Passing of a pioneer

Sharrow Bay in the Lake District is one of Britain's best-loved hotels, and Brian Sack, who died on New Year's Day, was widely considered one of the nation's most inspirational hoteliers. Tributes have poured in from friends and colleagues in the industry, as Louise Bozec reports.

Tim Hart, owner of Hambleton Hall in Oakham, Rutland, regarded Brian Sack as a "service genius". He said: "He was always out there talking to people, making a fuss of them. His speciality was to listen. It was the caring concern which, together with Francis's food, made Sharrow Bay so special."

Jeremy Mort, co-owner of Mallory Court hotel in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, said: "You always felt special. Even if he was serving hundreds of people, you felt like it was just you." Brigitte Skan, owner of Chewton Glen hotel in New Milton, Hampshire, added: "He was a very nice man, very caring. He will be greatly missed."

Last month Sack visited the 92-bedroom Connaught hotel in London and later sent its general manager Duncan Palmer a Christmas card reading: "So many happy memories of the Connaught - the best in the world."

Palmer said: "Sack was very private and very kind. It is a great loss, because he worked hard for everything that stood for the industry."

Christine and Trevor Forecast, the retired former owners of Congham Hall hotel in west Norfolk, described Sack and Coulson as the perfect hosts. "They were courteous and thoughtful and generous in their praise for others in the industry, for which they did so much to set the standards to which we all aspired."

Tributes from the restaurant industry have included that from chef Paul Heathcote, who worked at Sharrow Bay in the early 1980s. He said: "I don't believe I would be where I am today had it not been for Francis Coulson and Brian Sack. They were my catering heroes."

Food critic Egon Ronay concluded: "Coulson was the culinary star and Sack was the hotel man. The two together formed a marvellous team.

"Sack was extremely kind and congenial and I think he never quite got over the death of Francis, his very close friend… Sharrow Bay was an exemplary place, and that was owing mostly to Brian because of the extremely high standards he set."