The site at 45 Park Lane - opposite Hyde Park - has been vacant for 13 years but will soon be transformed into a luxury hotel.

It was originally home to Hugh Hefner's Playboy Club and Casino from 1966 until it closed in 1982, following a police raid over suspected illegal gambling, despite no subsequent evidence of wrongdoing. Nicknamed "the Hutch on the Park", the venue's clientele included actors Sean Connery, Michael Caine and Joan Collins, and footballer George Best.

Under the new plans submitted by developers The Dorchester Collection, the 48-room venue will have  an art deco inspired interior and exterior design scheme.

The designs have been drawn up the French-born and New York-based architect Thierry W Despont, who has created homes for the likes of Bill Gates and Calvin Klein and collaborated on the Getty Center galleries in Los Angeles.