Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby (2017–…): Season 2, Episode 4 - Ashford Castle, Ireland - full transcript
Giles and Monica hop over to the Republic of Ireland to learn about the troubled history of this 800-year-old castle turned luxury hotel, its ties with the local community and activities laid on for guests.
All over the world,
there are remarkable hotels.
Born of bold vision and daring endeavor.
Wow! This is how I want to live.
Whether it's one of the remotest hotels
on Earth hidden on a Pacific island…
Or a sumptuous resort on one of
the highest mountains in the Middle East.
What an incredible view.
The people running these hotels
strive to create the perfect sanctuary.
But what does it take
to offer once-in-a-lifetime experiences
in stunning locations?
Construction was a logistical nightmare.
No water, no source of power.
I'm a restaurant writer,
newspaper columnist, and critic.
I have opinions on just about everything.
He's not a very good driver, is he?
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
And I'm a chef who's worked at the top end
of the hospitality industry
for well over 20 years.
This is awesome. Whoo!
We'll travel to amazing hotels
in every corner of the world.
Enjoy.
To spend time getting to know
the people working away behind the scenes.
I polished Elton John's fruits.
You polished Elton John's fruits?
Do you recall life under apartheid?
Has it changed for you?
Nelson Mandela
was the first black president.
…gives me more inspiration
to achieve what I want in life.
-Join us as we venture inside…
-The world's most extraordinary hotels.
We're in County Mayo
in the West of Ireland.
By the shores of Lough Corrib,
the country's biggest lake.
I do love Ireland.
We're heading to an establishment
that's aiming to be
not just the best hotel in Ireland,
but the best hotel of its kind
in the world.
Look at that.
Wow. It's enormous.
Just set on the water there like
it's on an island. It looks like Camelot.
That is magical.
This is Ashford Castle.
Dating back to 1228, more recently it was
the country house of the Guinness family.
Set in its own 350-acre estate,
the 83-room five-star luxury hotel
sells a taste of old-fashioned grandeur.
Wow. My goodness.
That is an extraordinary chandelier.
Blimey.
That's my corner.
That's my corner right there.
Spot of Edwardian glamor.
You can imagine kings, queens, knights
passing through these halls.
Golly, I hope it's not haunted.
As well as having access to a luxury spa,
guests can live like the landed gentry
with activities
such as riding and shooting.
Rooms start at 300 pounds a night,
going all the way up to a majestic
4,000 pounds for the very best suites
decorated with Venetian Murano
glass chandeliers
and Connemara marble in the bathrooms.
Oh, my goodness.
Wow. That is the highest ceiling
I have ever seen in a hotel bedroom.
That is perfect.
This room is something else.
This is extraordinary,
where there's an amazing bedroom,
you walk in to a medieval castle
to then not be disappointed by the bedroom
is quite an achievement. I mean,
that is the bed you have in a castle.
It's four-poster.
It's velvet and it's gold.
It's even got a gallery.
Basically just so you can admire
your awesome bedroom from another level.
Amazing.
The man who currently holds
the keys to the castle
is General Manager Niall Rochford.
It's my life, you know.
I've invested 15 years of my life
and my family's life here as well.
But you know what, I'm lucky
in that I operate a castle, you know.
There aren't too many authentic
genuine castles in the world.
Of course, we're not here
just to enjoy the plush rooms.
We're here to find out what operating
a castle hotel is all about.
But before we can serve any actual guests,
Niall wants us to join some other
new recruits at staff induction.
No request too large, no detail too small.
So, what we're saying
is our guests can ask us anything,
to do anything, as long as it's legal,
and we will do it.
We're innately hospitable people and
particularly in the West Coast of Ireland,
we want you to feel at home.
It is sophisticated
but also in a very Irish way.
You're not gonna get
a very kind of staid experience
where everybody has to whisper.
-What is the style of service here?
-It's a very natural style of service,
and I think that's maybe
what Irish people are all about.
And here in Ashford,
it's not really that plastic Irish type
-of experience that you might associate.
-What plastic Irish type are you?
-What can he mean?
-I don't know.
It's not the…
-St Patrick's Day.
-Absolutely.
-Silly hats.
-Exactly. You know,
Ireland has moved on from that, there's
more soul, there's more spirit to this,
and it's much more genuine.
So, I think when you meet
the people you'll be working with,
you'll see that.
If the warmth of the Irish welcome
is their secret weapon,
the hotel wants it to start right
from the front gate.
And estate manager Thomas is in charge
of ten gate keepers and doormen.
The welcome you get on your arrival here,
it's heartfelt.
We want people to understand
how much we love it here,
how much we're proud of it.
For our first job
we're joining the door team.
Ta-da!
I love this. It's so cozy, it's so warm.
And not only that, a top hat.
Oh, look at you.
-What are you doing with your cape?
-Isn't that what you're supposed to do?
-Swirl the cape.
-You're not a superhero, my darling.
-You're a doorman.
-So guys, this is make or break.
Whatever happens inside the castle
can be directly affected by the arrival,
this is the country of céad míle fáilte,
a thousand welcomes. And that's you.
You are the very first representative
of the first face they see.
So, it's of vital importance
that your genuine hospitality
and your genuine character
comes across, it's very professional,
but it's extremely warm.
I'll be working with doorman Frank,
while Giles is at the far end
of the drive with Tom, the gateman.
-Good afternoon, sir.
-Hello.
It's the gateman's job to radio
the names of arrivals up to the front door
so his colleague there can delight
the guests by greeting them personally.
As if by magic.
Check in, Frank. Number 10,
McKeown, and arriving in a Jeep.
Number 10, McKeown.
Number 10, he said number 10 is Shaun.
-McKeown.
-McKeown. God.
-So it's Owen and Barbara McKeown.
-You're very welcome to Ashford Castle.
-Thank you very much, indeed.
-Mrs. McKeown, you're very welcome.
Frank is my name. You're very welcome.
And this is my colleague Monica.
Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. McKeown.
This way, please.
Thank you.
Hello, welcome to Ashford Castle.
Hello. Have you had a good journey?
-We sure have.
-Hi there.
Can I confirm the name of the reservation?
-Yes, last name is Everson.
-Everson.
Yes, Everson.
Lovely to meet both of you.
Have a lovely stay.
Thank you.
Mr. and Mrs. Everson
are on their way up in a big black SUV.
Don't know what Giles just said then.
Can you repeat that please?
The Eversons are arriving. Mr. Everson,
he's about 36, little bit of stubble,
nice looking fellow,
got his wife in the passenger seat.
-The Jeffersons are arriving?
-It's Everson.
-Everson.
-And they're driving an SUV.
SUV. Everson. I think there's
something wrong with my ear piece.
Hello. Welcome to Ashford Castle,
Mr. and Mrs. Everson.
-Thank you so much.
-Where have you traveled from?
Nashville, Tennessee.
Nashville, Tennessee.
Is this your first time with us?
-Yeah.
-How fantastic.
How many pieces of luggage
do they need in?
I have no idea. That's a good question.
-That's something you have to ask.
-Wouldn't you want all your luggage in?
They're staying till Monday. I'd presume
they'd want all their underwear, at least.
That's a lot of luggage,
shall we ask them how much?
I'm a bit worried that they were
a bit disappointed that I wasn't Irish.
Because I think they're American, they've
come all this way for an Irish greeting
and I went,
"Hello, welcome to Ashford Castle."
And I should have, but I'm not going to.
I can't pretend to be Irish.
Check in there, Frank.
Number 2, Mr. Burke.
-Number 2.
-Mr. Burke.
Mr. Borke. Do you say Borke, not Burke?
-Burke.
-Burke.
-Burke, yeah.
-Burke?
-That's it, you've got it.
-Burke.
-How do you feel about it so far?
-I'm enjoying it, it's really nice
to welcome people,
especially when it's their first time.
When you're that first face,
that warm handshake, that big smile,
and that genuine welcome
that comes across and they just,
they soak it up. They're like, "Finally,
someone that understands how I feel,
someone that wants to make sure
I'm looked after", and you're straight in.
-All the staff is so kind and personable.
-Yeah.
-No one's just going through the motions.
-Yeah.
Yeah, I mean, you can tell
that they really care.
It's not just their job,
it's not something that they kind of
do half-heartedly.
It's like this is just who they are.
You don't feel like you're at a hotel
where people are professional, polite,
and want to help you.
You feel like you came home.
And of course, this was once a home,
perhaps not one like yours or mine,
but a home nonetheless.
I'd like to know a bit more
about the people who lived here
and as luck would have it,
Ashford has its very own
resident historian, Fintan Gorman.
It's not many hotels
that have a historian, is it?
I suppose not, but then I suppose
not many hotels have the long history
and heritage that this place has.
An enormous history going back to 1228,
right up to the present day.
And all the families and people
who have occupied it in between.
So, there's a rich story to tell.
Ashford has been built up
over many centuries
with the original castle tower
constructed by Norman Invaders in 1228.
Their descendants added a separate
French-style chateau in 1715.
But when the Irish potato famine
ravaged the region in the 1840s,
the estate fell into ruin
and was put up for sale.
Always in times of ruin
enter the people with the money.
And in 1852 in Ireland,
that was the Guinness family.
They were in their fifth generation
of brewing, cash rich, nouveau riche.
