Actor Richard E. Grant has said he feels ‘punished’ after being forced to quarantine for Covid in a hotel that charges more than £228 a night and serves ‘grim food’.
When the Omicron variant was discovered, the government imposed new travel restrictions on the Withnail And I star who had just been to South Africa with his mother of 90 years.
He was unhappy with the food quality at Gatwick Holiday Inn.
Grant, 64, posted pictures on Twitter of a packaged tuna and cucumber sandwich, a sausage casserole and fish and chips, which he said would cost less than £30 to buy elsewhere.
Actor Richard E. Grant (pictured) has said he feels ‘punished’ after being forced to quarantine for Covid in a hotel that charges more than £228 a night and serves ‘grim food’
When the government imposed new travel restrictions in order to combat the Omicron variant, the Withnail And I star was visiting his mother of 90 years in South Africa.
Grant spoke in an online video and said that he used to host the television show Richard E. Grant’s Hotel Secrets. Grant stated: “I was going to South Africa to see my mother, 90 years old, but got caught up by red region Covid restrictions.
‘I understand there are security costs in the hotel and you’ve got to pay for two Covid tests, but £228 a day to receive three meals of this very poor standard, in a supposed four-star Holiday Inn hotel, beggars belief.’
Grant said he was ‘confounded’ that a ‘non-quarantine Holiday Inn nearby costs £89 incl breakfast’ and asked: ‘How does Gov [ernment]This is a reasonable price to pay for “hospitality ‘… that feels harsh!”
According to a Government spokesperson, “The Managed Quarantine Service has been well received by the majority of the passengers.”