Wetherspoons
The name of the business originates from JD Hogg, a character in The Dukes of Hazzard, and Wetherspoon, the surname of one of Martin's teachers in New Zealand, who had told him that he thought he would never amount to much.[12][13] In 2015, Wetherspoons was ordered to pay a total of £24,000 in damages for "direct racial discrimination" to eight individuals who were refused admittance to one of its pubs in north London (The Coronet on Holloway Road, Islington) based on what a judge described as "the stereotypical assumption that Irish travellers and English gypsies cause disorder wherever they go".Chairman Tim Martin cited the "current bad publicity surrounding social media, including the trolling of MPs and others" as a reason for the decision.[16] In mid-March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, the government advised the public to avoid areas like pubs, clubs, restaurants, and gyms.However, Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin rejected the government's advice and initially did not close any pubs, saying that his instinct was that "closure won't save lives but will cost thousands of jobs".Martin said that the ten-year project would create 2,000 jobs for staff, but that it would be "conditional on the UK opening back up again on a long-term basis, with no further lockdowns or the constant changing of rules".[7] Wetherspoons objected to the value-added tax (VAT) rates on food sales in pubs and restaurants in the United Kingdom, and the fact they are higher than those paid by supermarkets.[35][36][37] The Three Tun Tavern closed in January 2022 after it was bought by a consortium of former and current Irish rugby players, including Rob Kearney and Jamie Heaslip.The existing pub, The Moon Under Water on Lichfield Street, would be expanded to take in the whole former Co-Op Department Store, to include a hotel and gift shop.
WitherspoonWeatherspoonPublic limited companyTraded asFTSE 250HospitalityTim MartinWatfordChairmanPublic houseshotelsOperating incomeNet incomeUnited KingdomIrelandLondon Stock ExchangeFTSE 250 IndexColney HatchMuswell HillHaringeyJD HoggThe Dukes of Hazzardpint glassSmoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2005Health Act 2006Holloway RoadIslingtonIrish travellersBrexitCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdomvalue-added taxCOVID-19 pandemicGloucester DocksPark Row, LeedsPalladium, Llandudnolisted buildingsDoncaster Sheffield AirportEdinburgh AirportGatwick AirportHeathrow AirportStansted AirportLiverpool Lime StreetLondon Cannon StreetLondon Liverpool StreetLondon VictoriaAberystwyth railway stationNorthern IrelandBallymenaCounty AntrimRepublic of IrelandBlackrockCounty DublinBeaconsfieldmotorway service areadrink-drivingDublinWolverhamptonCo-Op Department StoreAxminster Carpetsmobile appCompanies HouseThe GuardianThe ObserverFinancial TimesThe Irish TimesBBC NewsLondon, EnglandAngus SteakhouseBeefeater GrillBella ItaliaBill'sBrewers FayreByron HamburgersCafé RougeCarluccio'sChiquitoDishoomEd's Easy DinerFranco MancaFrankie & Benny'sGiraffeGourmet Burger KitchenHandmade Burger CoHarry Ramsden'sHarvesterHawksmoorHonest BurgersJimmy's RestaurantsLas IguanasLoch Fyne RestaurantsLoungersManjarosNando'sOK DinerPizza HutPizzaExpressPrezzoSticks'n'SushiStradaTable TableTGI FridaysToby CarveryWagamamaWahacaWildwood KitchenZaks DinersFast foodBarburritoBurger KingChicken CottageChilangoChipotle Mexican GrillDave's Hot ChickenDixy ChickenDomino's PizzaFive GuysGerman Doner KebabJollibeeMB ChickenMcDonald'sMorley'sPapa John'sPopeyesQuiznosShake ShackSlim Chickens