They were a godsend to the area,
because they started employing people
and paying a wage which none
of these previous owners ever did.
They just took the money
and spent it on the good life.
And the result of their employment
is all throughout the estate here.
Roads, bridges, houses, gardens, forests.
It was Arthur Guinness,
who inherited the place in 1868,
who did more than anyone
to create the castle we see today.
Arthur was destined to be
an English gentleman.
They now have the money.
They want the recognition.
He wants to climb up the political scale,
and he wants to climb up
the social scale in England.
So, all of a sudden, this remote
hunting lodge in the West of Ireland
becomes the place where he's going
to create the playground for the rich,
where he's going to impress
various titled families in England.
Arthur built Ashford Castle
connecting the French style chateau
with the original Norman Tower.
He spent the next few decades
entertaining various lords and ladies
with what would become famous
hunting and fishing trips.
And in 1905, Arthur reached
the pinnacle of high society
with the three-week visit
of the Prince of Wales,
the future King George V.
The coming of George was
a wonderful occasion for the Guinnesses.
No expense is spared,
there's a flurry of building,
wonderful for the local economy,
hundreds of local people employed.
The cocktail lounge in here was added,
the Prince of Wales cocktail lounge,
for the coming of George.
And of course, the dining room
went on to become the George V,
because he became George V of England,
the grandfather of the present queen.
It's always nice when you arrive
to be offered a cocktail,
but to have them offer you
-a whole cocktail lounge.
-A whole cocktail lounge.
The Prince of Wales cocktail lounge, yeah.
While the décor is very much
in keeping with Guinness-era grandeur,
in fact, it's the result of a recent
50-million-pound restoration.
Each of Ashford's 83 rooms
has been individually refurbished,
combining restored original features
with Italian handwoven silk fabrics,
lovingly sourced antique furniture,
and works of art.
All of which need special care.
Whether it's cleaning
historic chandeliers piece by piece,
or using only pH neutral products
on delicate surfaces.
And it's all the responsibility
of the hotel's 25-strong housekeeping team
who work under the watchful eye
of supervisor Camilla.
So this is departure room.
Ready for supervisor to be inspected.
It's better if you have
a passion for cleaning.
So you do enjoy what you are doing,
and you will actually go that extra mile.
Simona? Can you please go back to 417
and just redo the headboard for me?
-Okay.
-Lovely, thank you.
This morning, Camilla will be putting me
to work as a room attendant.
-Good morning.
-Hello, Camilla.
-Good morning, Giles. How are you?
-I'm very well.
-We have a basket for you ready here.
-Okay. What am I gonna be doing?
-Cleaning windows and…
-Basically dusting, hoovering, cleaning.
How long does it take
to clean a room, roughly?
Well, in most of other hotels,
it is around 20 to 25 minutes.
In ours, it's 40 up to one hour.
I'm being teamed up with Sally,
who first started working here in 2001.
Nice to meet you, I'm Sally.
How are you doing?
I'm very well, indeed.
Thank you for letting me join you.
-It's your lucky day, put your feet up.
-Oh, lovely.
-We start with hoovering the walls.
-Hoovering the walls?
Yes. Do you fancy doing
hoovering the walls?
Hoovering the walls?
You vacuum-clean the walls?
Absolutely, because it's all fabric.
And dust gathers on it.
-So we have to hoover the walls, yes.
-It's a strange sounding thing, and…
-It's fabric. Yes.
-Every inch of the wall?
In fact, there are over 20,000
square meters of fine fabrics,
lining every bedroom, and every
square inch of corridor in the castle.
-I start in the corner.
-In the corner.
It's sucking quite hard. I'm quite worried
about picking out a thread
-and unravelling the whole thing.
-Yeah, up and down.
Sorry, I'll stop talking.
It's not a very good thing to do
with a tie on, I've got to say.
Every time I look up to do it,
my Adam's apple won't…
I would probably choose
more casual dress for this.
I should probably have
what Sally's wearing.
Do you know what, Sally, you're better
dressed for this than I am.
I feel like I should be
serving cocktails at a wedding.
I can probably do it like that, actually.
I wonder who this lady is in the portrait?
Some Duchess.
-Do I try and go up there? Really?
-Yes, do that. The whole…
-Can you manage?
-Sort of. I'm not going to admit defeat.
-Great job.
-It's very hard to tell
if you're just being nice.
Everyone at the castle is so polite
and friendly that I'm sure you'd tell me
that I was doing a great job
even if I was rubbish.
Get rid of him, send him back to England
with his rubbish cleaning.
You're doing a good job.
Like many of the staff, Sally grew up
just a few miles from the estate.
Now, her daughter Mary works here too.
And it turns out co-working families
are a common theme.
My husband. He runs the bar and lounge.
And I have Oxley as well, my firstborn.
My sister Ella here that's worked with me
for the 18 years so far.
We started the same day.
This is my son, Steven.
Steven works in our spa.
We did the same interview
the same day, same time.
Well, it's great I can keep
an eye on them.
He used to get every day he wanted off
and if he didn't, he'd go to his mother.
We work on the same station together.
We work the same hours.
We get the same breaks together.
So, it would very bad if we didn't get on,
-but we get on very well together.
-We don't travel in together.
Most of the staff live in
the surrounding countryside…
…or the village of Cong,
just outside the estate walls.
It seems there's more to hospitality
here than just Irish charm.
For the people
that work here, many of them,
their family heritage is here.
It was their forebearers that built it.
It was their families that worked
these grounds and the gardens.
So for them it's not just a hotel.
It's not a castle. It's not four walls.
This is something that's ingrained
in them. It's in their bloodline.
They have something
that you just can't buy.
The passion, the pride,
the sense of ownership in one way.
That filters through to the guest
from those staff.
Sally and I are still hard at work
getting rooms ready for check in.
-Right, what's next?
-We'll make the bed.
I've been dreading that.
I'll show you how to do the corners.
Hospitality corner.
After a quick lesson
in five-star bed making…
I'm sent down the hall
to make other beds in Sally's section.
Accommodation? Hello?
We'll just ignore the whole corner thing.
I actually don't know how you're supposed
to get it round the four-poster bed.
I think their sheets are too small.
Does it?
Do you think they tuck in a duvet?
Do they tuck in a duvet?
-Hello?
-Hi, Camilla.
-Hi. How are you getting on, Giles?
-Fine, I think I've nailed it.
You can see that the bed
doesn't really have a shape.
There, the pillows should be visible.
The pillows should be sat
on the bedspread.
I wasn't really counting on you
taking the bedspread off, I'll confess.
-This is how we are checking it.
-You see, it looked okay to me
with the bedspread on
from a long distance.
You're standing too close.
You want to be back here.
When you look at the bed now,
what do you see?
It looks like it's been slept in
by dogs, doesn't it?
Exactly.
The problem I had
is that this is a four-poster bed,
and I trained on a normal bed.
I'm going to call Sally
because obviously, it needs to be redone,
-and straightened a little bit.
-She might need to bring fresh sheets.
While Giles and the housekeeping team
are busy in the bedrooms,
guests are off enjoying
the rest of the estate.
And with five restaurants
from casual gastropub…
…formal fine dining…
…as well as afternoon tea
and room service.
Ashford's kitchens run 24 hours a day.
Okay, guys. Give me a timing
for beef well done, on a côte de boeuf.
The man responsible
for keeping guests happily fed
is executive chef Philippe Farineau.
It's so important to get it right.
The quality should be the same
for fine dining or the breakfast.
So, it doesn't matter where
and what times they are going to eat,
everything should be 100%.
To find out what's on the menu,
I'm working with chef Philippe
in the kitchen
of their fine dining restaurant.
-Philippe? Hey.
-Monica.
-You all right?
-As a French chef,
-I have to give you the kiss.
-Okay.
Much like Britain, Ireland is known more
for meat and two veg than haute cuisine.
How many leaves of that do you want?
Doesn't matter?
So, the challenge for chef Philippe
is to deliver a fine dining menu
that also satisfies guests
looking for a true Irish experience.
It's pretty.
Very pretty. Thank you.
Guys, on the way, please.
The guests that come here,
do they have certain expectations
of trying Irish food?
When they come here they want
to see it on the menu. So, far as to
accomplish that, we want to find
the best of the Irish produce
and to make it as a fine dining.
The produce in Ireland
is the most important thing.
The most important thing, you know.
Deep fried oyster?
Deep fried oysters.
You have the oyster sauce?
-Are these local oysters?
-Yes. From Dooncastle.
-Dooncastle?
-Dooncastle oyster.
Look at how beautiful that is.
Côte de boeuf, medium well away, please.
Two veg, two potatoes, two gratin.
Very tasty.
-Oh, that's good.
-It is very tasty.
That is very good.
As a French chef being in Ireland,
a lot of people…
I have a lot of chefs say,
"Why you don't use that from France or…"
I'm not in France, I'm in Ireland.
I have the best produce you can find.
We want to use them.
Why would you buy from France oranges
when you can get them here?
Main course on ten please,
one halibut, one venison.
On top of his commitment
to local producers,
Philippe is creating dishes
that reflect the local area
by using ingredients that are found
within the surrounding landscape.
Probably something we use
for generation until generations.
Then we forgot about it.
I think that something that people,
when they taste it, they don't realize
the flavor the sea veg can have.
