My grandfather, Charles Forte, came with his parents to Scotland from Italy as a child at a time when that was more unusual. He hailed from a tiny village in the rural vastness that surrounded Rome, and his family raised horses in the mountains. He was short – probably 5ft 4ins in his socks – moustachioed, and rather more extravagantly dressed than was common in the London society he entered in his 20s. And yet he managed to conquer his new environment. He is credited with transforming the hospitality industry in this country after World War II, and at the height of his success had more than 800 hotels and catering establishments in his eponymous company.