The smoking ban has killed our night!

[bluestreak]

why do you do this -just pop up with more tobyjug 'facts' which are totally irrelevant to the thread?

fucking gimp

 

[editor]

I hadnt been in for ages due to the smoking ban myself and asked Shelley behind the bar if its normally like this now on a saturday and she said the pub was dead everynight because of the ban.

I hope that I never get so addicted to a dangerous drug that I'd abandon socialising in pubs and clubs completely just so I could continue my habit at home.

 

[William of Walworth]

Testing ....

I'm off with Tort to see the 3 Daft Monkeys (popular festival band) in Dingwalls next Tuesday, I'm going to keep an eye out for how many people pop outside to smoke and are prepared to miss the band ... a lot of their fans are dready/festie/folky/crusty types and tend to be rollie smokers ...

 

[Bingo]

We're seriously contemplating handing free nicotine patches out on the door next time...!

 

[chymaera]

You've never been, or lived with, a smoker?

Both my parents smoked. My point is that it seems that smoking is more important to some smokers than music. (Which must a cause for reflection on the part of those smokers since the smoking ban.)

 

[ouchmonkey]

we may have suffered a bit for this at PROD the other night (as well as the Victoria line closure, the familiar technical problems and pubversion being a useless drunkmonkey).
Having a load of your crowd outside half the time makes it tricky to get a good vibe going.
For smokers it's part of their enjoyment of the night to have a fag and I'm sure there are plenty of non-smokers who are happy about the ban, their clothes not stinking of smoke and so on.
When you're involved in putting on a night you tend to get into thinking that if the dancefloor's not full of sweaty smiling faces cheering each new familiar tune then nobody is having any fun. But that's actually quite hard to pull off especially with the nature of what we do added to it - If I wasn't involved in PROD I'd quite probably spend most of my time chatting and drinking, do a bit of rubbish pissed dancing and go home happy having had a top time.
It's just hard to remember that when yet another shonky tune from the pile clears the floor.

In a related note, The Canterbury reckon business has improved since the ban.

 

[girasol]

While I think the smoking ban is a good thing - I only smoke when I go out - You can't deny that the ban has changed the anatomy of a night out. Not necessarily for the better.

I spent a large part of my nights out outside since the ban. One good thing about it is being able to have a nice chat with people without the loud music - but that means an quieter dance floor.

 

[EastEnder]

Having a load of your crowd outside half the time makes it tricky to get a good vibe going.

I think this should be regarded as an excellent opportunity for DJs to hone their crowd pleasing skills. I'm sure we're all too familiar with the phenomena of DJs being delightfully "eclectic" with some of their choices, often favouring the alternative, rather than the populist choices, resulting in a predictable decimation of the dancing crowd. Now, faced with the spectre of countless masses huddled outside the door, puffing away defiantly, the gauntlet has been well and truly thrown down. It will take the skills of the only the very best DJs to ensure that the tunes being played are so catchily irresistible that even the most hardened yellowed fingered types will be compelled to hurl their ciggies to the pavement and rush back en mass to the dancefloor.

If any urban DJs want to borrow my "Aha's Greatest Hits" or "Best of Two Unlimited", just say the word.

 

[editor]

I spent a large part of my nights out outside since the ban. One good thing about it is being able to have a nice chat with people without the loud music - but that means an quieter dance floor.

The Albert has been hit particularly hard on some nights - I've gone there on some DJ nights and the inside has been totally deserted while both front and back outside areas have been rammed. Definitely no fun for the DJs, but as far as I know the pub's takings are up overall.

So far (*touches wood!) we've been OK on Offline nights, but I think things will slowly change. Certainly in New York I didn't see so many people huddled outside on band nights.

 

[Iam]

A couple of the concerts I've been to recently, the support bands have played to virtually empty halls, whilst people smoked outside and waited for the main act.

From what I could hear, it was much the better choice.

 

[pogofish]

Another lounge/live venue has closed here in the last week & cited the smoking ban as the main reason. However, this one is unusual as it is a big place right on the main drag - the sort of siting that has usually seen trade hold-up since the ban.

 

[sojourner]

I would never dream of going outside for a ciggy if I went to a gig. I saw Richard Hawley tother week, and me and me mate just stoked our nicotine/weed levels outside before he came on. I do miss not being able to have a midway spliff, but no way would I miss any of the gig to do that.

 

[spacemonkey]

<stating the obvious> This will change a lot when the winter kicks in. I've found myself nipping out with mates who smoke for a chat and staying out much longer than I expected. If you're in a loud venue it is great to have 5-10mins chatting at a normal volume, then the crafty smoker lights another and before you know it you've been outside for an hour!

When it's pissing down with rain and freezing I just won't bother, people will nip out, smoke as fast as possible and then come back inside. Maybe.

On the plus side that 20% reduction in heart attacks since the ban, means more people will be alive to enjoy Christmas this year.

 

[Gmart]

Good music that I want to dance to would NEVER keep me from a dancefloor, not matter how much I might want to be outside.

There are two points which are important:

1) We should be allowed to take drinks outside too, coz I like the vibe there, talking at a normal volume. Currently the councils prevent this freedom.

2) In time, hopefully, the venue will provide shelter outside against the elements.

If the industry doesn't try to change this then they will see their trade diminish distinctly and will probably blame the ban rather than these 2 points.

 

[pogofish]

When it's pissing down with rain and freezing I just won't bother, people will nip out, smoke as fast as possible and then come back inside. Maybe.