So, they come here to experience
some things they don't know
or they won't be able to do at home.
Chef Philippe employs
the services of a local forager.
Monica, Brian, our forager.
Who's taking us out
to hunt for ingredients.
Where are we going, Brian?
We're going to go to the seashore
to get some seaweed, sea vegetables.
Can't be very specific
because I don't want everybody to know
where I find my different seaweeds.
We better just cut the cameras.
Twenty minutes later, we're setting off
on foot at Brian's secret foraging spot.
And it seems we picked quite a day for it.
I have to provide the ingredients
for the chef. So, for me
this is winter time in Ireland.
In this weather
I am prepared to be waiting inside
for you to bring them to me.
What are we going to find here, Brian?
It's a very small seaweed
that grows at the bottom of the rocks.
And it's available at low tide,
That's why we're here, it's low tide now.
I use pepper dulse a lot in my kitchen,
I'm sure you do.
-But I've never foraged for it, so…
-Really good.
We've got just half an hour
before the tide starts to come back in.
And this valuable ingredient
is hidden once again.
Very slippery here.
Yeah.
Look at that. Look at it all there.
Look at that. So good.
That's amazing.
Pepper dulse is almost a truffle.
It tastes of a truffle and ocean.
It's salty. it's fantastic.
The challenges of sourcing
this rare ingredient
mean fresh pepper dulse
can sell for over 100 pounds a kilo.
They're in their best
when they're growing during the winter
because they just love cold water.
-So, who are most of your clients?
-More top end, and…
So, Michelin star restaurants.
Hotels like Ashford Castle,
it's kind of niche.
More chefs are getting in to it,
and realizing what's on their doorstep.
Monica's foraging haul will soon
find its way onto guests' dinner plates
here in Ashford's George V dining room.
The long-serving restaurant manager
is Robert Bowe.
This is our classic
fine dining experience.
Jacket is required and tie is requested.
There's no dress code for ladies.
It's just for gentlemen.
We're being taken under
Robert's wing for the evening.
Robert? We are here.
To work as fine dining waiters.
Robert is schooling us
in all aspects of fine dining.
In Ireland, we serve from the left,
and we clear from the right.
From introducing the menus…
Welcome to George V,
is that what we're saying? Okay.
-George V.
-It's your a la carte,
and your table d'hôte menu.
…to setting the right cutlery
for all eight courses.
Always put down the cutlery
that you're replacing first,
and then take away
the cutlery you don't need.
-I see, okay.
-Because you tend to frighten people
when you're taking stuff away.
But if you give them something first,
that usually keeps them quite calm.
Despite all this daunting
service etiquette,
Robert's keen to remind us
it still has to be done the Irish way.
At Ashford we have always had
very high standards.
But something that guests
have always felt coming here
is that, you know,
it's going to be very stuffy.
It's going to be very formal.
But it's not that.
There is a sense of charm.
There is a sense of friendliness.
A lot of them come back for,
as we say in Ireland, the craic.
Also on hand to make sure we don't destroy
the restaurant's reputation
is maître d' Martin,
who has 43 years of service behind him.
You're going to be
the senior fellow around me?
-Yes.
-Have you got any last-minute tips?
Be friendly, make sure that they have
an absolutely wonderful experience
-at Ashford Castle.
-Okay.
-Thank you.
-I'll do my best.
Nice to see you.
-Welcome to Ashford Castle. Hi.
-Thank you very much.
-Good evening. Welcome.
-This is our table d'hôte menu,
and then we've got the tasting menu here,
which is an eight-course tasting menu.
All right, mister.
I believe you're having the salmon?
Fish knife and fork, which is down there.
Tuna, which is fish knife,
and scallop,
which is fish knife and fork as well.
The setting for the first course is there.
I have done one, two… Go, and do it.
-I have to lay the one and two already?
-Yes.
-A fish fork.
-A fish fork, yes.
Yeah, that's no problem at all.
Are you having a soup?
Soup. I think you'd want that
because that's a meat knife.
Sorbet.
Is it? Let's have that back.
Enjoy. Thank you.
-How was it?
-Great. You did well.
Okay I've still got six pieces
of cutlery going here.
What have you done?
I was going so well before.
Who's having soup
that hasn't got a soup spoon?
Great. Good, was that your starter?
Or was it in the middle?
-Middle.
-Okay, great.
Right. There we go. What we have
for you here is a crab apple sorbet
and the crab apples are from the estate.
With an apple foam on the top.
-Enjoy.
-Thank you.
Enjoy.
Some delightful amuse-bouche for you,
which is a salmon mousse.
Just when I thought
it was all going rather well…
You're supposed to serve from the left.
Yeah, not bad.
It does, because that's in England.
You go to the right.
We have it here, serve from the left,
clear from the right.
It feels weird but it's great
that you have a different way.
-How was that?
-Stunning.
Was it good?
Are you having some English wine?
-Yeah.
-And how's that?
It's good.
What about Irish wine,
is there anything much there?
-You should try it. It's different.
-It does exist?
-There is, it's only one.
-It's black and it comes in a pint glass
with a creamy head on it,
I've heard of it.
How am I doing with my… with my chat?
Very good, excellent. They're very
relaxed, very happy. Congratulations.
I think my actual table skills
are perhaps…
It doesn't matter. With a bit of charm,
you'll always make up
for what you lack in table skills.
What they're doing here is giving you
the five-star top-notch experience
that you want with beautifully
presented food, very well-timed service,
ornate dining rooms and chandeliers
but with the charm, with the fun,
with the relaxation,
with the craic that gives you
an experience that's genuinely enjoyable.
When I came here as a young fella
in 1974, I worked at the bar.
And I ran out of there after a week,
and I've never left the restaurant since.
As I said to people all down the years,
if I had my life to live over again,
I would do exactly the same
as what I've done.
Ask anyone around here
about Ashford families,
and they'll tell you about Martin Gibbons.
His father and grandfather
worked on the estate.
Now, his two sons
are following in their footsteps.
24-year-old Steven
is a waiter in the lounge,
and 21-year-old Mark is a cocktail barman.
After my limited success as a waiter
I've been sent to work with Mark
-in the Prince of Wales bar.
-Hi, you must be Mark?
-I'm Giles.
-Nice to meet you.
-How long have you been working here?
-Near enough four years.
-Four years? So, straight out of…
-Straight out of school, yeah.
Kind of the same thing as my father did.
We're making an Ashford
signature cocktail called Gunpowder Blush.
Made with Irish gin, elderflower liqueur…
We use some cherry wood chips,
and spray with bergamot.
And smoked with woodchips from the estate.
It's got a little thing that draws it in.
That's awesome.
Look at that.
And is that nice?
Is it a good feeling having your dad here?
It is, yeah. But it's professional,
there's no messing, there's no joking.
Once we come across the bridge,
it's Martin.
-It's not Dad.
-At home is the sort of family chat,
the banter is it often about work?
Do you talk about here?
No. Once you cross the bridge,
it's family work.
-Really?
-Yeah.
Mark's great-grandfather
was working here as a gamekeeper
when the Prince of Wales visited in 1905.
The future King came specifically
to shoot woodcock.
And of course,
shooting is very much still on offer.
Estate manager Thomas
is in charge of activities.
-Very good morning to you.
-Hello.
This morning, he'll be putting us to work,
wearing what is,
believe it or not,
the actual activities department uniform.
And the first job of the day,
cleaning guns with the clay pigeon team.
These will be used very regularly,
every single day.
Quite often late into the evening
in the summer months,
and they have to be kept
in pristine condition.
Feidhlim manages the hotel shotguns.
-More?
-Go a little bit more.
That'll do. Down the barrel.
All the way through to the end.
-Oops, fail.
-That's all right. It comes back out.
See how it looks,
is it cleaner compared to the other one?
-Absolutely. Blimey.
-There you go.
I suppose the face of the breech is
probably one of the most important parts.
Look at that. That makes sense.
There we go.
With up to 50 guests shooting each week,
Ashford gets through
over 120,000 clay pigeons a year.
-Oh, boy.
-They break quite easily in there,
they're biodegradable, so once they break…
-What?
-That's how easy they break.
They break down and once
the small pieces get wet, they biodegrade
and they're gone in two years.
There we go.
So, Monica, Giles, would you like
to have a go before our guests arrive?
-Absolutely.
-I'm a bit nervous.
Pull.
Pull.
-Damn it.
-It's harder than it looks.
Pull.
Pull.
Unless someone else shoots yours for you.
-She shot it before I got my shot off.
-She's getting pretty good over there.
I like this now.
-You got over your nerves then.
-Yes. I got a few, actually.
It's interesting
because as well as the five-star luxury,
and the views and all that kind of thing,
they are selling this lord and lady
of the manor stuff, look at us.
Look at us pair of idiots.
-We look great.
-We look great, but imagine people who,
from 5,000 miles away,
who'd been watching Downton Abbey.
And the likes of that
and just want a little piece of that,
and you can't really get it.
It's unattainable.
-Then you come here, and you can have it.
-It's absolutely attainable
and they make it accessible
for anyone visiting.
I can't get away from this slight
bitterness that I don't own 20,000 acres
of my own prime shooting land,
I think that would be better.
