Undressed for Dinner: The Story of a Family Trying to Lead an Ordinary Life in an Extraordinary Place

by Simon Temple-Bennett

In 1997 Simon and his wife Wendy moved from London and bought a near derelict castle at the foot of the Cumbrian Fells. Today it is an internationally renowned hotel but that was never really the plan.

A wonderfully honest account of life behind the kitchen door showing the real blood sweat and tears that go into making a successful family run hotel. I laughed, cried and cheered in equal measure. Simon & Wendy's story is a real clarion call for celebrating independent hoteliers up and down the country.
Fiona Duncan, Sunday Telegraph Hotel critic

I love this book. Augill castle is my favourite weekend retreat in the UK. This book makes fascinating reading about the backdrop to this magical haven in the Cumbrian countryside, and next time I visit I'll feel even richer for sharing their story.
Janey Lee Grace, BBC Radio 2 presenter and author of Look Great Naturally

231 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Alan Veale · Rating 5 out of 5]

The great thing about the subject matter of this book is that you can actually touch it. Simon has written from the heart about a portion of his life for which he has a passion: his family, and their all-consuming family home/business (Augill Castle). It’s a real place (in Cumbria, England), and these are real people. (I know because I touched one of them!) I visited the castle for afternoon tea after reading this book, and the reality of seeing the place that dominates the pages of Simon’s book adds to the fascination of the stories he tells.
As a writer of fiction I have felt the freedom of creating back-stories for my characters, and of giving them physical characteristics to help bring them to life in my readers’ imagination. I have also had the more challenging experience of writing a memoir from my mother’s point of view, describing real people (family and friends) and their adventures in much the same way as Simon has done here. It is no easy task to take a step back from your own personal viewpoint and to invite strangers into your once private space. To do it so successfully, with such honesty and good humour (often hilarious humour) is a worthy achievement on its own. But to turn a ruined castle into a successful business as well as a home is another step up the ladder – and then to write about it in such a way that we can all explore that home for ourselves… Well, that’s just brilliant! Thanks for the invitation, Simon. It is an absolute pleasure to accept.

[P.R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is more than just the old, old story of people changing their lives by moving to a different part of the country to run a hotel. It works on more than one level by combining a very humorous account of just such an event with an examination of their lives, motives and relationships which is at times deeply moving. There is great honesty in the writing, and whilst I felt there were couple too many anecdotes, I very much enjoyed it and would definitely read it again.

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok read