and Echenard letters of dismissal:<ref name=barr186/>
{{blockquote|By a resolution passed this morning you have been dismissed from the service of the Hotel for, among other serious reasons, gross negligence and breaches of duty and mismanagement. I am also directed to request that you will be good enough to leave the Hotel at once.<ref name=barr186>Barr, p. 186</ref>|}}
Ritz threatened to sue the hotel company for wrongful dismissal, but was evidently dissuaded by Escoffier, who felt that their interests would be better served by keeping the scandal quiet.<ref>James, pp. 170 and 212</ref> It was not until 1985 that the facts became public knowledge.<ref>James, p. 170 and 212–213</ref><ref>"Savoy's epic scandal", ''The Observer'', 19 May 1985, p. 2</ref>

The Savoy group purchased [[Simpson's-in-the-Strand]] in 1898. The next year, Carte engaged M. Joseph, proprietor of the Marivaux Restaurant in Paris, as his new maître d'hôtel<ref>''[[The Daily Mirror]]'', 10 June 1904, p. 16</ref> and in 1900, appointed [[George Reeves-Smith]] as the next managing director of the Savoy hotel group. Reeves-Smith served in this capacity until 1941.<ref>Jaine, Tom. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/37887 "Smith, Sir George Reeves- (1863–1941)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 18 September 2009</ref>

[[Image:Savoyhotel1.jpg|right|frame|Savoy hotel, Strand entrance, 1911]]
After Richard D'Oyly Carte died in 1901, his son [[Rupert D'Oyly Carte]] became chairman of the Savoy hotel group in 1903 and supervised the expansion of the hotel and the modernisation of the other hotels in the group's ownership, such as [[Claridge's]].<ref>When Claridge's needed a new chef in 1904, Carte secured the services of François Bonnaure, formerly chef at the [[Élysée Palace]] in Paris. The press speculated on how much Carte must have paid to persuade Bonnaure to join him, and compared the younger Carte's audacity with his father's coup in securing Paris's most famous ''maître d'hôtel'', M. Joseph, a few years earlier. ''[[Daily Mirror]]'', 10 June 1904, p. 16.</ref> The expansion of the hotel in 1903–04 included new east and west wings, and moving the main entrance to Savoy Court off the Strand.<ref name="Hotel History" /> The additions pioneered the use of [[steel frame]] construction in London.<ref>Jackson, Alastair A. [http://www.arct.cam.ac.uk/Downloads/chs/final-chs-vol.14/chs-vol.14-pp.21-to-40.pdf "The Development of Steel Framed Buildings in Britain 1880–1905"], ''Construction History'', Vol. 14. (1998), pp. 34 and 37</ref> At that time, the hotel added Britain's first serviced apartments, with access to all the hotel's amenities. Many famous figures became residents, such as [[Sarah Bernhardt]] and [[Thomas Dewar, 1st Baron Dewar|Sir Thomas Dewar]], some of whom lived there for decades.<ref name=Mather>Mather, Victoria. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/hotels/ukhotels/8050136/The-Savoy-hotel-London-reopens-after-220-million-restoration.html "The Savoy hotel, London, reopens after £220 million restoration"]. ''The Telegraph'', 8 October 2010</ref><ref name=Savoy100>[http://www.fairmont.com/press-room/articles/thesavoyonehundredfirsts/ "The Savoy – One Hundred Firsts", Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, accessed 8 October 2015]</ref> Spectacular parties were held at the hotel. For example, in 1905 the American millionaire George A. Kessler hosted a "Gondola Party" where the central courtyard was flooded to a depth of four feet, and scenery was erected around the walls. Costumed staff and guests re-created Venice. The two dozen guests dined in an enormous gondola. After dinner, [[Enrico Caruso]] sang, and a baby elephant brought in a five-foot birthday cake.<ref name=Savoy100/>

When the hotel was expanded, Rupert D'Oyly Carte decided to develop a luxurious, handcrafted bed unique to the Savoy and his other hotels. His Savoy Bed, also called the No. 2 Bed, was covered in a [[Ticking (textile)|ticking]] whose design is attributed to his stepmother, [[Helen Carte]].<ref>Plimmer, Martin. [https://web.archive.org/web/20100228042028/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/interiorsandshopping/7315797/Pillow-talk-how-to-buy-a-bed.html "Pillow Talk: How to Buy a Bed"], ''The Telegraph'', 26 February 2010, accessed 6 May 2014</ref> In 1924, the hotel bought James Edwards Limited, the manufacturer of the bed.<ref>Jones, Ronald F. ''Inside the Best Hotels: Grand Hotelier'' (1997), p. 248, Jones & Jones {{ISBN|0953273709}}</ref> Later, the Savoy Group sold the company, which became [[Savoir Beds]] in 1997.<ref>Finn, Holly. "FT Weekend: Dream baby", ''[[Financial Times]]'', 4 August 2002</ref> Savoir Beds continues to make the Savoy Bed for the hotel.<ref>Jones, Carwyn. [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-18617161 "Savoir Beds expands to larger works in Treforest"], BBC News, 28 June 2012, accessed 6 May 2014</ref>

1899, [[Guccio Gucci]] worked at the Savoy as a luggage porter before founding his fashion house in 1921.<ref>Silver, Dena. [https://crfashionbook.com/fashion-a26934683-evolution-gucci-designer "Charting the Evolution of Gucci"], CR Fashion Book, 26 March 2019, accessed 1 December 2022</ref>

===1913 to World War II===
After the death of Helen Carte in 1913, Rupert D'Oyly Carte became the controlling stockholder of the hotel group.<ref name="Carte Family">[https://math.boisestate.edu/gas/carte/carte_home.html "The D'Oyly Carte Dynasty"], Gilbert and Sullivan Archive, Boise State University, accessed 7 October 2015</ref> In 1919, he sold the Grand Hotel, Rome, which his father had acquired in 1894 at the urging of Ritz. For the Savoy, he hired a new chef, François Latry, who served from 1919 to 1942.<ref name=Latry>[http://www.cooksinfo.com/francois-latry "François Latry"], Cooksinfo.com, 3 May 2011, accessed 8 October 2015</ref> In the 1920s he ensured that the Savoy continued to attract a fashionable clientele by a continuous programme of modernisation and the introduction of dancing in the large restaurants. It also became the first hotel with air conditioning, steam-heating and soundproofed windows in the rooms, 24-hour room service and telephones in every bathroom. It also manufactured its own mattresses.<ref name=Savoy100/> One famous incident during Rupert's early years was the 1923 shooting, at the hotel, of a wealthy young Egyptian, Prince Fahmy Bey, by his French wife, Marguerite. The widow was acquitted of murder after it was revealed that her husband had treated her with extreme cruelty throughout the six-month marriage and had stated that he was going to kill her.<ref>Thomson, Basil.  ''The Story of Scotland Yard'', pp. 293–97, Kessinger Publishing, 2005 {{ISBN|1-4191-5451-6}}</ref>