Whilst shooting is in keeping
with the Guinness era,
you've got to go a lot further back
for the origins
of the hotel's
most popular outdoor pursuit.
This is Ashford School of Falconry.
Not exactly
your run-of-the-mill hotel activity.
Guests can actually try their hand
at this UNESCO-protected sport.
Which was originally developed
as a hunting aid.
The school is run by Debbie.
I'm joining her as a trainee falconer.
Every day before guests can actually fly
the birds, poop must be scooped.
It's much cleaner than cleaning up
after my dog, that's for sure.
And the aviary is kept spotless.
I'm sure we're the only place in the world
that washes gravel.
The hawks must also be weighed
as part of their regular health checks.
This morning I'm weighing
seven-year-old Harris hawk, Joyce.
Extend your arm clear of your body.
This is how we fly them as well.
With the back of your fist facing to her.
And so here she comes, and there she is.
Now she's landed,
you can slowly relax your elbow
so it's resting comfortably
into your side.
And just release your grip,
there we go. Perfect.
She needs to be as fat as possible,
but if she's too fat, she'll sit in a tree
and she'll refuse to fly.
Exactly as she would do in the wild,
they don't fly for fun.
That's a human view of it,
because we can't fly.
They fly only out of necessity.
So, you're seeing them perched
and sitting in their cage,
you're thinking, "That's not right,
they should be out flying,"
but that's actually what they do just…
It is, they don't fly around
their aviaries,
they have the space to do so,
but they don't.
This is so cool, I have never held
any bird of prey so close.
She's a lovely lady.
She doesn't seem to mind. So beautiful.
With the prep work done,
Debbie's going to teach me
how the falconers take guests
for what they call a hawk walk.
So you can open your fist now
to release your grip of the jesses.
She's free to go now at any time.
-Shall I put my arm up or she'll just…
-Yes,
you're now going to lift her up…
There we go, perfect.
Amazing.
Close up your fist, and bring your glove
towards me, look at this.
That's amazing. Oh, my goodness.
Doesn't she look so beautiful?
She's fabulous. There we go. Perfect.
She's free to come and go as she pleases.
As we walk, you just have your glove
down by your side
so it's clear to her
that we're not asking her to come in.
-And she should follow us, here she comes.
-Magnificent.
Why bring falconry to the hotel?
There's a long history of falconry here.
It's been in Ireland since about 400 AD.
We tend to read about it
as being the sport of royalty,
and of landed gentry, and so on,
and of the wealthy. But in reality,
the peasants as well, would have all
had a goshawk or a falcon
that they will have been hunting with
as a serious means
-of putting food on the table.
-You are amazing.
What an experience.
Hotels always offer
some kind of activities,
but this is something that's quite unique.
While this is definitely
a great experience for the guests,
what's more important is falconry is being
preserved as part of the Irish culture.
While Ashford today is able
to preserve ancient traditions,
things could have been very different.
Just a few years ago, the estate
found itself facing ruin once again.
The Irish property boom saw Ashford bought
by developers and heavily mortgaged.
The financial crash struck and by 2012,
it had fallen into receivership.
It was a very difficult time.
The castle was under significant threat.
Nobody really knows
what's going to happen.
And whether it's going to continue
as a viable entity.
Unfortunately, we had
to make redundancies.
All the team took
major significant pay cuts.
With the banks controlling all spending,
years of underinvestment
were starting to show.
There was this huge decline
in the physical structure of the property.
We used to have to allocate rooms
depending on wind direction.
And it really does need a miracle.
It needs something to happen.
It needs something to change.
Finding a suitable buyer
was proving a problem.
I met 30 potential purchasers
from Russian oligarchs
to people who wanted to purchase
this at the lowest price.
Invest a small bit of money,
and flip it very very quickly.
Also in the frame was successful
South African hoteliers
Beatrice and Stanley Tollman.
In the past there had been well-publicized
tax evasion cases against Stanley
in the US, which saw him pay over 100
million dollars in back taxes and fines.
But Niall saw something
that convinced him.
They were the ones to take on Ashford.
Showing Mr. and Mrs. Tollman the estate,
Mr. Tollman turned to Mrs. Tollman
and said, "Wow, B, this is just
an amazing place,
it's absolutely fantastic."
And Mrs. Tollman turned around
and said, "Yes, Stanley.
It is. It's wonderful.
But it's the people, it's the people."
And that very moment,
I thought that these were
the people for Ashford Castle.
In 2013, the Tollmans bought
the Ashford estate.
The piper is going to meet them
at the bridge,
and then we'll have
our great staff lineup.
If we can have as many people
and from each department ready to go.
And today, the staff are getting ready for
one of Beatrice Tollman's flying visits.
They'll be here around 12:30,
is my understanding.
So, you just make sure
that every element of the room,
Camilla will go through it
in a few minutes.
Just make sure everything's perfect.
With Mrs. Tollman's arrival imminent,
I've been asked to hoist the company flag.
And we're joining the rest of the staff
on the front steps to welcome her.
Now if you're starting to think this is
all a bit royal visit, you're not alone.
This is an extraordinary effort
you're making for this lady.
-Absolutely.
-Why?
It's a bit of fun,
but it's something that we just do
out of genuine appreciation
for what they have done for this property,
for this estate,
and for the employees of the estate.
What have they done?
I mean they run a hotel business,
they've bought a hotel,
they're making money out of it,
what have they really done?
When Mr. and Mrs. Tollman first took over,
and I always remember Mr. Tollman
getting on the front steps of the castle
and saying the property is debt-free.
And they wanted to create
the best hotel of its kind in the world.
To hear that from where we're coming from
was just something very special.
When the Tollmans closed Ashford
for seven months of renovation,
they insisted that every member
of staff was kept on.
They paid 25 million dollars
for the estate, but poured
a further 75 million dollars
into its complete restoration.
A 1,000 square meters of roofs were
reinforced and 820 new windows fitted.
All new plumbing and 750 kilometers
of cabling were installed.
Local craftsmen and materials
were used wherever possible.
And Mrs. Tollman oversaw
every detail of the décor.
This isn't a refurbishment.
It's not a renovation.
It's much more fundamental than that.
It's a restoration of a grand old estate
that could have been lost.
Okay, here they come.
Standing here in the rain with everyone,
you get the sense of the affection
that's felt towards the new owner.
Hello, Mrs. Tollman. How are you?
And it looks like this grand welcome
is about showing appreciation
for a job well done.
Hello. How are you?
-Fine, how are you?
-Very good, thank you.
Hello. How are you?
-I thought I recognized you.
-You did? Thank you for the kiss.
Welcome home.
Absolutely, as always, great to have you.
With the fanfare over
and everyone off back to work,
I'm spending some time with Mrs. Tollman
to find out what it was like
taking over such a venerable institution.
What did it need most of all?
It needed everything.
Everything you know, new furniture
in the restaurant,
just wherever you look is new.
The mirrors and the pictures,
was this all…
Everything that you see, I bought.
-You, yourself?
-Yes, at auctions. Everything.
They must have been pleased
when they saw you coming? For a few years.
Was it all a business decision
or were you thinking about the future?
Were you thinking about leaving a legacy?
Yes, I suppose so.
Just because it deserved it.
We just felt we must put
everything into it,
our souls into recreating
what it deserved to be.
And despite the full VIP arrival,
Mrs. Tollman is here
for business, not pleasure.
She always casts an eye
over every department.
This, Mrs. Tollman,
is our vanilla cheesecake.
And her first stop is the kitchen.
Mine has a little bit more sugar.
Where I'm back helping Philippe
prepare for tonight's dinner service.
It is really delicious.
What did you add to it, you said?
It's the masala.
-A little spice at the end.
-That's what gave its…
I get an analysis everyday
of every restaurant
that we've got, and how many people,
and what they ate.
And if I see something
never sells on a menu,
I'll say, "Take that off,
and you'll put on something else."
There is something a bit special
about Ashford Castle.
Yes, we love it here because of the staff,
more than anything else.
They're so dedicated.
They're so passionate.
And that is the greatest reward
for everything we've put into it.
It's Saturday night,
Mrs. Tollman's in the house,
and we're helping the staff
prepare for an evening of entertainment.
A young local band have been booked
to perform in the lounge.
I've been roped
into shucking oysters for the evening.
-They're great, aren't they?
-Absolutely.
I remember the first time seeing them.
I was drinking a pint of Guinness.
I don't get out that often,
but I heard them, and kids like this
are the future of the area.
And we're so thrilled to be able
to give them an opportunity like this.
In 2012, we had 210 people employed
on the estate. Now, today we're 420.
The challenges that we now face
are really positive challenges.
The future of this building and this
estate is safeguarded for generations.
You know I've never stayed
in a castle before.
Coming here, you walk into this amazing
hotel, the grandeur that's so splendid.
But in fact, it's very relaxed here.
You feel very welcome. It's warm.
It's all about the roots
that are sunk deeply in the local soil,
the 30, 40 years that some
of the people have been working here.
And with that they bring this level
of service that is full of pride and joy.
I think what's extraordinary
is when you walk about the castle,
and you walk past cleaners, and you walk
past maintenance men
and stuff, they all look like
they're having a good time.
And in really posh hotels, they all care,
and they all want it to be great
but there's always a sort of
underlying hint of misery.
And there isn't here.
