We have visionary/barmy* (*delete as appropriate) ideas for new projects all the time, but very few of them — maybe one in twenty? — ever make it into full production. Putting them through rigorous testing is one of the most fun, but least visible, parts of our job.

Our investigations into the feasibility of one such idea have seen us spending an inordinate amount of time in hotel rooms just lately, from overnight stays in the most basic of budget chains to some fleeting chaperoned visits at some eye-wateringly deluxe places.

Everywhere we’ve been, we’ve unfurled our 15-metre tape measures in order to map out some crucial dimensions which will be essential to us figuring out how and where we might create one of our most ambitious secret projects to date.

Some questions are easy to resolve on a quick inspection tour — power points; sources of natural and artificial light; which furniture can and can’t be moved. Others are trickier, and will call for extra research — how sound carries from one room or floor to another; the number of people you can comfortably (and, indeed, legally) accommodate in a room (or parts of a room) at any one time… 

We’re very grateful to the bemused hotel teams who have indulged our curiosity so far, despite the odd raised eyebrow or the occasional asking of “You want to do what in there?!”. 

We hope it won’t be too long before we get to share the fruits of all these mysterious trips with you!