Hotel group Malmaison, known for its huge beds and trendy design, is to operate the hotel being created at the former Oxford Prison.

The hotel rooms will be a sharp contrast to the cells at the prison, which was one of the most overcrowded in the country with prisoners forced to "slop out".

Guests will pay more than £100 a night for a room with a CD player, satellite TV and data port, as well as commissioned art.

Work is due to start this spring on the £5.5m project to restore the historic buildings, creating a hotel, restaurants, wine bars, serviced apartments and heritage centre.

Oxfordshire County Council, which owns the site, has sold the lease to property developer Trevor Osborne, which has lined up the Malmaison Group -- which has a number of hotels in city centres -- to take on the hotel. Three restaurateurs are interested in running businesses on the site.

The council has thrashed out a deal with Mr Osborne giving it a share of any profits above a certain threshold.

Just 20 parking spaces are planned, so guests will be expected to arrive by taxi or public transport.

Mr Osborne is searching for stallholders to sell good-quality arts and crafts goods from stalls which will be created inside the old prison walls.

A heritage centre will be run by Oxford Preservation Trust, which will also manage St George's Tower and the mound -- all that remains of Oxford Castle, destroyed during the Civil War.