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May 24, 2024 66 mins

This is the first time we’ve recorded an episode in a hotel suite, and that’s because today’s guest knows more about opening doors to glamorous guesthouses than anyone else. 


James Lohan co-founded the travel company Mr & Mrs Smith with his wife Tamara back in 2003, and since then he’s visited nearly 4,000 hotels in the name of research. 


James is a gregarious character with some brilliant tales to tell.We discuss his earliest experiences as an entrepreneur, from selling cheese toasties at school, to setting up a mobile disco called Your Mother Wouldn’t Like It. 


He tells me about his refurbishment of a Dutch barge on the Thames – complete with flock wallpaper and a freestanding bath – and what he’s learned from hotels that we might apply to our homes.


This episode was recorded in person at The Nomad Hotel, London.


For more:

Check out Mr & Mrs Smith

Visit The Modern House website

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube


Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young and Ben Tucker


This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.


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