[[File:Savoy Hotel letter1939 cropped.jpg|left|260px|thumb|Savoy Hotel letterhead, 1939]]
Until the 1930s, the Savoy group had not thought it necessary to advertise, but Carte and Reeves-Smith changed their approach. "We are endeavouring by intensive propaganda work to get more customers; this work is going on in the U.S.A., in Canada, in the Argentine and in Europe."<ref>''The Times'' 27 March 1931, p. 22; and 22 April 1932, p. 20</ref> In 1938 [[Hugh Wontner]] joined the Savoy hotel group as Reeves-Smith's assistant, and he became managing director in 1941.<ref name=Htimes>''The Times'', obituary of Hugh Wontner, 27 November 1992</ref><ref name="Wontner Obit">Saxon, Wolfgang. [https://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/28/world/hugh-walter-kingwell-wontner-head-of-savoy-hotels-dies-at-84.html "Hugh Walter Kingwell Wontner, Head of Savoy Hotels, Dies at 84"], ''The New York Times'', 28 November 1992, accessed 8 October 2015</ref>

During World War II, Wontner and his staff had to cope with bomb damage, food rationing, manpower shortage and a serious decline in the number of foreign visitors. After the US entered the war, business picked up as the Savoy became a favourite of American officers, diplomats, journalists and others.<ref name="Oxford Bio Wontner">Baker, Anne Pimlott. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/51374, "Wontner, Sir Hugh Walter Kingwell (1908–1992)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 16 September 2009</ref> The hotel became a meeting place for war leaders: [[Winston Churchill]] often took his cabinet to lunch at the hotel, [[Lord Mountbatten]], [[Charles de Gaulle]], [[Jan Masaryk]] and [[Archibald Wavell|General Wavell]] were among the regular Grill Room diners, and the hotel's air-raid shelters were "the smartest in London".<ref name=Htimes/> Wontner cooperated fully with the government's wartime restrictions, helping to draw up an order imposing a five-shilling limit on the price of a restaurant meal.<ref name="Oxford Bio Wontner" /><ref>About £10 in 2009 terms: see [http://www.measuringworth.com/ukcompare/ "Five Ways to Compute the Relative Value of a UK Pound Amount, 1830 to Present"]</ref>

===1946–2007===
After World War II, the Savoy Group experienced a strike of its employees in support of a waiter dismissed from the hotel. The matter was judged so serious that the government set up a court of inquiry.<ref>''The Times'', 8 November 1947, p. 4</ref> Nevertheless, the hotel continued to attract celebrities. In 1946, Wontner set up "The Savoy Management Scheme", a school to train hoteliers, that was maintained for half a century.<ref name=Savoy100/> The last major appointments of Rupert D'Oyly Carte's chairmanship were Wyllie Adolf Hofflin, general manager from 1941 to 1960, and August Laplanche, head chef from 1946 to 1965.<ref name=Latry/><ref name=Caterer>Webster, Jenny [http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2002/05/29/43033/crowning-moment.html "Crowning Moment"], ''The Caterer'', 29 May 2002, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> When Carte died in 1948, his daughter [[Bridget D'Oyly Carte|Bridget]] did not wish to become chairman, accepting instead the vice-chairman position,<ref>''The Times'' obituary notice for Bridget D'Oyly Carte, 3 May 1985, p. 11</ref> and the Savoy board elected Wontner, the first person to combine the roles of chairman and managing director since the Savoy's founder, Richard D'Oyly Carte.<ref name=Htimes/><ref name="Wontner Obit" /><ref>[http://www.londonremembers.com/memorials/d-oyly-carte-armillary-sphere "Memorial: D'Oyly Carte armillary sphere"], London Remembers, accessed 8 October 2015</ref> Wontner remained managing director until 1979 and chairman until 1984, and he was president thereafter until 1992.<ref name="Oxford Bio Wontner" />

[[Image:DOCplanter.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Planter in the embankment gardens between the hotel and the river honouring the Carte family and other persons historically important to the hotel (1989)]]
To mark [[Elizabeth II|Queen Elizabeth II]]'s coronation on 2 June 1953, the hotel hosted the Savoy Coronation Ball, attended by 1,400 people, including Hollywood stars, royalty and other notables, who paid 12 guineas (equivalent to £{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|12.6|1953|{{Inflation-year|UK}}|r=0}}}} as of {{Inflation-year|UK}}),{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}} each.<ref>£12.60 in decimal terms; £750 in terms of 2008 earnings: see [http://www.measuringworth.com Measuring Worth]</ref> Sixteen [[Yeomen Warders]] from the [[Tower of London]] lined the entrance staircase. The interior of the Savoy was decked in hundreds of yards of dove-grey material and heraldic banners in scarlet, blue and yellow.<ref name=Latry/> The design was supervised by Bridget D'Oyly Carte, whose fellow organisers included [[Cecil Beaton]] and [[Ninette de Valois]]. The cabaret was under the direction of [[Laurence Olivier]], [[Noël Coward]] and [[John Mills]].<ref name=Latry/><ref>"Savoy Coronation Ball", ''The Times'', 25 November 1952, p. 10</ref>

Under Wontner's leadership, the Savoy appointed its first British head chef, Silvino Trompetto, who was maître-chef from 1965 to 1980.<ref name=Savoy100/> Giles Shepard (1937–2006), succeeded Wontner as managing director from 1979 to 1994 and helped to defend the Savoy Group against [[Charles Forte]]'s attempt to take control of the Board in the 1980s. Forte gained a majority of the shares, but was unable to take control due to the company's ownership structure. Shepard also introduced competitive salaries for the staff, increased international marketing of the hotel, and led the Savoy's centenary celebrations.<ref>Sweeting, Adam. "Man of steel at the Savoy: Obituary, Hugh Wontner", ''[[The Guardian]]'', 3 December 1992, p. A14; [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article709285.ece Giles Shepard]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}, ''The Times'' obituary, 26 April 2006; and [http://www.scotsman.com/news/obituaries/giles-shepard-1-1115679 "Giles Shepard"], ''[[The Scotsman]]'', 28 April 2006, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> Ramón Pajares was managing director from 1994 to 1999.<ref>Stamford, Janie. [http://www.catererandhotelkeeper.co.uk/articles/10/5/2011/338219/a-minute-on-the-clock-ram-n-pajares.htm "A Minute on the Clock – Ramón Pajares"], Caterer and Hotel Keeper, 10 May 2011, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> The Savoy continued to be a popular meeting place. "''Le tout'' London was there it seemed, from film stars to businessmen to politicians, all staying or being entertained at the grand old fun palace on the Strand."<ref>Kane, Frank. [http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091212/BUSINESS/712119827/1058&template=columnists "JET-setting pays dividends in search for information"], ''[[The National (Abu Dhabi)|The National]]'', Abu Dhabi Media Company, 13 October 2015</ref>

