Cheers

People power ends JDW smoke ban

Snifter was pleased to have some fresh light shed on why JD Wetherspoon has called a halt to its smoke-ban conversion programme. The company, you will remember, halted its plan to convert all of its pubs to non-smoking at the start of the year. Many had assumed that it was just common sense with a complete ban impending next summer and sales figures down. But chief executive John Hutson has revealed yet another factor that is causing company bigwigs to re-think - people power. Some customers at one Wetherspoon pub that had recently been converted to a non-smoking venue complained about the early introduction of a smoking ban when the company had an option to wait until next year. Snifter is a firm believer in the old adage about discretion being the better part of valour.

Aussie film giant zooms in on Scotch

A Hollywood film mogul is launching the world's first internet television channel dedicated solely to single-malt Scotch whisky. Australian film producer Rob Draper has launched singlemalt.tv, a 24-hour online whisky channel comprising news, features and ongoing series. Draper has plans for the new project to go live at the end of this month. Hosted by the industry pundit and best-selling author Charlie MacLean, the innovative channel aims to tap into the growing world-wide interest surrounding single malt whisky. It will also become a pioneer in the online television market for specialist interest programming. Snifter is hoping fervently to launch his own show in the near future.