'It’s not just about us, it's about Manchester': Britons Protection landlord gives update on pub's uncertain future after 'small victory'

The owners of one of Manchester’s oldest pubs has issued an update into its legal battle with brewing giant Heineken.

The landlord of Briton’s Protection, which is just one of three surviving city centre buildings to have stood near the site of the Peterloo Massacre, was set to appear in court this week as part of a hearing to consider its application for a new tenancy.

Housed on the corner of Albion Street and Great Bridgewater Street, the pub has operated as a 'Market Rent Only' pub since 2018, meaning it isn’t tied to Heineken products, but must buy a certain amount of keg beer from the brewing company. In 2022, Star Pubs - a subsidiary of Heineken - chose not to renew landlord Allan Hudd's lease.

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The move led to fears from the licensee that it would give the operator a chance to turn the local venue, which has become known for its wide selection of world whiskies, into a more 'generic' Heineken-supplied pub. Despite the lease not being renewed, Allan has continued to pay the pub’s rent to Star Pubs.

The court hearing began on Monday (June 17) at Manchester Civil Justice Centre but was adjourned on Tuesday due to a ‘technical point of procedure’ relating to evidence. Landlord Allan told the Manchester Evening News this week that he does not expect a new court date for at least six months, believing the hearing might not even be held until next year now.

“All in all for us, we’re seeing it as a positive thing,” Allan explained. “In some ways, it does feel like we’re dragging things out without really knowing where we stand but we’re looking at it as a small victory for us, as we can continue trading and still keep the pub going as normal. We’re not looking at losing it any time soon.

“It’s almost like a stay of execution in a way, we’re going to carry on doing what we’re doing but it is going to come with the extra costs of us going back to court.”

In a statement, Star Pubs said of the hearing: "This week, the judge made a decision relating to a technical point of procedure and we will fully comply with the judgement made. We remain confident in the fundamentals of our position as we move forward to the next stage in the legal process.”

Since news of the hearing was made public, Allan said many locals had backed the pub with staff organising a 'peaceful public rally' in May outside the Heineken Brewery to encourage the giant to 're-think' its plans.

“It can very much get you down, but if you think about it - it’s not just about us, it’s not just the Briton’s Protection, it’s about Manchester,” Allan said. “Not one person who has walked through the pub in the last two years has told us they’re on the opposite side of the argument. People have told us that it’s a Manchester pub, it’s heritage.

The support has been amazing, and it’s not even just from the locals either. We’ve had people visit from Florida, who had friends in Manchester and were told to come here specifically. We’ve also had people from Devon who said they needed to come down to support us.”

Allan says the adjournment now means that Briton’s Protection can have an undisrupted summer - although it will be different to how it would have normally been. He explained: “The only downside is that we can’t really invest in things, like the beer garden, so we’re not going to be able to have the summer that we wanted, but we’re hoping to still get a decent summer out of things.

“We’re definitely going to look at how we can do something special over the summer to help lift spirits up."