Bridget D'Oyly Carte died childless in 1985, bringing an end to her family line. In 1998, an American private equity house, [[The Blackstone Group]], purchased the Savoy hotel group. They sold it in 2004 to [[Derek Quinlan|Quinlan Private]], who sold the Savoy hotel and restaurant Simpson's-In-The-Strand eight months later, for an estimated  [[Pound sterling|£]]250&nbsp;million, to [[Al-Waleed bin Talal]] to be managed by Al-Waleed's affiliate, [[Fairmont Hotels and Resorts]] of Canada.<ref name=billions/> Quinlan's group retained the rest of the hotels under the name [[Maybourne Hotel Group]].<ref>Walsh, Dominic. [https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/london-travel/savoy-group-changes-name-after-deal-bnhr9m2mtks "Savoy Group changes name after deal"], ''The Times'', 25 January 2005, accessed 13 October 2015</ref>

===2010 refurbishment to present===
[[File:High tea at the Savoy Hotel.jpg|upright|thumb|left|Afternoon tea at the hotel]]
In December 2007, the hotel closed for a complete renovation, the cost of which was budgeted at £100&nbsp;million.<ref name=Sylt>Sylt, Christian. [https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/england/london-travel/savoy-group-changes-name-after-deal-bnhr9m2mtks "I'll never sell the Savoy, says billionaire Prince Alwaleed"], ''The Times'', 25 January 2005, accessed 15 October 2015</ref> The hotel conducted a sale of 3,000 pieces of its famous furnishings and memorabilia.<ref name=Memorabilia>Sawer, Patrick. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1572629/Memorabilia-up-for-sale-at-Savoy-auction.html "Memorabilia up for sale at Savoy auction"], ''The Telegraph'', 15 December 2007, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> The projected reopening date was delayed more than a year to October 2010, as structural and system problems held up construction. The building's façade required extensive stabilisation,<ref>Curtis, Nick and Jonathan Prynn. [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23802751-major-faults-delay-savoys-pound-100m-refit-by-over-a-year.do "Major faults delay Savoy’s £100m refit by over a year"], {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100210175753/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23802751-major-faults-delay-savoys-pound-100m-refit-by-over-a-year.do |date=10 February 2010 }} ''[[London Evening Standard]]'', 5 February 2010</ref> and the cost of the renovations grew to £220&nbsp;million.<ref name=Sylt/><ref name=reopenOct>Higgins, Kat. [http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/The-Iconic-Savoy-Hotels-Refurbishment-Is-Nearing-Completion-After-220m-Spent-On-Work/Article/201007315665765?f=rss "Countdown Begins To The Savoy's Reopening"]. ''Sky News Online'', 15 July 2010, accessed 9 August 2010</ref> The new energy-efficient design reduced the hotel's electricity usage by approximately 50% and reuse and recycling increased.<ref name=Ward>Ward, Michelle. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20101017090757/http://www.greenwisebusiness.co.uk/news/savoy-reopens-claiming-title-of-londons-greenest-fivestar-hotel-1854.aspx "Savoy reopens, claiming title of London’s greenest five-star hotel"]}}. ''GreenWise'', The Sixty Mile Publishing Company, 12 October 2010</ref><ref>Lovell, Jeremy. [https://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/11/18/18climatewire-londons-posh-savoy-hotel-reopens-after-a-pri-64815.html "London's Posh Savoy Hotel Reopens After a Pricey 'Green' Makeover"]. ''The New York Times'', 18 November 2010</ref>

The new design features a Thames Foyer with a winter garden gazebo under a stained-glass cupola with natural light, which is the venue for late-night dining and the hotel's famous afternoon tea. The glass dome had been covered since World War II.<ref>[http://blog.visitlondon.com/2010/08/the-savoy-hotel-bars-restaurants-afternoon-tea-and-the-ballroom "The Savoy Hotel: Bars, Restaurants, Afternoon Tea and the Ballroom"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100823001319/http://blog.visitlondon.com/2010/08/the-savoy-hotel-bars-restaurants-afternoon-tea-and-the-ballroom/ |date=23 August 2010 }}, Blogvisitlondon.com, 19 August 2010, accessed 13 September 2010</ref> A new teashop and patisserie is called Savoy Tea, and a glass-enclosed fitness gallery with rooftop swimming pool, gym and spa are located above the Savoy Theatre. The new Beaufort Bar has an [[Art Deco]] interior of jet-black and gold and offers nightly cabaret.<ref name="Savoy Reopens">Kent, Pam. [http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/savoy-london-landmark-of-luxury-reopens "Savoy, London Landmark of Luxury, Reopens"]. ''The New York Times'', 10 October 2010</ref> The River Restaurant (now renamed Kaspar's), facing the Thames, is also decorated in the Art Deco style, but the American Bar is nearly unchanged.<ref name=FineRefurb/><ref name=Guardianrev>Shalam, Sally. [https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/may/06/london-the-savoy-hotel-review "The Savoy, The Strand, London"], ''The Guardian'', 6 May 2011, accessed 10 January 2012</ref> The rooms are decorated in period styles harmonised with the adjacent hallways, and they retain built-in wardrobes and bedroom cabinets. The decor is [[Edwardian era|Edwardian]] on the Thames river side and Art Deco on the Strand side.<ref>Dombek, Carl. [http://travelpro55.blogspot.com/2009/11/london-savoy-hotel-stompin-at-savoy-to.html "London's Savoy Hotel: Stompin' to Resume in 2010"], travelpro, 6 November 2009</ref><ref name=reopenDate>[https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/reopening-date-set-for-the-savoy-2004526.html "Reopening date set for The Savoy"]. ''The Independent'', 18 June 2010, accessed 9 August 2010</ref> Butler service was also reintroduced to the hotel.<ref>Block, Elinor. [http://www.cntraveller.com/news/2010/september/the-savoy "Behind the scenes at the brand-new Savoy hotel"]. ''Conde Nast Traveller'', 10 September 2010</ref> [[Gordon Ramsay]] manages the Savoy Grill with [[Stuart Gillies]] as Chef Director and Andy Cook as Head Chef.<ref name=Curtis2>Curtis, Nick and Jonathan Prynn. [https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/will-the-savoy-ever-regain-its-long-lost-glamour-6705408.html "Will The Savoy ever regain its long lost glamour?"], ''London Evening Standard'', 5 February 2010, accessed 13 October 2015</ref> In a nod to the hotel's origins, six private dining rooms are named after [[Gilbert and Sullivan]] operas.<ref>[http://www.tlh-hotel.com/savoy-hotel-london/add/MEETING.html "The Savoy London Hotel: Meetings & Banquets"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326191405/http://www.tlh-hotel.com/savoy-hotel-london/add/MEETING.html |date=26 March 2012 }}. The Luxury Hotels & Resorts of the World website, accessed 8 July 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.thehandbook.com/venue/savoy "The Savoy"], ''The Handbook'',  accessed 7 March 2013</ref>  The hotel contains a small museum next to the American Bar, open to the public, with a revolving exhibition of items from the hotel's archives.<ref name=reopenOct/><ref name="Savoy Reopens"/> A motor launch is available to take small parties from the Savoy Pier in front of the hotel for champagne river tours.<ref name=Curtis>Curtis, Nick. [https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/travel/the-host-of-london-the-savoy-hotel-9666588.html "The host of London: the Savoy Hotel"], ''London Evening Standard'', 13 August 2014</ref>

