Britain's closed pubs.

This is fascinating,depressingly compulsive viewing.

http://www.closedpubs.co.uk/

http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/forum.ma/view-thread/8746?PagingData=Po_10~Ps_10~Psp_Id~Psd_Asc

Commiserations Tony. I feel for you.

From glancing at this useful website, while I know that it's impossible for a truly accurate reflection of closures to be compiled, it is at least a good start.

Take the village of Belford, Northumberland for instance, where no pubs are marked as closed. The Black Swan, owned by Marston's, I've posted about here before, is not listed, yet I know for sure that it has seen numerous tied tenants fail over the last five years and has been closed several times. The rent is too high (even the BDM said so) and, well, we all know about tied supply prices don't we? I heard this weekend that it has closed AGAIN. I think this last tenant, who sublet part of the premises to an Indian restaurant and take away, must have lasted no more than six months. The previous tenant about a year, the one before that, after whom the pub was boarded up for five weeks, they lasted about 2 years I think. Then there is the Salmon down the road. That was part of Vaux and went to Punch during which time a couple of tenants went ttitts up. I believe it's now a freehouse.

Further to that from memory I reckon there are two more boarded up (Pubmaster tied) pubs in Berwick Upon Tweed than are listed.

Then take my neck of the woods; sleepy Camberwell, London. The Nags head is listed as shut, whereas it's actually open. The last tied tenant was evicted by his pubco, having been there for seventeen years. The freehold was subsequently sold and now he's back in there apparently making a go of it again without a tied lease or a pubco rent.

The George Canning is NOT listed whereas it's been (famously) closed three times in the last just over two years and suffered a £140K refurb by Enterprise who are now marketing it for the second time in a short period.

All off the cuff anecdotal evidence about tied pubs closing. What do I know? Oh. And I'm struggling too.

edited by: J Mark Dodds at: 07/02/2011 19:46:28