An Isle of Wight hotel branded as "like a flophouse" by its celebrity guest was later named, by comedian Jenny Eclair.

The County Press has contacted the owner of the Melbourne Ardenlea, on Queens Road, Shanklin, to ask for a comment.

The phone went unanswered when we called earlier.

On Saturday night, the performer called-out standards during her gig, to fans in the audience.

Back in July, the CP revealed a note had been posted on the front door of the Melbourne Ardenlea, blaming a sudden closure on 'unexpected maintenance.'

The note advised guests arriving on site should: "Please contact your booking agent who will assist you in relocating."

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The Isle of Wight Council later revealed that an inspection had been carried out by its Regulatory Services team, accompanied by officers from Hampshire Constabulary, after a prohibition notice was served under The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Fears over the safety of the hotel's gas and electric had triggered the inspection.

Speaking exclusively to the County Press, the hotel said it was appealing the closure and told us: "We believe the prohibition notices served are groundless and will be appealed.

"The hotel had already provided all the certifications to the Isle of Wight Council including the gas appliances certificate issued by a competent and Corgi registered commercial gas plumber, along with the satisfactory electrical installation report in June 2021."

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It has since reopened.

The hotel's current Trip Advisor entry says: "So many travellers make Melbourne Ardenlea Hotel their hotel of choice when visiting Shanklin.

"Providing an ideal mix of value, comfort and convenience, it offers an array of amenities.

"Rooms at Melbourne Ardenlea Hotel provide a flat screen TV and a desk, and getting online is easy, with free wifi available.

"In addition, Melbourne Ardenlea Hotel offers a pool and continental breakfast."

Reviews posted this month praised staff, but criticised decor and cleanliness.

One said the hotel was "incredibly dirty, dated, smelly, rubbish wrappers, non hoovered carpets, muddy floor leading to the pool, which to be fair to them was (unlike everywhere else) lovely."

Another wrote "there was mould and thick cobwebs on the windows, there was a crack in one of the windows. We had apparently been given a sea view room and all we could see was the bins."

A third review praised the friendliness of staff, but said there was a "horrible smell of stagnant body odour. The cream carpet was black at the end of the bed!"

Another said: "The hotel is very tired and needs updating...but the hotel staff were extremely friendly, anything we needed was taken care of."

Responding to some of the Trip Advisor reviews, the hotel wrote: "I am sorry to hear this. I will address your issues asap."

Earlier this year, its sudden closure led to a number of reviews from guests who said they had arrived on the Isle of Wight to discover it was closed, or from those whose bookings were cancelled at the last minute.

Posting on Twitter yesterday after checking in ahead of her Jenny Eclair Sixty! (FFS!) tour, Ms Eclair wrote she had considered sleeping in her car and described ripped net curtains, a towel she called 'a rag' and revealed one of her pillows was stained.

When a Twitter user warned, "I hope they don't lock you out after the show," she replied: "I could always break in. No one would notice."

Sharing a screengrab of the County Press's original story about the hotel's July closure, Ms Eclair later posted: "This hotel should never have been allowed to reopen.

"Some think I’m a spoilt cow.

"We chose somewhere cheap, as had spent several nights in hotels that went over the tour budget recently and thought we’d save some money staying somewhere cheap and cheerful.

"I often stay in budget hotels without a problem.

"As long as the place is clean, I can cope. This isn’t.

"I’m sorry if people thought I was being offensive. Turns out I had grounds for being upset."