The critic for ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' wrote: "The Savoy is still The Savoy, only better. ... [The rooms] are calm ... you are the personality, not the room. ... [The hotel is] a saviour of The Strand I suspect now. The lobby is bigger and grander, and JUST THE SAME."<ref name=Mather/> A review in ''The Guardian'' noted that reception "now is sheer sleight of hand. ... In under five minutes I have been expertly drawn into the world of Savoy. [Furniture and furnishings] conspire to enhance my stay".<ref name=Guardianrev/> While the same reviewer found the spa disappointing, she gave highest marks to the hotel's personalised service, the Savoy Tea, afternoon tea in the Thames Foyer, and the Beaufort bar, concluding: "The Savoy is back where it belongs – right on top."<ref name=Guardianrev/> The Savoy Grill, however, lost its Michelin star and reopened to mixed reviews. Three years after the reopening, the owners announced that business had been disappointing, and the hotel was in jeopardy of closing.<ref>Lewin, Amy. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/savoy-may-close-as-220m-refit-fails-to-drum-up-trade-8876473.html "Savoy may close as £220m refit fails to drum up trade"], ''The Independent'', 13 October 2013</ref> The hotel celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2014, at which time it received a glowing review from the ''[[London Evening Standard]]''.<ref name=Curtis/>

==Notable guests==
[[File:Alexander Bassano (1829-1913) - Edward, Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII.jpg|right|thumb|upright|The future king [[Edward VII]] was an early guest.]]
Numerous notable guests have stayed at the hotel. [[Claude Monet]] and [[James McNeill Whistler|James Whistler]] both painted or drew views, from their Savoy rooms, of the [[River Thames]].<ref>Tucker [https://books.google.com/books?id=Ojp0NUShY4YC&q=savoy p. 256"]</ref><ref>Atwal, Heidi. [http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/12/16/11642/766/hotels/How_Monet_Helped_The_Savoy_Get_Its_Groove_Back "How Monet Helped The Savoy Get Its Groove Back"], Hotelchatter.com, 16 December 2011</ref><ref name=Tate>[http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/exhibitions/turnerwhistlermonet/thamesviews/savoyhotel.htm "Turner, Whistler, Monet: Thames Views"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050305182014/http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/exhibitions/turnerwhistlermonet/thamesviews/savoyhotel.htm |date=5 March 2005 }}. The Tate Museum, London, 2005, accessed 3 December 2010</ref> The Savoy featured prominently in guest [[Oscar Wilde]]'s trial for [[Labouchere Amendment|gross indecency]].<ref>Hyde, Harford Montgomery. [https://books.google.com/books?id=OQNRN8EJoAIC&pg=PA236 ''The Trials of Oscar Wilde''], Courier Corporation (1973), p. 236 and ''passim'' {{ISBN|048620216X}}</ref> Other celebrity guests in the hotel's early decades included the future King [[Edward VII]], [[Sarah Bernhardt]], [[Enrico Caruso]], [[Lillie Langtry]], [[H. G. Wells]], [[George Bernard Shaw]], [[Nellie Melba]], [[Charlie Chaplin]], [[Al Jolson]], [[Errol Flynn]], [[Fred Astaire]], [[Marlene Dietrich]], [[Lionel Barrymore]], [[Harry Truman]], [[Audrey Hepburn]], [[Judy Garland]], [[Josephine Baker]], [[Cary Grant]], [[Babe Ruth]], [[Ivor Novello]] and [[Noël Coward]].<ref name="Hotel History" /><ref name=reopenDate/> The hotel kept records of its guests' preferences, so that it could provide for them in advance. For Coward, the staff made history by taking the first photographs of a hotel guest's toilet articles so that they could lay them out in his bathroom exactly as he liked them. They made sure to provide a fireproof [[Common eider|eiderdown]] quilt to Barrymore, as he always smoked while reading in bed.<ref name=Savoy100/>

[[Bob Dylan]] stayed in the hotel in 1965 and filmed the video clip "[[Subterranean Homesick Blues]]" in an adjacent alley. [[Laurence Olivier]] and [[Vivien Leigh]] met at the hotel.<ref name=Mather/> [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Marilyn Monroe]], [[John Wayne]], [[Louis Armstrong]], [[Humphrey Bogart]], [[Elizabeth Taylor]], [[Richard Burton]], [[Maria Callas]], [[Coco Chanel]], [[Christian Dior]], [[Sophia Loren]], [[Julie Andrews]], [[Lena Horne]], [[Marlon Brando]], [[Jane Fonda]], [[Barbra Streisand]], [[Jimi Hendrix]], [[the Beatles]], [[Elton John]], [[U2]], [[Led Zeppelin]], [[the Who]], [[George Clooney]], [[Whoopi Goldberg]] and [[Stephen Fry]] are just a few of the celebrities who stayed there in recent decades.<ref>Evans, Peter. [http://www.newyorksocialdiary.com/node/3594 "Savoy Sale"], ''New York Social Diary'', 2007, accessed 8 February 2010; Hopkirk, Elizabeth. [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23486525-first-glimpse-of-the-savoys-restoration-to-art-deco-glory.do "First glimpse of the Savoy's restoration to Art Deco glory"], {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100121152225/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23486525-first-glimpse-of-the-savoys-restoration-to-art-deco-glory.do |date=21 January 2010 }} ''London Evening Standard'', 22 May 2008, accessed 8 February 2010; [http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/whatson/savoy-hotel-auction-article-5181.html "Savoy Hotel Auction"], ''View London'', 2007, accessed 8 February 2010; and [http://www.city-of-hotels.com/168/legendary-hotels-en/savoy-hotel-en.html Savoy Hotel], City of Hotels, accessed 8 February 2010</ref> [[Richard Harris]] lived at the hotel for the last several years of his life. While being carried out on a stretcher before he died, he joked, "It was the food."<ref>Hollingshead, Iain. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/hotels/8059808/The-Savoy-reaches-out-for-the-stars.html "The Savoy reaches out for the stars"]. ''The Telegraph'', 13 October 2010</ref>

