The oldest pub in England, which has been operating since 793, has closed

In the English city of St. Albans, one of the oldest pubs in the country, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, was forced to close due to financial problems. The institution, founded in 793, survived wars, famine and bubonic plague, but failed to cope with coronavirus restrictions.

Cristo Tofalli, managing director of Ye Olde Fighting Cocks for the last ten years, said that in the conditions of the pandemic, his business suffered so much that he could not fulfill his financial obligations.

The British pub industry was experiencing difficulties even before the pandemic, as people refused to drink in such establishments in favor of bars, restaurants or their homes. According to official statistics, from 2008 to 2018, more than 11 thousand pubs closed in the country, as a result of which their total number decreased by almost a quarter.

According to the information on the pub's website, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks was founded in the 8th century, and the current building was built in the 11th century. The pub got its name thanks to the cockfights that were held there in the last century. Ye Olde Fighting Cocks was recognized as the oldest pub in England by the Guinness Book of Records, but in 2000 this title was lost for lack of substantial evidence. Today, the title of the oldest drinking establishment in the country is contested by several pubs at once — among them Ye Olde Man & Scythe in Bolton and Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem in Nottingham.

The company Mitchells & Butlers, which owns the institution, assured that this is not the end for Ye Olde Fighting Cocks. They are going to find new managers there in order to reopen it to visitors soon.

Earlier it became known that due to the pandemic, the most famous and largest brothel in the whole of Europe, Pascha, went bankrupt and closed. He is located in Cologne - bankruptcy also occurred against the background of the coronavirus pandemic. The ex-manager of the institution said that the girls from there did not give up their work, but now they are engaged in activities underground and do not pay taxes on their income.