A pub on the edge of Bristol that has its own outdoor 'Glastonbury' stage and a shop in a stable that was a lifeline for the village in lockdown has closed.
Andy Miller only took on the Prince's Motto in Barrow Gurney in March 2020 - and three days after opening it for the first time as landlord, he had to close it again when the Covid-19 lockdown hit. But in the two years since, he and his team have managed to turn it into a village hub, with a stable next to the pub converted into a vital community shop, as well as a host of other improvements.
However, following events the landlord described as a "nightmare", it has closed down and will not reopen until new tenants can be found. The pub's chain owner informed him of a rent increase, and gave him notice to leave after he declined to accept the new deal offered to him, Somerset Live reports.
Read more: Hopes and fears at the pub near Bristol the village refused to let die
During lockdown Andy carried out a number of improvements to the village inn - also known as the Ich Dean - using a £50,000 bounce back loan from the Government. The first of the improvements saw Andy and his team transform a former stable on the site into the Motto Shoppo, providing a lifeline for local residents.
The pub, which is one of only buildings in the village never to be owned by the Gibbs family of the neighbouring Tyntesfield Estate, re-opened when lockdown lifted in July 2020. But as the pandemic started to re-tighten its grip, it was forced to close again in November. Back then, Bristol Live featured the pub's amazing efforts after it found itself in Tier 3 - with pubs across the border in Bath and North East Somerset and Bristol forced to close they remained open.
Further restrictions made opening difficult and in January 2021, when the third national lockdown came into force, the Prince’s Motto called time once more. During the Government shut downs Andy - with the help of villagers - carried out improvements. A section of garden area which belonged to the pub’s private accommodation was turned into the Motto Grotto - an outside new decked and covered space for customers.
An old dilapidated wooden gazebo in the rear garden - previously used as a smoking shelter - was transformed into The Glasshouse, where people could sit and enjoy a pint and a bite to eat. A new stage - Glasto-gurney - was erected in the garden for theatre and music while an area at the rear of the pub was turned into the Motto Rocko, the pub’s very own record shop.
People could go in, choose a record and put it on the provided decks and listen to their hearts’ content and buy records. Andy also opened a sports bar - complete with Bristol Bears rugby logos painted on the walls.
Rent increase
The Motto Plotto was also born - a market garden not only to grow plants for the pub’s own hanging baskets but also to provide items such as salad and vegetables for the kitchen. But then, as pubs across the country started to struggle as people were advised to limit socialising again last December (2021), the pub owners, Red Oak Taverns, wrote to Andy advising him of a rent increase.
“I received a letter adjusting the rent, putting it up from £28,000 to £30,000 a year,” said Andy, who has worked in the pub trade for more than 20 years. “It was in the initial agreement, but with the pub quiet it was going to be a struggle to meet that increase as well as serving payments on the bounce back loan.
“They then came back to me and said they would allow me to go free of tie, but as a result they would put the rent up to £45,000 a year. They also wanted me to take on full repairs of the building as well," he claimed.
He claimed he has unsuccessfully been asking Red Oak Taverns to repair the back wall, which he said will cost a significant amount of money. He explained: "Since I took on the pub I have been asking them to repair the back wall which is, due to the design of the pub, subterranean. Water pours through the wall.
"I said I could not accept the free of tie deal and they said they would serve me notice.”
Andy claims he also asked for financial ‘recognition’ for the amount of work and money he has ploughed into the Prince's Motto. “I asked for financial recognition to enable me to pay back the bounce back loan, but the owners’ response to that was to take everything down," he said.
Andy has now had to make the heartbreaking decision to dismantle all the improvements -including the Glasto stage, glass house and decking area.
“It’s been an utter nightmare,” he said. "I put a huge amount of effort and money into the pub. The locals are all upset too as they now have nowhere to go. As a result the village has lost its community hub.”
Andy now has to leave the pub by July 13, but he took the decision to close on May 2. The pub is now listed as 'permanently closed' on Google.
Barrow Gurney parish councillor Nick Tyrrell, who was a regular customer at the pub, said: "We are very sad to see the Princes Motto closed. It is an important facility in the village and a place for people to meet and socialise
"Andy has put a lot of energy into the pub during his time there and we would like to thank him for everything which he has done. We are a small community and facilities like this are important and we keen to see it taken over as soon as possible."
A spokesman for Red Oak Taverns said: "We can’t discuss the specific details of any of our tenancy agreements for confidentiality reasons. It is our intention to have new tenants in and the pub reopened for the local community as soon as possible."
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