Wetherspoons

Keep Spoons noisy!

From our UK edition

The much-loved - in some quarters - Wetherspoon pub chain is associated with many things. For their supporters, who include this writer, they supply a range of interesting, well-chosen drinks at reasonable prices, often in buildings of historic or architectural interest that would otherwise have been demolished or turned into luxury flats. To their detractors, they are bilious, low-rent establishments that have caricatured the great British pub beyond recognition. Not for nothing have several taken their names from The Moon Under Water, George Orwell’s fantasia of what an alehouse should be, in what might be seen as either affectionate homage or opportunistic hijacking. Pubs should be fun, convivial and welcoming places Yet what Wetherspoon establishments do not offer is quiet.

British pubs are booming… just not in Britain

From our UK edition

British pubs are having a moment. Not in Britain: you can blame Keir Starmer’s rise in business rates for that. Instead, they are branching out overseas. Take Wetherspoons, the granddaddy of British boozers, set to open next month in Alicante airport, or BrewDog, which has opened its doors in Dubai and many other international outposts besides.  Perhaps British pub chains will prove to be our next big export market. No doubt there will be the obvious jokes about arch-Brexiteer Tim Martin opening pubs in Europe. But would you really bet against him? Whatever you think of Wetherspoons, I can assure you that you’ll never find an empty one. Just imagine the kind of trade they could do in Barcelona or Rome. Which brings me to Dubai. Did you know there was a BrewDog in Dubai?