The billion-pound battle over Claridge’s hotel from Belfast to Qatar

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As the Covid-19 pandemic ripped through London in spring 2020, the revolving doors at Claridge’s stopped turning and its art deco lobby fell silent.

The 220-year-old luxury Mayfair hotel, whose guests have ranged from Mick Jagger to Winston Churchill – and which was a favourite lunch spot of Queen Elizabeth II – fell foul of government guidelines that ordered venues to shut as part of efforts to halt the spread of the virus.