Hotel Babylon - Series 4 [DVD]

There’s no pretence about Hotel Babylon to be anything but easy entertainment, and thus it’s quickly down to business this time round. There’s a new caretaker manager for starters, as Juliet Miller (played by Anna Wilson-Jones) takes the reins. Furthermore, the closure of the hotel is also on the horizon, with Japanese developers circling a possible deal.

But for the Hotel Babylon, it’s still business as usual. Business in the case of this particular hotel meaning celebrity magazine shoots, a Bollywood wedding and the threat of terrorism. And walking into the midst of all of this are a host of recognisable names. Among the stars who appear in series four are Christopher Cazenove, Honor Blackman, Kelly Osbourne, Denise Van Outen, Darius Danesh and Tony Robinson.

And that’s part of the fun. The over-the-top storylines, the larger-than-life personalities, and the ongoing behind-the-scenes shenanigans are precisely the ingredients that make the show such gleeful entertainment. For in years to come, Hotel Babylon will never be regarded as a classic piece of television, but it’s hard not to acknowledge that it’s very good fun nonetheless, series four most certainly included --Jon Foster

Starring Nigel Harman, Dexter Fletcher, Emma Pierson and Anna Wilson-Jones guest stars include Patrick Baladi, Kelly Osbourne, James Fleet, Denise Van Outen, Tony Robinson, Christopher Bisson, Christopher Cazenove, Honor Blackman, Michelle Collins, Darius Danesh and Trevor Peacock

It’s time to check in again at the five-star luxury hotel that has it all – glamour, scandal, passion and intrigue.

Times are tough at Babylon, the brilliant new manager, Juliet Miller, nicknamed “The Undertaker”, is charged with preparing the hotel for sale. Then, who should stroll in through the hotel doors but dishy, multi-millionaire playboy Sam Franklin – Juliet’s once penniless ex-husband. Setting hearts a flutter, he soon seems interested in more than just a suite at the hotel.

Meanwhile, it’s down to the staff to keep Hotel Babylon afloat: the ever-charming concierge Tony; newly-promoted head of housekeeping Tanya; flamboyant head barman Gino; the even more flamboyant receptionist, Ben; and, keeping tongues wagging, a now heavily-pregnant head receptionist Anna.

Together, the team face a terrorist threat that grips London; see two arch rival boxers booked into its suites; host a celebrity magazine shoot and stage a fabulous Bollywood style wedding – all accompanied by the usual Hotel Babylon schemes, antics and affairs. As Sam’s interest in the hotel – and Juliet – grows, she is determined not to let him get under her skin again. But with so much unfinished business between them, will she be able to stop herself?