==The arts==

===Fine art===
The Savoy hotel has long been associated with the arts. Whistler stayed in 1896 with his wife Beatrix and painted eight lithograph views of the Thames from his top-floor room.<ref>Baron, Wendy. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/24241208 "Whistler and the Thames"], ''[[The Burlington Magazine]]'', Vol. 156, No. 1331, February 2014, pp. 123–124</ref> Monet stayed at the hotel on three occasions in 1899, 1900 and 1901, and served as the hotel's first artist-in-residence.<ref name=Tate/> He worked on paintings there including views of [[Charing Cross Bridge (Monet series)|Charing Cross Bridge]] (1899–1901) and [[Waterloo Bridge (Monet series)|Waterloo Bridge]] (1903). 26 pastels survive from his visits to the hotel.<ref>"Double take Monet's view", ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'', 13 December 2011, p. 8</ref> A study in 2010 concluded that Monet had stayed in rooms 610–611 in 1899 and later in 510–511, although the Savoy markets rooms 512 and 513 as their "Monet Suite".<ref>Khan, Soraya; ''et al''. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/27801462?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents "Monet at the Savoy"], ''Area'', Vol. 42, No. 2, June 2010, pp. 208-216</ref>

The artist-in residence position has continued in the 21st century.<ref>Singh, Anita. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9154181/Little-known-artist-chosen-as-artist-in-residence-at-The-Savoy.html "Little-known artist chosen as artist-in-residence at The Savoy], ''The Telegraph'', 19 March 2012</ref> For example, in 2012, the British artist, David Downes, worked in the hotel's lobby to create a large-scale drawing,<ref>O'Ceallaigh, John and Lisa Grainger. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/ultratravel/9886576/Luxury-hotels-with-artists-in-residence.html "Luxury Hotels with Artists in Residence"], ''The Telegraph'', 2 April 2013</ref> displayed in the hotel's front hall, depicting the [[Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant]].<ref name=Faith>Faith, Sara. [http://www.artlyst.com/articles/londons-savoy-hotel-continues-its-artist-in-residence-tradition "London's Savoy continues its Artist in Residence Tradition"], Artlyst.com, 30 September 2013</ref> The following year, South African artist [[Jonty Hurwitz]] created a chrome and resin [[anamorphosis|anamorphic]] sculpture of Kaspar, the hotel's cat mascot, titled "The 14th Guest", found at the entrance to the hotel's restaurant, Kaspar's Seafood Bar & Grill.<ref name=Faith/><ref name=KasparLegend>Jones, Alice. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/news/a-homage-to-kaspar-the-friendly-cat-checks-in-at-the-savoys-new-eatery-8600305.html "A homage to Kaspar the friendly cat checks in at the Savoy's new eatery"], ''The Independent'', 2 May 2013, accessed 1 July 2014; [http://flaneur.me.uk/05/kaspars-the-savoys-new-seafood-bar-opens-with-a-new-jonty-hurwitz-sculpture/ "Kaspar’s – The Savoy’s new seafood bar opens with a new Jonty Hurwitz sculpture"], ''The Flaneur'', 1 May 2013, accessed 1 July 2014</ref> Kaspar's story begins with the legend of an 1898 dinner at the Savoy given for 14 guests by Woolf Joel, a South African diamond tycoon. One of the diners was unable to attend, leaving the number of guests an unlucky 13, and another diner predicted that whoever first left the table would soon die. The first to leave was Joel, who was shot dead a few weeks later in Johannesburg. After this, the hotel offered to seat a member of its staff at tables of 13 to ward off bad luck. Finally, in 1926, the designer [[Basil Ionides]] sculpted a 3-foot high art-deco black cat called Kaspar, which is used as the 14th guest.<ref name=KasparLegend/> Kaspar is given a full place setting, a napkin is tied around his neck, and he is served each course.<ref name=Hotline>Watts, Peter. "Perfect 10: ''Hotline'' magazine, Virgin Rail, October 2010, pp. 32–33</ref> Winston Churchill liked Ionides's Kaspar so much that he insisted that the sculpture join his parties of any size when dining at the Savoy.<ref name=Faith/>

===Music===
The hotel established its first dinner dances in 1912, laying a dance-floor in the centre of the Thames Foyer in time to take advantage of the popularity of the [[tango]], which exploded in 1913.<ref name=face>[https://www.thesavoylondon.com/history/face-the-music-and-dance ''Face the Music and Dance''], History & Heritage, Savoy Hotel, accessed October 23, 2024</ref> William de Mornys became head of entertainment after the [[First World War]] and helped set up the [[Savoy Havana Band]] and the [[Savoy Orpheans]] dance band, led by [[Debroy Somers]]. The bands were described in ''The Times'' as "probably the best-known bands in Europe", and they broadcast regularly from the hotel.<ref>''The Times'', 29 March 1924, p. 20</ref> The [[BBC]], which had set up its [[Savoy Place|Savoy Hill]] studios next to the hotel in 1922, took full advantage of the proximity. [[George Gershwin]] gave the British premiere of ''[[Rhapsody in Blue]]'' at the hotel in 1925, simultaneously broadcast on BBC radio.<ref>Grainger, Lisa. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/hotels/ukhotels/hotelsinlondongandthesoutheast/7989164/Londons-Savoy-Hotel-ready-for-reopening.html "London's Savoy Hotel ready for reopening"], ''The Telegraph'', 8 September 2010</ref>

[[Rupert D'Oyly Carte]] engaged Richard Collet to run the cabaret at the Savoy, which opened in April 1929.<ref>''The Times'', 27 March 1929, p. 23</ref> In 1931 [[Carroll Gibbons]] took over as leader of the Orpheans, continuing until 1950 when he became the hotel's Director of Entertainments until his death in 1954.<ref name=face/> [[Ian Edward Stewart|Ian Stewart]] then became head of the hotel's music, retiring in 1978.<ref>[https://www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/retirement-ian-stewart-savoy-hotel%27s-mr-piano-1604949a?consentChanged=true 'Retirement Of Ian Stewart, The Savoy Hotel's Mr Piano'],  6 July 1978, image from Stevens/ANL/Shutterstock</ref><ref>Gammond, Peter. ''The Oxford Companion to Popular Music'' (1991), p. 515</ref>

