Thing that go bump (and grind) in the night
With Halloween fast approaching we thought this was a good opportunity to share a scary story about a landlady in Addlestone who was subject to a witch-hunt due to her frightening clientele.
Jenny Evans took over a pub called the Holly Tree in the town two years ago – which had a fearsome reputation for violence and anti-social behaviour. She has worked hard to eradicate all drug-taking and fighting, so she was shocked when Runnymede Borough Council restricted her licensing hours as a result of a recent review.
The only reason – so she claims – for these restrictions, is because her customers are frightening the locals. She told local press this week: “I think it is because I have introduced a type or genre to this town and they are scared of it. I think they see a bunch of punks outside and get scared. They might look scary but they are actually such lovely people, they all work and are polite and friendly.”
Mrs Evans who is a mother of four and a successful career landlady, has been running her “Cave Music Nights” for almost a year, which feature heavy metal, rock and punk music. These evenings have been very popular and have attracted an interesting new crowd to her pub. “We have got a completely different clientele now and there is no fighting, no dramas. I think it is building up to a proper community pub now,” she says.
Over 130 of the ‘scary’ punks and rockers have signed a petition against the restrictions and around 30 letters from these irate customers have been sent to the council – who will hopefully learn a valuable lesson – not to judge people by their appearances.
At Soundnet we have seen how loyal rock and alternative music fans can be to venues that look after their music tastes. That’s why we introduced The Rockbox specifically for the types of venues that cater for them. Our customers who have sited these jukeboxes have made excellent returns on their investment.
We wish Jenny Evans and her eclectic clientele the best of luck in fighting the most frightening spectre of all – a County Council and its dreaded red tape…
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