麻豆社

As a veteran of 'restless nights in one-night cheap hotels', poet Paul Farley explores their creative possibilities.

Many years ago, Paul was stopping in the Euston Ibis in London and woke to find a message from a friend asking him to come over to the Savoy for drinks the night before.

He wondered whether it was the first time the two hotels had ever opened up a line of communication, and ever since has been fascinated by not just hotels but also the connections between them.

So Paul heads off to spend the night in three very different hotels - one a former prison, one a luxury London landmark, and one a hard-working provincial inn. He reflects on the times he's spent in hotels over the years, and the reasons he - like many other writers - has found them to be creative hotspots, a place at one remove from ordinary life in which inspiration can often be found.

Along the way he talks to staff, customers and other writers.

Paul explores the rich history of the hotel as a backdrop for numerous films, books and poems across all sorts of genres, from the horror of 'The Shining' and 'Psycho' to the comedy of 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' and the glamour of 'Top Hat' and 'Grand Hotel'.

Producer: Geoff Bird

First broadcast on 麻豆社 Radio 4 in July 2014.