[[Lena Horne]] and others made their British debuts there.<ref name=Savoy100/> [[Frank Sinatra]], who regularly stayed at the hotel, played the piano and sang there.<ref name=Memorabilia/> The 1960s and 1970s saw cabaret appearances from artists including [[Cilla Black]], [[Sandie Shaw]] and [[The New Seekers]].<ref name=face/> Traditional dinner, dancing and cabaret evenings came to an end in 1980. But in 2013, the hotel reintroduced its dinner dances, with resident dance band [[Alex Mendham & His Orchestra]] playing music from the 1920s and '30s.<ref>[http://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/promotions/culinaryevents "Culinary Events & Master Classes – Dinner Dances"], Savoy Hotel, Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, 8 October 2015</ref><ref>[http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/store/artist/album/0,,10368965,00.html "Alex Mendham & His Orchestra: ''Whistling in the Dark''"], Artist Direct, accessed 9 September 2014</ref>

===In films and novels===
The hotel has often been used as a film location. For example, the romantic finale to ''[[Notting Hill (film)|Notting Hill]]'' (1999) is set in the hotel's Lancaster Room, where Anna ([[Julia Roberts]]) and William ([[Hugh Grant]]) declare their mutual love. In 1921, the hotel was used in the film ''[[Kipps]]'', based on the novel by [[H. G. Wells]]. It also featured in ''[[The French Lieutenant's Woman (film)|The French Lieutenant's Woman]]'' (1981), ''[[Entrapment (film)|Entrapment]]'' (1999) and ''[[Gambit (2012 film)|Gambit]]'' (2012), among others. In 2011, the hotel was used as the setting for [[Duran Duran]]'s music video for their song "[[Girl Panic!]]" from their album ''[[All You Need Is Now]]''.<ref>[http://goldenageofmusicvideo.com/exclusive-director-jonas-akerlund-talks-about-shooting-duran-durans-new-supermodel-packed-girl-panic-video/ "Exclusive! Director Jonas Akerlund Talks About Shooting Duran Duran’s New Supermodel-Packed 'Girl Panic!'"], Golden Age of Music Video, 9 December 2011, accessed 25 November 2012</ref>

[[Arnold Bennett]] wrote the novel ''[[Imperial Palace (novel)|Imperial Palace]]'' in 1930, based on his research at the hotel. The novel fictionalises the hotel's operations.<ref name=Savoy100/> [[Michael Morpurgo]] wrote a children's book fictionalising the hotel's mascot, Kaspar, as an adventurer: ''Kaspar: Prince of Cats'' (2008), which was released in the US as ''Kaspar: The Titanic Cat'' (2012).

==Restaurants and bars==
[[File:Hôtel Savoy à Londres.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.25|The large restaurant of the Savoy, {{circa|1900}}]]

===Restaurants===
The hotel has three restaurants, all managed by [[Gordon Ramsay]]: the Savoy Grill, on the north side of the building, with its entrance off the Strand, The River Restaurant (formerly known as Kaspars, and before that the Savoy Restaurant), on the south side, overlooking the River Thames, and Restaurant 1890. The River Restaurant has long been famous for its inventive chefs, beginning in 1890, with the celebrity chef Auguste Escoffier. Escoffier created many famous dishes at the Savoy. In 1893, he invented the ''[[Peach Melba|pêche Melba]]'' in honour of the Australian singer [[Nellie Melba]], and in 1897, [[Melba toast]]. Other Escoffier creations were ''bombe Néro'' (a flaming ice), ''fraises à la [[Sarah Bernhardt]]'' (strawberries with pineapple and Curaçao sorbet), ''baisers de Vierge'' (meringue with vanilla cream and crystallised white rose and violet petals) and ''suprêmes de volailles Jeannette'' (jellied chicken breasts with foie gras).<ref>''The Times'', 13 February 1935, p. 14; and 16 February 1935, p. 17</ref><ref>Escoffier, Auguste. ''A Guide to Modern Cookery'', p. 405 (English translation of ''Le Guide Culinaire'', by H. L. Cracknell and R. J. Kaufmann) {{ISBN|0-471-29016-5}}</ref> Another signature dish is the [[Arnold Bennett#Omelette|omelette Arnold Bennett]],<ref>Ayto, John. [https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780199640249.001.0001/acref-9780199640249-e-1424 "Arnold Bennett"], ''The Diner’s Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, 2012, accessed 3 June 2020 {{subscription required}}</ref> created by the chef [[Jean Baptiste Virlogeux]].<ref>Rhodes, Gary. [https://books.google.com/books?id=DRURAAAAQBAJ&dq=Roho+Imperial+Palace&pg=PT162 "Omelette Arnold Bennett"], ''New British Classics'', accessed 3 June 2020</ref>

[[File:New Year's Eve at the Savoy Hotel, London 1910.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.20|New Year's Eve dinner at the Savoy, 1910]]
Under Ritz and Escoffier, evening dress was required in the restaurant, and Ritz was innovative in hiring popular musicians to play background music during dinner and in printing daily menus.<ref name=Savoy100/> Even today, elegant dining at the Savoy includes formal afternoon tea with choral and other performances at Christmastime. The Savoy has a Sunday brunch, which includes free-flow champagne, and special events, such as New Year's Eve dinner.<ref name=KasparLegend/><ref name=Hotline/> August Laplanche was head chef at the hotel from 1946 to 1965,<ref name=Caterer/> Silvino Trompetto was maître-chef from 1965 to 1980,<ref name=Savoy100/> and Anton Edelmann was maître chef des cuisines for 21 years, from 1982 to 2003.

As part of the 2010 refurbishment, the restaurant was completely redecorated in the Art Deco style, with a leopard print carpet.<ref name=Mather/> In 2013, the restaurant became Kaspar's Seafood Bar & Grill.<ref name=KasparLegend/> The menu features oysters, cured and smoked fish. The interior design follows the hotel's 1920s style and its black and green livery, and the room offers views of the Thames and some of London's landmarks. The restaurant is open all day, seven days a week.<ref>[http://www.kaspars.co.uk/ Kaspar's], Kaspar's Seafood Bar & Grill, accessed 8 October 2015</ref> Reviews for the restaurant have improved since the re-opening: "The smoked and cured fish here is to die for, and a whole roast sea bream for two was simply brilliant."<ref name=Curtis/>

