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Mice go chomping at the Savoy

Saturday 21 June 1997 23:02 BST
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The Savoy Hotel in the Strand is where Placido Domingo stays, Lord Hanson deals over lunch, and Lord Archer peddles his charisma. It is the stop-over for businessmen in global markets, but it has been taking in some uninvited guests, writes Clare Garner. These are registered only by pest controllers who have been invited by the hotel management to deal with a small plague of mus musculus, better known as the common house mouse.

Last week The Savoy's staff confessed to guests that the hotel, where the cheapest room costs pounds 250 a night, is suffering from a small invasion of mice. Their presence is an embarrassment to the five-star establishment, whose name ought to be a byword for elegance and style.

When I investigated the story last Friday night three mice with their distinctive snouts and large ears appeared from under a sofa when I provoked them by dropping a peanut. Yesterday a spokesman for The Savoy said: "It could happen in any old building. We hope it won't happen again." Meanwhile, any guest who spots a mouse gets a free drink.

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