This hope and this opportunity
for the next generation
that's going to come through.
After 800 years of up and down,
the various different economic travails,
there's this sort of sense
they're all going to be all right.
there are remarkable hotels.
Born of bold vision and daring endeavor.
Wow! This is how I want to live.
Whether it's one of the remotest hotels
on Earth hidden on a Pacific island…
Or a sumptuous resort on one of
the highest mountains in the Middle East.
What an incredible view.
The people running these hotels
strive to create the perfect sanctuary.
But what does it take
to offer once-in-a-lifetime experiences
in stunning locations?
Construction was a logistical nightmare.
No water, no source of power.
I'm a restaurant writer,
newspaper columnist, and critic.
I have opinions on just about everything.
He's not a very good driver, is he?
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
-Crazy!
And I'm a chef who's worked at the top end
of the hospitality industry
for well over 20 years.
This is awesome. Whoo!
We'll travel to amazing hotels
in every corner of the world.
Enjoy.
To spend time getting to know
the people working away behind the scenes.
I polished Elton John's fruits.
You polished Elton John's fruits?
Do you recall life under apartheid?
Has it changed for you?
Nelson Mandela
was the first black president.
…gives me more inspiration
to achieve what I want in life.
-Join us as we venture inside…
-The world's most extraordinary hotels.
We're in County Mayo
in the West of Ireland.
By the shores of Lough Corrib,
the country's biggest lake.
I do love Ireland.
We're heading to an establishment
that's aiming to be
not just the best hotel in Ireland,
but the best hotel of its kind
in the world.
Look at that.
Wow. It's enormous.
Just set on the water there like
it's on an island. It looks like Camelot.
That is magical.
This is Ashford Castle.
Dating back to 1228, more recently it was
the country house of the Guinness family.
Set in its own 350-acre estate,
the 83-room five-star luxury hotel
sells a taste of old-fashioned grandeur.
Wow. My goodness.
That is an extraordinary chandelier.
Blimey.
That's my corner.
That's my corner right there.
Spot of Edwardian glamor.
You can imagine kings, queens, knights
passing through these halls.
Golly, I hope it's not haunted.
As well as having access to a luxury spa,
guests can live like the landed gentry
with activities
such as riding and shooting.
Rooms start at 300 pounds a night,
going all the way up to a majestic
4,000 pounds for the very best suites
decorated with Venetian Murano
glass chandeliers
and Connemara marble in the bathrooms.
Oh, my goodness.
Wow. That is the highest ceiling
I have ever seen in a hotel bedroom.
That is perfect.
This room is something else.
This is extraordinary,
where there's an amazing bedroom,
you walk in to a medieval castle
to then not be disappointed by the bedroom
is quite an achievement. I mean,
that is the bed you have in a castle.
It's four-poster.
It's velvet and it's gold.
It's even got a gallery.
Basically just so you can admire
your awesome bedroom from another level.
Amazing.
The man who currently holds
the keys to the castle
is General Manager Niall Rochford.
It's my life, you know.
I've invested 15 years of my life
and my family's life here as well.
But you know what, I'm lucky
in that I operate a castle, you know.
There aren't too many authentic
genuine castles in the world.
Of course, we're not here
just to enjoy the plush rooms.
We're here to find out what operating
a castle hotel is all about.
But before we can serve any actual guests,
Niall wants us to join some other
new recruits at staff induction.
No request too large, no detail too small.
So, what we're saying
is our guests can ask us anything,
to do anything, as long as it's legal,
and we will do it.
We're innately hospitable people and
particularly in the West Coast of Ireland,
we want you to feel at home.
It is sophisticated
but also in a very Irish way.
You're not gonna get
a very kind of staid experience
where everybody has to whisper.
-What is the style of service here?
-It's a very natural style of service,
and I think that's maybe
what Irish people are all about.
And here in Ashford,
it's not really that plastic Irish type
-of experience that you might associate.
-What plastic Irish type are you?
-What can he mean?
-I don't know.
It's not the…
-St Patrick's Day.
-Absolutely.
-Silly hats.
-Exactly. You know,
Ireland has moved on from that, there's
more soul, there's more spirit to this,
and it's much more genuine.
So, I think when you meet
the people you'll be working with,
you'll see that.
If the warmth of the Irish welcome
is their secret weapon,
the hotel wants it to start right
from the front gate.
And estate manager Thomas is in charge
of ten gate keepers and doormen.
The welcome you get on your arrival here,
it's heartfelt.
We want people to understand
how much we love it here,
how much we're proud of it.
For our first job
we're joining the door team.
Ta-da!
I love this. It's so cozy, it's so warm.
And not only that, a top hat.
Oh, look at you.
-What are you doing with your cape?
-Isn't that what you're supposed to do?
-Swirl the cape.
-You're not a superhero, my darling.
-You're a doorman.
-So guys, this is make or break.
Whatever happens inside the castle
can be directly affected by the arrival,
this is the country of céad míle fáilte,
a thousand welcomes. And that's you.
You are the very first representative
of the first face they see.
So, it's of vital importance
that your genuine hospitality
and your genuine character
comes across, it's very professional,
but it's extremely warm.
I'll be working with doorman Frank,
while Giles is at the far end
of the drive with Tom, the gateman.
-Good afternoon, sir.
-Hello.
It's the gateman's job to radio
the names of arrivals up to the front door
so his colleague there can delight
the guests by greeting them personally.
As if by magic.
Check in, Frank. Number 10,
McKeown, and arriving in a Jeep.
Number 10, McKeown.
Number 10, he said number 10 is Shaun.
-McKeown.
-McKeown. God.
-So it's Owen and Barbara McKeown.
-You're very welcome to Ashford Castle.
-Thank you very much, indeed.
-Mrs. McKeown, you're very welcome.
Frank is my name. You're very welcome.
And this is my colleague Monica.
Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. McKeown.
This way, please.
Thank you.
Hello, welcome to Ashford Castle.
Hello. Have you had a good journey?
-We sure have.
-Hi there.
Can I confirm the name of the reservation?
-Yes, last name is Everson.
-Everson.
Yes, Everson.
Lovely to meet both of you.
Have a lovely stay.
Thank you.
Mr. and Mrs. Everson
are on their way up in a big black SUV.
Don't know what Giles just said then.
Can you repeat that please?
The Eversons are arriving. Mr. Everson,
he's about 36, little bit of stubble,
nice looking fellow,
got his wife in the passenger seat.
-The Jeffersons are arriving?
-It's Everson.
-Everson.
-And they're driving an SUV.
SUV. Everson. I think there's
something wrong with my ear piece.
Hello. Welcome to Ashford Castle,
Mr. and Mrs. Everson.
-Thank you so much.
-Where have you traveled from?
Nashville, Tennessee.
Nashville, Tennessee.
Is this your first time with us?
-Yeah.
-How fantastic.
How many pieces of luggage
do they need in?
I have no idea. That's a good question.
-That's something you have to ask.
-Wouldn't you want all your luggage in?
They're staying till Monday. I'd presume
they'd want all their underwear, at least.
That's a lot of luggage,
shall we ask them how much?
I'm a bit worried that they were
a bit disappointed that I wasn't Irish.
Because I think they're American, they've
come all this way for an Irish greeting
and I went,
"Hello, welcome to Ashford Castle."
And I should have, but I'm not going to.
I can't pretend to be Irish.
Check in there, Frank.
Number 2, Mr. Burke.
-Number 2.
-Mr. Burke.
Mr. Borke. Do you say Borke, not Burke?
-Burke.
-Burke.
-Burke, yeah.
-Burke?
-That's it, you've got it.
-Burke.
-How do you feel about it so far?
-I'm enjoying it, it's really nice
to welcome people,
especially when it's their first time.
When you're that first face,
that warm handshake, that big smile,
and that genuine welcome
that comes across and they just,
they soak it up. They're like, "Finally,
someone that understands how I feel,
someone that wants to make sure
I'm looked after", and you're straight in.
-All the staff is so kind and personable.
-Yeah.
-No one's just going through the motions.
-Yeah.
Yeah, I mean, you can tell
that they really care.
It's not just their job,
it's not something that they kind of
do half-heartedly.
It's like this is just who they are.
You don't feel like you're at a hotel
where people are professional, polite,
and want to help you.
You feel like you came home.
And of course, this was once a home,
perhaps not one like yours or mine,
but a home nonetheless.
I'd like to know a bit more
about the people who lived here
and as luck would have it,
Ashford has its very own
resident historian, Fintan Gorman.
It's not many hotels
that have a historian, is it?
I suppose not, but then I suppose
not many hotels have the long history
and heritage that this place has.
An enormous history going back to 1228,
right up to the present day.
And all the families and people
who have occupied it in between.
So, there's a rich story to tell.
Ashford has been built up
over many centuries
with the original castle tower
constructed by Norman Invaders in 1228.
Their descendants added a separate
French-style chateau in 1715.
But when the Irish potato famine
ravaged the region in the 1840s,
the estate fell into ruin
and was put up for sale.
Always in times of ruin
enter the people with the money.
And in 1852 in Ireland,
that was the Guinness family.
They were in their fifth generation
of brewing, cash rich, nouveau riche.
They were a godsend to the area,
because they started employing people
and paying a wage which none
of these previous owners ever did.
They just took the money
and spent it on the good life.