Since Ramsay employed his former protégé [[Marcus Wareing]] in the less formal Savoy Grill, the restaurant earned its first [[Michelin Guide|Michelin star]]. The Grill was originally "where people go to eat a modest luncheon or to dine on the way to the theatre without spending too much time or too much money".<ref>''The Times'', 18 November 1904, p. 7</ref> Since 2010, the chef patron has been [[Stuart Gillies]].<ref name=Curtis2/> From 2015 to 2017, Kim Woodward, a former contestant on the TV show ''[[MasterChef: The Professionals]]'', became the Grill's first female head chef.<ref>Mortimer, Caroline. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/former-masterchef-contestant-kim-woodward-becomes-first-woman-head-chef-at-savoy-grill-restaurant-10203632.html, "Former MasterChef contestant Kim Woodward becomes first woman head chef at Savoy Grill restaurant"], ''The Independent'', 25 April 2015; and Gerrard. Neil. [https://www.thecaterer.com/articles/495567/dd-london-appoints-kim-woodward-as-executive-chef-of-skylon "D&D London appoints Kim Woodward as executive chef of Skylon"], TheCaterer.com, 9 February 2017</ref> The Thames Foyer serves breakfast, morning coffee, light lunch and supper, as well as afternoon tea, accompanied by the hotel's resident pianist.<ref>[https://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/dining "Dining and Bars"], Savoy Hotel, Fairmont.com, accessed 13 May 2019</ref> Also part of the hotel buildings is [[Simpson's-in-the-Strand]], featuring classic British style cuisine. Its specialties are aged Scottish beef on the bone, potted shrimps, roast saddle of lamb and steak and kidney pie.<ref>[https://www.simpsonsinthestrand.co.uk "Simpson's-in-the-Strand"], FRHI, accessed 12 May 2019</ref>

In February 2022 Ramsay opened Restaurant 1890 in the hotel.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=19 March 2024|url=https://www.luxurytravelmagazine.com/news-articles/restaurant-1890-by-gordon-ramsay-to-open-at-the-savoy-london|title=Restaurant 1890 by Gordon Ramsay to open at The Savoy, London|date=27 January 2022|publisher=Luxury Travel Magazine}}</ref> In February 2024 it was awarded a Michelin star.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=19 March 2024|url=https://robbreport.com/food-drink/dining/2024-michelin-stars-united-kingdom-ireland-1235501146/|title=The World’s Newest Michelin 3-Starred Restaurant Is in London|date=6 February 2024|publisher=Robb Report}}</ref>

===Bars===
The American Bar at the Savoy Hotel was one of the earliest establishments to introduce American-style cocktails to Europe.<ref name=Hotline/> The term ''American Bar'' was used in London to designate the sale of American cocktails from the late 19th century.<ref name="American Bar">[http://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/dining/americanbar/ "Savoy: American Bar"], Fairmont.com, accessed 15 December 2018</ref><ref name="American Menu">[http://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/pdf/svy-american-bar-menu-feb-2014 "The American Bar"], Fairmont.com, accessed 15 December 2018</ref>

The [[Bartender|head barmen]], in chronological order, have been as follows:
*Frank Wells, 1893 to 1902.<ref name="American Menu" />
[[File:Ada Coleman small 20110507-1109.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.20|[[Ada Coleman]] bartending at the Savoy, {{circa|1920}}]]
*[[Ada Coleman|Ada "Coley" Coleman]], 1903 to 1924. She concocted the "[[Hanky-Panky cocktail|Hanky-Panky]]" cocktail for Sir [[Charles Hawtrey (stage actor)|Charles Hawtrey]].<ref name="American Bar" /><ref>Curtis, Wayne. [http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/08/24/what-ended-the-career-of-the-world-s-first-celebrity-female-bartender.html "What Ended the Career of the World’s First Celebrity Female Bartender?"], TheDailyBeast.com, 24 August 2016</ref>
*[[Harry Craddock]], 1925 to 1938. Born in England, Craddock trained as a barman in the US but fled 1920s [[Prohibition]] to head the Savoy's bars; author of ''The Savoy Cocktail Book'' and reputed inventor of such cocktails as the "[[White Lady (cocktail)#White Lady|White Lady]]".<ref name="American Bar" /><ref name=Davies>Davies, Richard. [https://www.abebooks.com/books/savoy-cocktail-book/index.shtml "The Coolest Book in the World"], AbeBooks.com, accessed 30 August 2017</ref>
*Eddie Clark, 1939 to 1942. During the Second World War, he created a cocktail for each branch of the armed services: "Eight Bells" for the Navy, "New Contemptible" for the Army, and "Wings" for the RAF.<ref name="American Menu" />
*Reginald "Johnnie" Johnson, 1942 to 1954. He invented "Wedding Bells" for the [[Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh|wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip]].<ref name="American Menu" />
*[[Joe Gilmore]], 1954 to 1975. Among his many creations was the "Moonwalk" to honour [[Neil Armstrong]]'s achievement.<ref name=Savoy100/> His hangover cure was two aspirins and a [[corpse reviver]].<ref name="American Menu" /><ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/12102090/Joe-Gilmore-barman-obituary.html "Joe Gilmore, barman – obituary"], ''The Daily Telegraph'', 15 January 2016</ref>
*Harry "Vic" Viccars, 1975 to 1981. His cocktails included "Speedbird," one of three drinks created for the first commercial flight of the [[Concorde]] in 1976.<ref name="American Menu" />
*Victor Gower, 1981 to 1985<ref name="American Menu" />
*Peter Dorelli, 1985 to 2003. His 1889er celebrated the hotel's centenary in 1989, and together with Salim Khoury, he created the "Millennium" to celebrate the end of the 20th century.<ref name="American Menu" />
*Salim Khoury, 2003 to 2010. In 1992, he won the UK Barman of the Year competition by inventing the "Blushing Monarch", inspired by [[Princess Diana]].<ref name="American Menu" />
*Erik Lorincz, 2010 to 2018. He created a version of the "[[El Malecon cocktail|El Malecon]]" cocktail.<ref name=Hotline/><ref name="American Bar" /><ref>Royce-Greensill, Sarah. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/luxury/drinking-and-dining/the-american-bar-at-the-savoy-review "Straight Up: the American Bar at the Savoy"], ''The Telegraph'', 12 February 2016</ref>
*Maxim Schulte, 2018 to 2020.<ref>Sgarbi, Giulia. [https://www.theworlds50best.com/stories/News/american-bar-the-savoy-new-era-meet-head-bartender-maxim-schulte.html#:~:text=meet%20head%20bartender%20Maxim%20Schulte,-Giulia%20Sgarbi%20%2D%2011&text=In%20May%202018%2C%20seven%20months,to%20start%20his%20own%20venture "The American Bar at The Savoy enters a new era: meet head bartender Maxim Schulte"], ''50 Best'', 9 November 2018</ref><ref>Carruthers, Nicola. [https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2020/07/maxim-schulte-and-declan-mcgurk-leave-the-savoy "Maxim Schulte leaves The Savoy"], ''The Spirits Business'', 29 July 2020</ref><ref>Malczewski, Kate. [https://imbibe.com/news/maxim-schulte-life-after-the-savoy-s-american-bar "Maxim Schulte: Life after The Savoy’s American Bar"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302134040/https://imbibe.com/news/maxim-schulte-life-after-the-savoy-s-american-bar/ |date=2 March 2021 }}, ''Imbibe'', 4 August 2020</ref>
*Shannon Tebay, 2021 to 2022<ref>Simonson, Robert. [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/21/dining/savoy-hotel-cocktail-bar-london.html "For the first time, an American will run the cocktail bar at the Savoy Hotel in London"], ''The New York Times'', 21 July 2021</ref>
*Chelsie Bailey, 2022 to 2024 <ref>Carruthers, Nicola. [https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2022/06/the-savoy-american-bar-names-head-bartender "Savoy's American Bar names head bartender"], ''The Spirits Business'', 24 June 2022</ref><ref name=14th>Smith, Hamish. [https://drinksint.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/11104/The_Savoy_names_14th_American_Bar_head_bartender.htm"The Savoy names 14th American Bar head bartender"], ''Drinks International'', 18 March 2024</ref>
*Angelo Sparvoli, 2024 to current<ref name=14th/>

