My local pub has been wrecked by the owner!

Aarggh. One of my favourite local pubs was smashed to bits by it's drunken owner on New Years Eve after being refused a drink!

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/hi/news/5011614.html

I went over there a couple of days ago, and it's a horrible mess. It was funny to hear about it at first, but it's such an old pub, and the damage so extensive that it's a real shame. Still, I expect it'll be rebuilt soon enough.

Trader Woody

Ooooh, that's awful. I thought it was funny at first, too, until I realized heavy equipment was involved. That's a terrible shame. What kind of protection is there in the UK for older buildings like that? Will the guy get in trouble, or is he off the hook since he owned the place?

What I find interesting is that acoording to the article, the building is a 16th century structure. That means this building has stood for almost 500 years before this guy knocked it down!

*** * * The Polynesian Popster * * ***

[ Edited by: PolynesianPop on 2003-01-06 10:10 ]

Hey Trader Woody, What's a landlord? It's a different thing here in the States. Our's aren't bought and installed.

when you said the pub had been wreacked by its owner i pictured a good local bar turned into a medeteranian wine bar/bistro.
We in edinburgh had a similar woopsie where a fire destroyed 3 pubs, 2 nightclubs, a snooker hall, a theatre, 2 shops and the artifical intelligence dept of edinburgh university.

http://www.news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1368182002

Well, it does look like the guy who did it IS in trouble. He can be done for criminal damage despite it being his own pub. Because there were people inside it at the time, there are a number of laws that can be used against him for endangering their lives/health. He will probably also get done for driving a digger while drunk!

Buildings of that age are protected by law, too, so it'll have to be rebuilt in exactly the same way. Though the whole bar area is wrecked, much of the building still stands, so it's not a total write-off.

Laney, I'm no pub expert (at least not from 'the other' side of the bar), but the landlord basically runs the pub. Often they own the pub outright and are allowed to serve whatever beers they choose. This is called a 'Free House'. However, many pubs are owned by brewerys, and they install a landlord to run it, though he/she will usually live in the pub as part of the package.In these pubs, the beer served will obviously be from that brewery, though they are forced by law to serve at least one 'guest beer'.

I'll let you know what happens to the owner & the pub itself in the fullness of time.

Trader Woody