The Hotel Inspector | Series 21 Preview (5)

Crisis is calling and The Hotel Inspector is answering. Alex Polizzi is back to help hospitality businesses on the brink.

Cries for help have poured in from across the country, from hotels to B&Bs, guesthouses to glamping sites, and pubs to restaurants, as soaring costs, staff shortages and cash-strapped customers leave businesses fighting to get beds and tables filled, meaning more and more cherished businesses face imminent closure.

Armed with her industry know-how and trademark grit, Alex steps in to help those fighting for survival and give a reality check to those getting it all wrong! This is hospitality under pressure - and the stakes have never been higher.

In the bohemian Devon town of Totnes, Alex has been called to help Toni, a 74-year-old musician and music teacher who is desperate to save her home, Appalachian Springs Bed and Breakfast.

The B&B is stuck in a bygone era, and Toni is struggling to see the wood for the trees. With almost no occupancy, the business is on the brink of collapse. Unless Alex can help Toni turn her business around, she will be forced to sell the home she loves, where she brought up her children and where her parents' ashes are scattered - this place means everything to her.

Toni only needs to make £12,000 a year to keep her head above water, and when Alex arrives she is barely making £3000, which is nowhere near enough to live on. With her savings dwindling, this is make or break time for Toni.

Finding immaculate - if a little dated - guest rooms, Alex then discovers Toni has received a late diagnosis of ADHD, which goes some way to explaining why she is drowning under a mountain of clutter and disorganisation. While the guest rooms are clean and tidy, the rest of the property is far from it. Toni is also not listed on any online travel agencies, leaving her B&B almost invisible to potential visitors searching for accommodation in the area.

What can Alex do to turn things around and create a more certain future for Toni, so that she can live out the rest of her days in the home she loves?

The Hotel Inspector returns Thursday 26th February at 9pm on 5.