The original Scotland Yard is being turned into a £10,000-per-night luxury hotel

Once upon a time, sleeping at Great Scotland Yard would have been at the cost of the taxpayer. Now it’s about to cost you up to £10,000 a night for the pleasure.

That’s right, London’s original home of policing - and once the forefront of the Jack the Ripper investigation - is set to become a wallet-sapping luxury hotel in a £110m deal between Dubai-based developers Lulu Group and London-based realty group Galliard homes, starting with a £50m refurbishment ahead of a 2017 opening.

Bankrolled by Lula Group’s head honcho Yusaffali Kader, the Edwardian brick and stone premises will be operated by 250 staff and consist of luxury bedrooms, two bars, a library and dining rooms, offering a slightly different USP to other swanky hotels festooned across the St James area right now. And if it's history guests want, this has it by the bucket-load.

Formally the Metropolitan Police headquarters from 1829 to 1890, this original Scotland Yard site was not only at the forefront of all major cases across the capital but also globally known thanks to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle name-checking it in his works. It later became a base for the Royal Military Police and until 2004 it was used as a library by the Ministry of Defence, which hopefully would have boasted a few Sherlock hardbacks.

But now of course it has a new library. Probably a massive one, with books made from melted gold.

Speaking on the upcoming luxury venture, Don O’Sullivan, managing director of Galliard, said: “The Great Scotland Yard Hotel will be a brand synonymous with exceptional service and refined luxury and quality.” The sort of lexicon that can roughly be translated into "We welcome Platinum American Express holders, wealthy sheiks and Russian oligarchs."

But we should warn you - even those who can afford it - minibar prices are bound to be criminal.

[Via: The Guardian]