Benedict Cumberbatch has not only visited SLO’s Madonna Inn — he’s danced there
The list of celebrities who have been taken in by the Madonna Inn’s retro pink charm just keeps growing.
In a recent episode of “The Kelly Clarkson Show” (hosted by the first-ever American Idol herself) actor Benedict Cumberbatch revealed he’s not only been to iconic San Luis Obispo hotel — he’s danced there.
A little scene setting first.
Cumberbatch, when asked if he’d ever been country line dancing by host Clarkson, said that he had, in fact — at the Madonna Inn.
“We just turned up for a road stop, and it was a long drive back from Big Sur, which was where I was coming from,” he said. “I had always wanted to go into the inn properly.”
Cumberbatch said that inside, a line dance going on, and rather than being dissuaded, he decided to join the fun.
“I had an old fashioned — I wasn’t driving — and then I got busy,” he said.
It’s unclear from the short clip — which was shared to The Kelly Clarkson Show’s Instagram page on May 6 — when the anecdote might have taken place.
Madonna Inn communications director Amanda Rich said “lots of people” had been sending her department the clip once it went online, and called the actor’s shoutout “pretty exciting.”
“We don’t have a record of when he stayed here, but he could have used an alias,” she said. “We usually try to keep all our VIP’s confidential.”
The Madonna Inn does offer music five days a week, she added, and several groups have been known to use its pink-bedecked halls for dances.
Cumberbatch has been spotted at the SLO hotel before. Back in March 2014 the actor posed for pics with members of the Cal Poly Salsa Club during an event there, and even reportedly took a spin on the dance floor.
It’s unclear of course if this was the visit in question or if Cumberbatch liked the inn so much he came back again.
This story was originally published June 18, 2022 at 10:00 AM.
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