The public house (a ‘pub’ or ‘boozer’ to Northerners) has a special place in the hearts and minds of our people. Within living memory, the pub was the centre of working class life. Almost every street seemed to have a pub, with countless fathers popping in after work for a ‘quick one’, before making their way home to the wife and kids, often with a takeout from the bar to drink later that evening.
Dating back to Roman times, pubs have been an integral part of British life, serving as cosy havens for weary travellers and places where folk could meet and solve the world’s problems over a jug of beer. Beer was the drink of choice, as the alcohol killed any microorganisms present, and the water wasn’t safe to drink.
In literature, William Cobbett’s famous book, Rural Rides, tells the story of his tours around southern England in the years 1822–6, describing the landscape, the crops, the towns, villages, farms and of course, the inns. The book is still available and can be purchased in many outlets.
In his acclaimed 1946 essay, “Moon Under Water,” George Orwell details the ten fundamental characteristics of his ideal pub. He emphasises that, along with offering draft stout, cosy open fires, affordable meals, a garden, and the absence of a radio, “the barmaids know most of their customers personally and show a genuine interest in each one.” But over the past 40 odd years, the steady decline of the traditional pub has reached crisis point.
The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) disclosed that more than 500 pubs permanently closed their doors in 2023. The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) estimated that the number of pubs set to close in 2024 could reach 1,000. Thirsty locals are hard-pressed to find anywhere even resembling a pub in many areas. In the not-so-distant past, every new housing estate built had a pub and shops. These two buildings were deemed essential requirements for building a healthy community.
The sharp decline of the pub became ever more noticeable under the hated Blair government, with the champagne socialists failing to appreciate the significance of the pub to working class life. Pubs were deemed places where rough people met, where the hated ‘far-right’ organised and ordinary people could rage against the actions of politicians. To Blair and Co., their only worth was as a photo opportunity (with a pint of bitter in hand) during their rigged election campaigns.
The likes of Blair, Brown and Starmer only frequented these establishments during their student days before following the nice middle class career path set out for them by mummy and daddy. In later years, their preference would be a dinner party and a nice bottle of expensive wine. A night in the pub was for the proles.
The decline of local industry and changing demographics in many towns and cities has also piled pressure on the beleaguered public house. In many of the old textile towns of Yorkshire and Lancashire, whenever a former public house comes up for sale, it is quickly snapped up by local Muslims or an Islamic association wishing to convert it into a mosque or community association.
The British Oak on Aberford Road, Wakefield, is one such pub. It has been left abandoned for over a decade following its closure in 2013. The building was built in the 1930s, replacing an 18th-century building and becoming an alehouse shortly after. Alehouses had a license to serve ales, but not spirits.
The word “ale” has its roots in the Danish and Saxon terms öl and ealu, which were introduced to the English language by folk from mainland Europe and Scandinavia. By the 1600s there was one alehouse for every 200 people in England (today it’s around one for every 1,000 according to the website britainsbestguides.org). Alehouses have all but disappeared today, although I believe there may still be one or two operating in Bradford.
In the 1960s, the British Oak was officially named The British Oak Hotel. One previous landlord was a well-known English professional rugby league player. The pub thrived and became a favourite with the locals from Stanley, Eastmoor and Lofthouse. It also had a healthy passing trade, being situated near to Pinderfields Hospital.
However, after the main road on which the pub sat was re-routed in the mid-2000s, much of the passing trade between Wakefield and Castleford was taken away, leading to its closure in 2013. The pub was eventually taken over and was earmarked to open as the North Wakefield Masjid Mosque.
Fortunately, the refurbishment proved too costly, and the pub has remained empty ever since. Local rumours suggest that the owners are in talks to sell the building to developers who plan to tear it down and replace it with housing. To use a JRR Tolkien quote, modern Britain seems to ‘know the price of everything but the value of nothing.’
The supermarket is one of the biggest threats to our much loved locals. VAT and duty charged from a pint of lager consumed in a pub is significantly higher than in a supermarket for the same product. Buy a meal in a pub or restaurant and you will pay 20% VAT, whereas no VAT applies on the same product if purchased (packaged) in a supermarket. Why go to the pub when you can buy a pack of beer for the same price as a pint in a pub?
The supermarket chains are also responsible for the decline in our local shops, which can’t compete with these capitalist giants. They are known to use alcohol as a loss leader to attract customers into their stores. This unfairness increased dramatically during the COVID lockdowns, where pubs and restaurants were forced to close down while supermarkets stayed open. Many people decided to avoid pubs altogether but continued to line the supermarket’s pockets after the ‘pandemic’ was over.
So how do we reverse the decline of our pubs? Obviously, as individuals, we can only make sure we spend some of our hard-earned cash in our local. Over the years, Nationalist organisations have contributed many thousands, if not millions of pounds, in room booking and spending over the bar.
In the 1930s, the BUF had many pubs dotted about the country that were sympathetic and welcomed the custom of the Blackshirts. That tradition of ‘Nationalist pubs’ continued throughout the decades with the National Front and British Movement, along with pubs that were known drinking haunts of Blood and Honour and Nationalist bands.
We also need to get behind the campaign to drastically reduce business rates on public houses and bring in parity between the VAT charged in the pub with that levied by the likes of ASDA, Tesco and Morrisons. We have to see the ‘local’ as a resource in the same way people view the local newsagent or Post Office.
Credits:
Main Images: Public Domain. Vintage engraving showing a scene from the hall of the Anglo-Saxon hero Hereward the Wake.
Lower Image: The Bingley Arms in Bardsey, Leeds. Mtaylor848 CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bottom Images: The British Oak. Photo’s from Facebook.
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