The Tamesis
On a cool Thursday evening, piano music and exciting chatter fill a half-dozen townhouses opposite London’s British Museum. The resort collection may be on display in Los Angeles and New York this week, but the British capital’s fashion crowd descended on Zetter Bloomsbury, a brand new hotel in the heart of London’s creative district.
That night, co-hosted FashionIts own Hamish Bowles welcomes The Zetter Hotels’ third new opening and first in ten years, with 68 boutique bedrooms in interconnected Georgian townhouses. Its setting overlooks Russell Square and has a respected artistic and literary pedigree, influenced by the likes of Virginia Woolf and EM Forster. That night, in Zetter’s bustling courtyard, Kim Cattrall, Charles Jeffrey (the designer Bowles wore to the 2026 Met Gala), Conner Ives (with his dog Rex!), Juergen Teller and Raven Smith, among others, opened new venues for the city’s creative scene.
Do some exploring by candlelight: walk through lush gardens, botanical gardens, yoga decks and terrace suites and watch the party below. Executive chef Debjit Dass kept guests happy and well-fed as NTS Radio’s DJ Martelo glided through the swirling music and pianist Friqtao jumped genres. After a few snacks, including chunky cheesy croquettes and beef tartare with mashed potatoes, one can hit the yoga patio — not in savasana, but to shuck some oysters. Then, a set of Marie Antoinette-style desserts had cameras flashing and forks flying: a berry tart, a giant cream cheese swirled carrot and walnut cake, and a plush Victoria sponge cake with a quick swipe of a cake knife. A delicious Bacchus cheese table, filled with blue, hard and soft cheeses, was also quickly ruined. Cocktails, champagne and fruit punch kept flowing.
Award-winning interior designer James Thurstan Waterworth recognized that The Zetter Bloomsbury needed to maintain the brand’s own British eccentricity, but allow the work to flourish within existing Georgian details.
“The interior design combines Georgian architectural style with a richly layered collection of global antiques and 20th-century British art, which is influenced by the hotel’s location adjacent to the British Museum and Bloomsbury’s rich history of knowledge-making,” he tells us Fashion. “At its core, Zetter Bloomsbury is designed for guests who value discretion over visibility, where people come not to be seen but to feel. The focus is on design, craftsmanship and storytelling, with a sense of quiet luxury and a strong commitment to British makers and craftsmen wherever possible.”
Thurstan Waterworth has displayed throughout the hotel antiques, objects and art sourced over four years from around the world through auctions, dealers and extensive travels. “It makes for a collection that’s full of character and rich in story,” he said. There are 300 bespoke cushions made from antique textiles such as French linens, Turkish weaves and South American fabrics, as well as a collection of rare artifacts and treasures, from 2,000-year-old Egyptian art to a vast library of more than 600 antique works of art and auction catalogs from auction houses such as Sotheby’s and Christie’s. Some pieces at the auction from the personal collection of Robert Kimes are particularly meaningful to the designer. Original works by leading 20th century British artists such as Sandra Blow and Rodger Hilton are juxtaposed with these works, “creating an atmosphere that is both collection and life”.
Below, see how The Zetter Bloomsbury throws a party.
