For Whom The Bell Tolls

‘SORRY if the copy’s a bit late, and a little smudged. Writing on a wobbly, sticky pub table has its drawbacks.

If the landlord could ring the bell he once used to herald last orders to wake us up in the morning, we would not be so tardy.

Better yet if the landlord could ring the bell in the manner of a town crier and just scream out the day’s news.

But until the drinks trade fully gets to grips with the new licensing laws that come into force today, we must make do.

And for now the Telegraph’s editorial feels a “pang of nostalgia for the disappearance of the landlord’s anxiously shouted refrain of ‘Time gentlemen, please!’”.

To remind its readers of happier times when drinkers were chucked out and forced to throw down drinks on the sound of the bell, there’s a picture of Louisa Sullivan ringing the bell at the Plough, Bloomsbury, London.

As the Times reports, around 70,000 of the nation’s licensed premises are now allowed to sell booze after 11pm – 20 per cent of which will be legally able to remain open after 1am.

At which point drinkers can head to the supermarket drinking club located in aisle 12 at Asda…’

Posted: 24th, November 2005 | In: Uncategorized Comment | TrackBack | Permalink