And the result of their employment
is all throughout the estate here.
Roads, bridges, houses, gardens, forests.
It was Arthur Guinness,
who inherited the place in 1868,
who did more than anyone
to create the castle we see today.
Arthur was destined to be
an English gentleman.
They now have the money.
They want the recognition.
He wants to climb up the political scale,
and he wants to climb up
the social scale in England.
So, all of a sudden, this remote
hunting lodge in the West of Ireland
becomes the place where he's going
to create the playground for the rich,
where he's going to impress
various titled families in England.
Arthur built Ashford Castle
connecting the French style chateau
with the original Norman Tower.
He spent the next few decades
entertaining various lords and ladies
with what would become famous
hunting and fishing trips.
And in 1905, Arthur reached
the pinnacle of high society
with the three-week visit
of the Prince of Wales,
the future King George V.
The coming of George was
a wonderful occasion for the Guinnesses.
No expense is spared,
there's a flurry of building,
wonderful for the local economy,
hundreds of local people employed.
The cocktail lounge in here was added,
the Prince of Wales cocktail lounge,
for the coming of George.
And of course, the dining room
went on to become the George V,
because he became George V of England,
the grandfather of the present queen.
It's always nice when you arrive
to be offered a cocktail,
but to have them offer you
-a whole cocktail lounge.
-A whole cocktail lounge.
The Prince of Wales cocktail lounge, yeah.
While the décor is very much
in keeping with Guinness-era grandeur,
in fact, it's the result of a recent
50-million-pound restoration.
Each of Ashford's 83 rooms
has been individually refurbished,
combining restored original features
with Italian handwoven silk fabrics,
lovingly sourced antique furniture,
and works of art.
All of which need special care.
Whether it's cleaning
historic chandeliers piece by piece,
or using only pH neutral products
on delicate surfaces.
And it's all the responsibility
of the hotel's 25-strong housekeeping team
who work under the watchful eye
of supervisor Camilla.
So this is departure room.
Ready for supervisor to be inspected.
It's better if you have
a passion for cleaning.
So you do enjoy what you are doing,
and you will actually go that extra mile.
Simona? Can you please go back to 417
and just redo the headboard for me?
-Okay.
-Lovely, thank you.
This morning, Camilla will be putting me
to work as a room attendant.
-Good morning.
-Hello, Camilla.
-Good morning, Giles. How are you?
-I'm very well.
-We have a basket for you ready here.
-Okay. What am I gonna be doing?
-Cleaning windows and…
-Basically dusting, hoovering, cleaning.
How long does it take
to clean a room, roughly?
Well, in most of other hotels,
it is around 20 to 25 minutes.
In ours, it's 40 up to one hour.
I'm being teamed up with Sally,
who first started working here in 2001.
Nice to meet you, I'm Sally.
How are you doing?
I'm very well, indeed.
Thank you for letting me join you.
-It's your lucky day, put your feet up.
-Oh, lovely.
-We start with hoovering the walls.
-Hoovering the walls?
Yes. Do you fancy doing
hoovering the walls?
Hoovering the walls?
You vacuum-clean the walls?
Absolutely, because it's all fabric.
And dust gathers on it.
-So we have to hoover the walls, yes.
-It's a strange sounding thing, and…
-It's fabric. Yes.
-Every inch of the wall?
In fact, there are over 20,000
square meters of fine fabrics,
lining every bedroom, and every
square inch of corridor in the castle.
-I start in the corner.
-In the corner.
It's sucking quite hard. I'm quite worried
about picking out a thread
-and unravelling the whole thing.
-Yeah, up and down.
Sorry, I'll stop talking.
It's not a very good thing to do
with a tie on, I've got to say.
Every time I look up to do it,
my Adam's apple won't…
I would probably choose
more casual dress for this.
I should probably have
what Sally's wearing.
Do you know what, Sally, you're better
dressed for this than I am.
I feel like I should be
serving cocktails at a wedding.
I can probably do it like that, actually.
I wonder who this lady is in the portrait?
Some Duchess.
-Do I try and go up there? Really?
-Yes, do that. The whole…
-Can you manage?
-Sort of. I'm not going to admit defeat.
-Great job.
-It's very hard to tell
if you're just being nice.
Everyone at the castle is so polite
and friendly that I'm sure you'd tell me
that I was doing a great job
even if I was rubbish.
Get rid of him, send him back to England
with his rubbish cleaning.
You're doing a good job.
Like many of the staff, Sally grew up
just a few miles from the estate.
Now, her daughter Mary works here too.
And it turns out co-working families
are a common theme.
My husband. He runs the bar and lounge.
And I have Oxley as well, my firstborn.
My sister Ella here that's worked with me
for the 18 years so far.
We started the same day.
This is my son, Steven.
Steven works in our spa.
We did the same interview
the same day, same time.
Well, it's great I can keep
an eye on them.
He used to get every day he wanted off
and if he didn't, he'd go to his mother.
We work on the same station together.
We work the same hours.
We get the same breaks together.
So, it would very bad if we didn't get on,
-but we get on very well together.
-We don't travel in together.
Most of the staff live in
the surrounding countryside…
…or the village of Cong,
just outside the estate walls.
It seems there's more to hospitality
here than just Irish charm.
For the people
that work here, many of them,
their family heritage is here.
It was their forebearers that built it.
It was their families that worked
these grounds and the gardens.
So for them it's not just a hotel.
It's not a castle. It's not four walls.
This is something that's ingrained
in them. It's in their bloodline.
They have something
that you just can't buy.
The passion, the pride,
the sense of ownership in one way.
That filters through to the guest
from those staff.
Sally and I are still hard at work
getting rooms ready for check in.
-Right, what's next?
-We'll make the bed.
I've been dreading that.
I'll show you how to do the corners.
Hospitality corner.
After a quick lesson
in five-star bed making…
I'm sent down the hall
to make other beds in Sally's section.
Accommodation? Hello?
We'll just ignore the whole corner thing.
I actually don't know how you're supposed
to get it round the four-poster bed.
I think their sheets are too small.
Does it?
Do you think they tuck in a duvet?
Do they tuck in a duvet?
-Hello?
-Hi, Camilla.
-Hi. How are you getting on, Giles?
-Fine, I think I've nailed it.
You can see that the bed
doesn't really have a shape.
There, the pillows should be visible.
The pillows should be sat
on the bedspread.
I wasn't really counting on you
taking the bedspread off, I'll confess.
-This is how we are checking it.
-You see, it looked okay to me
with the bedspread on
from a long distance.
You're standing too close.
You want to be back here.
When you look at the bed now,
what do you see?
It looks like it's been slept in
by dogs, doesn't it?
Exactly.
The problem I had
is that this is a four-poster bed,
and I trained on a normal bed.
I'm going to call Sally
because obviously, it needs to be redone,
-and straightened a little bit.
-She might need to bring fresh sheets.
While Giles and the housekeeping team
are busy in the bedrooms,
guests are off enjoying
the rest of the estate.
And with five restaurants
from casual gastropub…
…formal fine dining…
…as well as afternoon tea
and room service.
Ashford's kitchens run 24 hours a day.
Okay, guys. Give me a timing
for beef well done, on a côte de boeuf.
The man responsible
for keeping guests happily fed
is executive chef Philippe Farineau.
It's so important to get it right.
The quality should be the same
for fine dining or the breakfast.
So, it doesn't matter where
and what times they are going to eat,
everything should be 100%.
To find out what's on the menu,
I'm working with chef Philippe
in the kitchen
of their fine dining restaurant.
-Philippe? Hey.
-Monica.
-You all right?
-As a French chef,
-I have to give you the kiss.
-Okay.
Much like Britain, Ireland is known more
for meat and two veg than haute cuisine.
How many leaves of that do you want?
Doesn't matter?
So, the challenge for chef Philippe
is to deliver a fine dining menu
that also satisfies guests
looking for a true Irish experience.
It's pretty.
Very pretty. Thank you.
Guys, on the way, please.
The guests that come here,
do they have certain expectations
of trying Irish food?
When they come here they want
to see it on the menu. So, far as to
accomplish that, we want to find
the best of the Irish produce
and to make it as a fine dining.
The produce in Ireland
is the most important thing.
The most important thing, you know.
Deep fried oyster?
Deep fried oysters.
You have the oyster sauce?
-Are these local oysters?
-Yes. From Dooncastle.
-Dooncastle?
-Dooncastle oyster.
Look at how beautiful that is.
Côte de boeuf, medium well away, please.
Two veg, two potatoes, two gratin.
Very tasty.
-Oh, that's good.
-It is very tasty.
That is very good.
As a French chef being in Ireland,
a lot of people…
I have a lot of chefs say,
"Why you don't use that from France or…"
I'm not in France, I'm in Ireland.
I have the best produce you can find.
We want to use them.
Why would you buy from France oranges
when you can get them here?
Main course on ten please,
one halibut, one venison.
On top of his commitment
to local producers,
Philippe is creating dishes
that reflect the local area
by using ingredients that are found
within the surrounding landscape.
Probably something we use
for generation until generations.
Then we forgot about it.
I think that something that people,
when they taste it, they don't realize
the flavor the sea veg can have.
So, they come here to experience
some things they don't know
or they won't be able to do at home.
Chef Philippe employs
the services of a local forager.