The American Bar is decorated in a warm Art Deco design, with cream and ochre walls, and electric blue and gold chairs. The walls feature the photos of famous guests. A pianist plays classic American jazz every day on a baby grand piano in the centre of the room.<ref name=Hotline/>

The Beaufort Bar is a new bar created in the 2010 renovation, specialising in champagne as well as cocktails. Decorated in an Art Deco design of jet-black and gold, it offers a nightly cabaret.<ref name=Ward/>

===''The Savoy Cocktail Book''===
In 1930, the Savoy Hotel first published its cocktail book, ''The Savoy Cocktail Book'', with 750 recipes compiled by [[Harry Craddock]] of the American Bar and Art Deco "decorations" by Gilbert Rumbold.<ref name=Davies/> The book has remained in print since then and was subsequently republished in 1952, 1965, 1985, 1996, and expanded in 1999 and 2014.<ref>Moore, Victoria. [https://web.archive.org/web/20140821193918/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/luxury/drinking_and_dining/43235/another-round-at-the-savoy.html "Another round at the Savoy"], ''The Telegraph'', 21 August 2014, accessed 9 September 2016; [http://realabsinthe.blogspot.com/2007/05/long-list-of-absinthe-cocktails_30.html Details of 105 cocktails with absinthe] from The Savoy Cocktail Book; and Ellestad, Erik. [http://savoystomp.com/category/savoy-cocktail-book/ "Usage Guide for Savoy Stomp"], Savoy Stomp, accessed 13 October 2015</ref>

==Savoy Court==
[[File:Savoy-court-drive-right-out.JPG|thumb|right|Traffic driving on the right in Savoy Court]]
In Savoy Court, vehicles are required to [[right-hand traffic|drive on the right]]. This is said to date from the days of the [[hackney carriage]] when a [[cab driver]] would reach his arm out of the driver's door window to open the passenger's door ([[suicide door|which opened backwards and had the handle at the front]]), without having to get out of the cab himself. Additionally, the hotel entrance's small [[roundabout]] meant that vehicles needed a [[turning circle]] of {{convert|25|ft|m}} to navigate it. This is still the legally required turning circle for all [[London cab]]s.<ref>Macfarlane, Rory. [https://www.theguardian.com/notesandqueries/query/0,5753,-1501,00.html "Why does traffic entering and leaving the Savoy Hotel in London drive on the right?"], ''The Guardian'', accessed 12 May 2020</ref>

==See also==
* [[The Other Club]] (a dining club) used to dine in the Pinafore Room of the hotel.
* {{portal-inline|Hotels}}
* {{portal-inline|London}}

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book|last=Ainger|first=Michael|year=2002|title=Gilbert and Sullivan – A Dual Biography|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-514769-3}}
* {{cite book | last= Barr | first= Luke | title= Ritz and Escoffier: The Hotelier, the Chef, and the Rise of the Leisure Class | year= 2018| location = New York | publisher= Clarkson Potter | isbn= 978-0-8041-8629-2}}
* {{cite book | last= James | first= Kenneth | title= Escoffier: The King of Chefs| year= 2002| location= London and New York | publisher= Hambledon and London | isbn= 978-1-85285-396-9}}
* {{cite book | last= Ritz | first= Marie-Louise | title=César Ritz, Host to the World | year= 1938| location= London | publisher= Harrap | oclc= 504184890}}
* {{cite book|last=Somerville|first=Sir Robert|title=The Savoy: Manor, Hospital, Chapel|year =1960|location= London |publisher= Duchy of Lancaster|oclc=877759342}}
* {{cite book|last=Tucker|first=Paul Hayes|title=Monet in the 90s: The Series Paintings|year=1989|location =Boston|publisher=Museum of Fine Arts|isbn=0-300-04659-6}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book| last=Nicol, Jean| year=1952| title=Meet me at the Savoy| location=London| publisher=Museum Press}}
* {{cite book|last=Williams|first=Olivia|title=The Secret Life of the Savoy – and the D'Oyly Carte family|year=2020|publisher=Headline |isbn=978-1-472-26979-9}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{WikidataCoord}}
{{Commons category|Savoy Hotel}}
* {{Official website|https://www.thesavoylondon.com/}}
* [https://www.fairmont.com/savoy-london/ Fairmont Hotels – The Savoy]
* [http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=13832 Pathé footage of film stars' cocktail party in 1947]
* {{cite web|url=http://www.4hoteliers.com/4hots_fshw.php?mwi=1690 |title=''Famous Hotels in the World – London: The Savoy''|date=30 October 2006|access-date=20 June 2009|publisher=4Hoteliers}}
* [http://www.purr-n-fur.org.uk/featuring/wk-hotel02.html Purr 'n' Fur: Kaspar, of the Savoy]
* [https://www.thecriticsguide.com/London/The+Savoy.html Review by ''The Critics Guide'']

{{Hotels in London}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Hotel buildings completed in 1889]]
[[Category:Hotels in the City of Westminster]]
[[Category:Fairmont Hotels & Resorts]]
[[Category:Art Deco hotels]]
[[Category:Art Deco architecture in London]]
[[Category:Victorian era]]
[[Category:Hotels established in 1889]]
[[Category:Michelin-starred restaurants in London]]
[[Category:Grade II listed buildings in the City of Westminster]]
[[Category:1889 establishments in England]]
[[Category:Thomas Edward Collcutt buildings]]
[[Category:Strand, London]]
[[Category:Michelin-keyed hotels]]