Yup, that was the decider in Scottish places last winter - Places popular for nights-out held-up ok but places (not just pubs) with a fair bit of regular trade at quieter times, saw numbers dwindle. Even where they had an outside area you could drink in.

Winter woolies were a very popular christmas pressie amongst smokers - probably more popular than ever even!

 

[pogofish]

1) We should be allowed to take drinks outside too, coz I like the vibe there, talking at a normal volume. Currently the councils prevent this freedom.

2) In time, hopefully, the venue will provide shelter outside against the elements.

Not all pubs & particularly city clubs are in a position to create outside space where you can take drinks. Many it is the street or nothing.

Also remember that outside space then has other problems, like neighbours & having to close at 11pm because of disturbance etc. Not always effective for a venue.

I'm off to Hesse in Germany at this weekend - they start their smoking ban there today. Be interesting to see how they cope on the first weekend!

 

[Gmart]

Maybe an awning outside. That takes up no space.

As for the noise, I applaud the increased socialising outside. It's great for socialising, but should be concentrated in town centres of course, with signs up asking people to consider others.

That should be it though. If people want complete silence, then they should think twice about living near a pub/club.

Maybe a move to the country.

Tolerance goes both ways of course.

 

[editor]

2) In time, hopefully, the venue will provide shelter outside against the elements.

That generates another problem for pubs/clubs in residential areas, with outdoor smokers causing disturbance to neighbours and thus increasing the likelihood of the place being shut down.

 

[DJWrongspeed]

I heard that the police were patrolling club medussa the other w/e checking for people smoking, it's madness given the all the other crimes going on in Brixton.

 

[ovaltina]

The Albert [snip] as far as I know the pub's takings are up overall.

I reckon the smoking ban will be good for the Albert - it used to be pretty revolting in there. The air conditioning thing was a fairly deep shade of tan.

 

[subversplat]

I heard that the police were patrolling club medussa the other w/e checking for people smoking, it's madness given the all the other crimes going on in Brixton.

I thought the police had publicly stated that the smoking ban was none of their business and they weren't getting involved?

 

[DeadManWalking]

I heard that the police were patrolling club medussa the other w/e checking for people smoking, it's madness given the all the other crimes going on in Brixton.

Smoking weed I presume? The police aren't enforcing the smoking ban, it's the council

 

[DJWrongspeed]

I thought the police had publicly stated that the smoking ban was none of their business and they weren't getting involved?

My friend asked why they were in there and they gave smoking as the reason Of course they may have been there checking other things

 

[pogofish]

That should be it though. If people want complete silence, then they should think twice about living near a pub/club.

Tolerance goes both ways of course.

Of course.

However the changes in licencing & planning/zoning policy here have seen a trend to concentrate "entertainment" licences in particular areas - leading to much higher levels of noise & crowds than they were used to before. Plenty of these places have also got longstanding residential communities who are fairly justifiably sick of it.

Whilst I'd agree that anyone moving into a loud area should be expected to think first, I can see how a lot of folk have got dumped with the shittiest end of the stick. Especially as the areas some of these places have been relocated from are aslo some of the most up-market bits of the city.

 

[pogofish]

My friend asked why they were in there and they gave smoking as the reason Of course they may have been there checking other things

They will have been checking other things. This is a council/civil matter, not police. However, police will come-in to support/protect council inspectors if there is a chance of them being lynched by the punters.

Here, the council inspectors have also got the power to report a whole load of other things to the licencing board/city-centre partnership/env-health & the much increased rate of inspection has made places a lot more touchy about what is being smoked in or out of their places. The partnership rules in particular make it very easy to get a licence withdrawn for toking.

 

[Yu_Gi_Oh]

What people seem to actually want is to totally control smokers. Not content with banning smoking indoors people now want to control where the smokers stand and what they do during their nights out.

Personally I have no sympathy for venues who feel that smokers are causing a disturbance, we've already been sent out in the pissing rain for gods sake!

Venues need to look at how the ban has been handled in other countries (Italy for example) and make changes so that there is a sheltered area for smokers that isn't on the pavement outside.

I don't have a problem with smoke-free pubs, it's quite nice really, but having returned from Italy where there were sheltered smoking areas and everyone seemed to be coping fine, to return to England and see the total shambles that is the British smoking ban. Well, it's crap.

 

[pogofish]

Maybe an awning outside. That takes up no space.

The planning proces for an awning became a lot more difficult & slower when the ban kicked-in here. Then they changed the regs again & forced many places that were granted to rip them down & re-apply.

Also, if you are on a main street, the chances of getting even that are very slim.

 

[Gmart]

What people seem to actually want is to totally control smokers. Not content with banning smoking indoors people now want to control where the smokers stand and what they do during their nights out.

Authoritarian aren't they, Gits!

 

[GarfieldLeChat]

I hope that I never get so addicted to a dangerous drug that I'd abandon socialising in pubs and clubs completely just so I could continue my habit at home.

I hope i'd never get so addited to a dangerous drug that I'd abandon socialising in a legal drug den for alcohol (which killled more people than ciggerettes or drugs of any other kind last year and every year) or a drug club for alcohol compleatly just so i could continue my habit at home...

the rank hypocracy in your statement not hitting home yet is it...

 

[Gmart]

The planning process for an awning became a lot more difficult & slower when the ban kicked-in here. Then they changed the regs again & forced many places that were granted to rip them down & re-apply.

Also, if you are on a main street, the chances of getting even that are very slim.

I didn't know that!!

Gits!

The planning rules in this country are ridiculously controlling. (See other threads!)

This is terrible tho!

Double Gits!