Monica, Brian, our forager.
Who's taking us out
to hunt for ingredients.
Where are we going, Brian?
We're going to go to the seashore
to get some seaweed, sea vegetables.
Can't be very specific
because I don't want everybody to know
where I find my different seaweeds.
We better just cut the cameras.
Twenty minutes later, we're setting off
on foot at Brian's secret foraging spot.
And it seems we picked quite a day for it.
I have to provide the ingredients
for the chef. So, for me
this is winter time in Ireland.
In this weather
I am prepared to be waiting inside
for you to bring them to me.
What are we going to find here, Brian?
It's a very small seaweed
that grows at the bottom of the rocks.
And it's available at low tide,
That's why we're here, it's low tide now.
I use pepper dulse a lot in my kitchen,
I'm sure you do.
-But I've never foraged for it, so…
-Really good.
We've got just half an hour
before the tide starts to come back in.
And this valuable ingredient
is hidden once again.
Very slippery here.
Yeah.
Look at that. Look at it all there.
Look at that. So good.
That's amazing.
Pepper dulse is almost a truffle.
It tastes of a truffle and ocean.
It's salty. it's fantastic.
The challenges of sourcing
this rare ingredient
mean fresh pepper dulse
can sell for over 100 pounds a kilo.
They're in their best
when they're growing during the winter
because they just love cold water.
-So, who are most of your clients?
-More top end, and…
So, Michelin star restaurants.
Hotels like Ashford Castle,
it's kind of niche.
More chefs are getting in to it,
and realizing what's on their doorstep.
Monica's foraging haul will soon
find its way onto guests' dinner plates
here in Ashford's George V dining room.
The long-serving restaurant manager
is Robert Bowe.
This is our classic
fine dining experience.
Jacket is required and tie is requested.
There's no dress code for ladies.
It's just for gentlemen.
We're being taken under
Robert's wing for the evening.
Robert? We are here.
To work as fine dining waiters.
Robert is schooling us
in all aspects of fine dining.
In Ireland, we serve from the left,
and we clear from the right.
From introducing the menus…
Welcome to George V,
is that what we're saying? Okay.
-George V.
-It's your a la carte,
and your table d'hôte menu.
…to setting the right cutlery
for all eight courses.
Always put down the cutlery
that you're replacing first,
and then take away
the cutlery you don't need.
-I see, okay.
-Because you tend to frighten people
when you're taking stuff away.
But if you give them something first,
that usually keeps them quite calm.
Despite all this daunting
service etiquette,
Robert's keen to remind us
it still has to be done the Irish way.
At Ashford we have always had
very high standards.
But something that guests
have always felt coming here
is that, you know,
it's going to be very stuffy.
It's going to be very formal.
But it's not that.
There is a sense of charm.
There is a sense of friendliness.
A lot of them come back for,
as we say in Ireland, the craic.
Also on hand to make sure we don't destroy
the restaurant's reputation
is maître d' Martin,
who has 43 years of service behind him.
You're going to be
the senior fellow around me?
-Yes.
-Have you got any last-minute tips?
Be friendly, make sure that they have
an absolutely wonderful experience
-at Ashford Castle.
-Okay.
-Thank you.
-I'll do my best.
Nice to see you.
-Welcome to Ashford Castle. Hi.
-Thank you very much.
-Good evening. Welcome.
-This is our table d'hôte menu,
and then we've got the tasting menu here,
which is an eight-course tasting menu.
All right, mister.
I believe you're having the salmon?
Fish knife and fork, which is down there.
Tuna, which is fish knife,
and scallop,
which is fish knife and fork as well.
The setting for the first course is there.
I have done one, two… Go, and do it.
-I have to lay the one and two already?
-Yes.
-A fish fork.
-A fish fork, yes.
Yeah, that's no problem at all.
Are you having a soup?
Soup. I think you'd want that
because that's a meat knife.
Sorbet.
Is it? Let's have that back.
Enjoy. Thank you.
-How was it?
-Great. You did well.
Okay I've still got six pieces
of cutlery going here.
What have you done?
I was going so well before.
Who's having soup
that hasn't got a soup spoon?
Great. Good, was that your starter?
Or was it in the middle?
-Middle.
-Okay, great.
Right. There we go. What we have
for you here is a crab apple sorbet
and the crab apples are from the estate.
With an apple foam on the top.
-Enjoy.
-Thank you.
Enjoy.
Some delightful amuse-bouche for you,
which is a salmon mousse.
Just when I thought
it was all going rather well…
You're supposed to serve from the left.
Yeah, not bad.
It does, because that's in England.
You go to the right.
We have it here, serve from the left,
clear from the right.
It feels weird but it's great
that you have a different way.
-How was that?
-Stunning.
Was it good?
Are you having some English wine?
-Yeah.
-And how's that?
It's good.
What about Irish wine,
is there anything much there?
-You should try it. It's different.
-It does exist?
-There is, it's only one.
-It's black and it comes in a pint glass
with a creamy head on it,
I've heard of it.
How am I doing with my… with my chat?
Very good, excellent. They're very
relaxed, very happy. Congratulations.
I think my actual table skills
are perhaps…
It doesn't matter. With a bit of charm,
you'll always make up
for what you lack in table skills.
What they're doing here is giving you
the five-star top-notch experience
that you want with beautifully
presented food, very well-timed service,
ornate dining rooms and chandeliers
but with the charm, with the fun,
with the relaxation,
with the craic that gives you
an experience that's genuinely enjoyable.
When I came here as a young fella
in 1974, I worked at the bar.
And I ran out of there after a week,
and I've never left the restaurant since.
As I said to people all down the years,
if I had my life to live over again,
I would do exactly the same
as what I've done.
Ask anyone around here
about Ashford families,
and they'll tell you about Martin Gibbons.
His father and grandfather
worked on the estate.
Now, his two sons
are following in their footsteps.
24-year-old Steven
is a waiter in the lounge,
and 21-year-old Mark is a cocktail barman.
After my limited success as a waiter
I've been sent to work with Mark
-in the Prince of Wales bar.
-Hi, you must be Mark?
-I'm Giles.
-Nice to meet you.
-How long have you been working here?
-Near enough four years.
-Four years? So, straight out of…
-Straight out of school, yeah.
Kind of the same thing as my father did.
We're making an Ashford
signature cocktail called Gunpowder Blush.
Made with Irish gin, elderflower liqueur…
We use some cherry wood chips,
and spray with bergamot.
And smoked with woodchips from the estate.
It's got a little thing that draws it in.
That's awesome.
Look at that.
And is that nice?
Is it a good feeling having your dad here?
It is, yeah. But it's professional,
there's no messing, there's no joking.
Once we come across the bridge,
it's Martin.
-It's not Dad.
-At home is the sort of family chat,
the banter is it often about work?
Do you talk about here?
No. Once you cross the bridge,
it's family work.
-Really?
-Yeah.
Mark's great-grandfather
was working here as a gamekeeper
when the Prince of Wales visited in 1905.
The future King came specifically
to shoot woodcock.
And of course,
shooting is very much still on offer.
Estate manager Thomas
is in charge of activities.
-Very good morning to you.
-Hello.
This morning, he'll be putting us to work,
wearing what is,
believe it or not,
the actual activities department uniform.
And the first job of the day,
cleaning guns with the clay pigeon team.
These will be used very regularly,
every single day.
Quite often late into the evening
in the summer months,
and they have to be kept
in pristine condition.
Feidhlim manages the hotel shotguns.
-More?
-Go a little bit more.
That'll do. Down the barrel.
All the way through to the end.
-Oops, fail.
-That's all right. It comes back out.
See how it looks,
is it cleaner compared to the other one?
-Absolutely. Blimey.
-There you go.
I suppose the face of the breech is
probably one of the most important parts.
Look at that. That makes sense.
There we go.
With up to 50 guests shooting each week,
Ashford gets through
over 120,000 clay pigeons a year.
-Oh, boy.
-They break quite easily in there,
they're biodegradable, so once they break…
-What?
-That's how easy they break.
They break down and once
the small pieces get wet, they biodegrade
and they're gone in two years.
There we go.
So, Monica, Giles, would you like
to have a go before our guests arrive?
-Absolutely.
-I'm a bit nervous.
Pull.
Pull.
-Damn it.
-It's harder than it looks.
Pull.
Pull.
Unless someone else shoots yours for you.
-She shot it before I got my shot off.
-She's getting pretty good over there.
I like this now.
-You got over your nerves then.
-Yes. I got a few, actually.
It's interesting
because as well as the five-star luxury,
and the views and all that kind of thing,
they are selling this lord and lady
of the manor stuff, look at us.
Look at us pair of idiots.
-We look great.
-We look great, but imagine people who,
from 5,000 miles away,
who'd been watching Downton Abbey.
And the likes of that
and just want a little piece of that,
and you can't really get it.
It's unattainable.
-Then you come here, and you can have it.
-It's absolutely attainable
and they make it accessible
for anyone visiting.
I can't get away from this slight
bitterness that I don't own 20,000 acres
of my own prime shooting land,
I think that would be better.
Whilst shooting is in keeping
with the Guinness era,
you've got to go a lot further back
for the origins
of the hotel's
most popular outdoor pursuit.
This is Ashford School of Falconry.
Not exactly
your run-of-the-mill hotel activity.
Guests can actually try their hand
at this UNESCO-protected sport.
Which was originally developed
as a hunting aid.
The school is run by Debbie.
I'm joining her as a trainee falconer.
Every day before guests can actually fly
the birds, poop must be scooped.
It's much cleaner than cleaning up
after my dog, that's for sure.
And the aviary is kept spotless.
I'm sure we're the only place in the world
that washes gravel.
The hawks must also be weighed
as part of their regular health checks.
This morning I'm weighing
seven-year-old Harris hawk, Joyce.
Extend your arm clear of your body.
This is how we fly them as well.
With the back of your fist facing to her.
And so here she comes, and there she is.
Now she's landed,
you can slowly relax your elbow
so it's resting comfortably
into your side.
And just release your grip,
there we go. Perfect.
She needs to be as fat as possible,
but if she's too fat, she'll sit in a tree
and she'll refuse to fly.
Exactly as she would do in the wild,
they don't fly for fun.
That's a human view of it,
because we can't fly.
They fly only out of necessity.
So, you're seeing them perched
and sitting in their cage,
you're thinking, "That's not right,
they should be out flying,"
but that's actually what they do just…
It is, they don't fly around
their aviaries,
they have the space to do so,
but they don't.
This is so cool, I have never held
any bird of prey so close.
She's a lovely lady.
She doesn't seem to mind. So beautiful.
With the prep work done,
Debbie's going to teach me
how the falconers take guests
for what they call a hawk walk.
So you can open your fist now
to release your grip of the jesses.
She's free to go now at any time.
-Shall I put my arm up or she'll just…
-Yes,
you're now going to lift her up…
There we go, perfect.
Amazing.
Close up your fist, and bring your glove
towards me, look at this.
That's amazing. Oh, my goodness.
Doesn't she look so beautiful?
She's fabulous. There we go. Perfect.
She's free to come and go as she pleases.
As we walk, you just have your glove
down by your side
so it's clear to her
that we're not asking her to come in.
-And she should follow us, here she comes.
-Magnificent.
Why bring falconry to the hotel?
There's a long history of falconry here.
It's been in Ireland since about 400 AD.
We tend to read about it
as being the sport of royalty,
and of landed gentry, and so on,
and of the wealthy. But in reality,
the peasants as well, would have all
had a goshawk or a falcon
that they will have been hunting with
as a serious means
-of putting food on the table.
-You are amazing.
What an experience.
Hotels always offer
some kind of activities,
but this is something that's quite unique.
While this is definitely
a great experience for the guests,
what's more important is falconry is being
preserved as part of the Irish culture.
While Ashford today is able
to preserve ancient traditions,
things could have been very different.
Just a few years ago, the estate
found itself facing ruin once again.
The Irish property boom saw Ashford bought
by developers and heavily mortgaged.
The financial crash struck and by 2012,
it had fallen into receivership.
It was a very difficult time.
The castle was under significant threat.
Nobody really knows
what's going to happen.
And whether it's going to continue
as a viable entity.
Unfortunately, we had
to make redundancies.
All the team took
major significant pay cuts.
With the banks controlling all spending,
years of underinvestment
were starting to show.
There was this huge decline
in the physical structure of the property.
We used to have to allocate rooms
depending on wind direction.
And it really does need a miracle.
It needs something to happen.
It needs something to change.
Finding a suitable buyer
was proving a problem.
I met 30 potential purchasers
from Russian oligarchs
to people who wanted to purchase
this at the lowest price.
Invest a small bit of money,
and flip it very very quickly.
Also in the frame was successful
South African hoteliers
Beatrice and Stanley Tollman.
In the past there had been well-publicized
tax evasion cases against Stanley
in the US, which saw him pay over 100
million dollars in back taxes and fines.
But Niall saw something
that convinced him.
They were the ones to take on Ashford.
Showing Mr. and Mrs. Tollman the estate,
Mr. Tollman turned to Mrs. Tollman
and said, "Wow, B, this is just
an amazing place,
it's absolutely fantastic."
And Mrs. Tollman turned around
and said, "Yes, Stanley.
It is. It's wonderful.
But it's the people, it's the people."
And that very moment,
I thought that these were
the people for Ashford Castle.
In 2013, the Tollmans bought
the Ashford estate.
The piper is going to meet them
at the bridge,
and then we'll have
our great staff lineup.
If we can have as many people
and from each department ready to go.
And today, the staff are getting ready for
one of Beatrice Tollman's flying visits.
They'll be here around 12:30,
is my understanding.
So, you just make sure
that every element of the room,
Camilla will go through it
in a few minutes.
Just make sure everything's perfect.
With Mrs. Tollman's arrival imminent,
I've been asked to hoist the company flag.
And we're joining the rest of the staff
on the front steps to welcome her.
Now if you're starting to think this is
all a bit royal visit, you're not alone.
This is an extraordinary effort
you're making for this lady.
-Absolutely.
-Why?
It's a bit of fun,
but it's something that we just do
out of genuine appreciation
for what they have done for this property,
for this estate,
and for the employees of the estate.
What have they done?
I mean they run a hotel business,
they've bought a hotel,
they're making money out of it,
what have they really done?
When Mr. and Mrs. Tollman first took over,
and I always remember Mr. Tollman
getting on the front steps of the castle
and saying the property is debt-free.
And they wanted to create
the best hotel of its kind in the world.
To hear that from where we're coming from
was just something very special.
When the Tollmans closed Ashford
for seven months of renovation,
they insisted that every member
of staff was kept on.
They paid 25 million dollars
for the estate, but poured
a further 75 million dollars
into its complete restoration.
A 1,000 square meters of roofs were
reinforced and 820 new windows fitted.
All new plumbing and 750 kilometers
of cabling were installed.
Local craftsmen and materials
were used wherever possible.
And Mrs. Tollman oversaw
every detail of the décor.
This isn't a refurbishment.
It's not a renovation.
It's much more fundamental than that.
It's a restoration of a grand old estate
that could have been lost.
Okay, here they come.
Standing here in the rain with everyone,
you get the sense of the affection
that's felt towards the new owner.
Hello, Mrs. Tollman. How are you?
And it looks like this grand welcome
is about showing appreciation
for a job well done.
Hello. How are you?
-Fine, how are you?
-Very good, thank you.
Hello. How are you?
-I thought I recognized you.
-You did? Thank you for the kiss.
Welcome home.
Absolutely, as always, great to have you.
With the fanfare over
and everyone off back to work,
I'm spending some time with Mrs. Tollman
to find out what it was like
taking over such a venerable institution.
What did it need most of all?
It needed everything.
Everything you know, new furniture
in the restaurant,
just wherever you look is new.
The mirrors and the pictures,
was this all…
Everything that you see, I bought.
-You, yourself?
-Yes, at auctions. Everything.
They must have been pleased
when they saw you coming? For a few years.
Was it all a business decision
or were you thinking about the future?
Were you thinking about leaving a legacy?
Yes, I suppose so.
Just because it deserved it.
We just felt we must put
everything into it,
our souls into recreating
what it deserved to be.
And despite the full VIP arrival,
Mrs. Tollman is here
for business, not pleasure.
She always casts an eye
over every department.
This, Mrs. Tollman,
is our vanilla cheesecake.
And her first stop is the kitchen.
Mine has a little bit more sugar.
Where I'm back helping Philippe
prepare for tonight's dinner service.
It is really delicious.
What did you add to it, you said?
It's the masala.
-A little spice at the end.
-That's what gave its…
I get an analysis everyday
of every restaurant
that we've got, and how many people,
and what they ate.
And if I see something
never sells on a menu,
I'll say, "Take that off,
and you'll put on something else."
There is something a bit special
about Ashford Castle.
Yes, we love it here because of the staff,
more than anything else.
They're so dedicated.
They're so passionate.
And that is the greatest reward
for everything we've put into it.
It's Saturday night,
Mrs. Tollman's in the house,
and we're helping the staff
prepare for an evening of entertainment.
A young local band have been booked
to perform in the lounge.
I've been roped
into shucking oysters for the evening.
-They're great, aren't they?
-Absolutely.
I remember the first time seeing them.
I was drinking a pint of Guinness.
I don't get out that often,
but I heard them, and kids like this
are the future of the area.
And we're so thrilled to be able
to give them an opportunity like this.
In 2012, we had 210 people employed
on the estate. Now, today we're 420.
The challenges that we now face
are really positive challenges.
The future of this building and this
estate is safeguarded for generations.
You know I've never stayed
in a castle before.
Coming here, you walk into this amazing
hotel, the grandeur that's so splendid.
But in fact, it's very relaxed here.
You feel very welcome. It's warm.
It's all about the roots
that are sunk deeply in the local soil,
the 30, 40 years that some
of the people have been working here.
And with that they bring this level
of service that is full of pride and joy.
I think what's extraordinary
is when you walk about the castle,
and you walk past cleaners, and you walk
past maintenance men
and stuff, they all look like
they're having a good time.
And in really posh hotels, they all care,
and they all want it to be great
but there's always a sort of
underlying hint of misery.
And there isn't here.
This hope and this opportunity
for the next generation
that's going to come through.
After 800 years of up and down,
the various different economic travails,
there's this sort of sense
they're all going to be all right.