JDW to re-open Laurel pub site

JD Wetherspoon is to re-open another former Laurel Pub Company site — the White Swan in Portsmouth. The venue, which was called the Muddy Duck and...

JD Wetherspoon is to re-open another former Laurel Pub Company site — the White Swan in Portsmouth.

The venue, which was called the Muddy Duck and closed in January this year, will re-open as a Lloyds No. 1 bar in late June.

Police had raised concerns at changes to the licence that will see it serve booze from 9am in the morning until 12.30am. But they withdrew their objections after pub giant Wetherspoon agreed to a string of conditions, including CCTV cameras and bouncers on the door every evening.

Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: "In the past we have taken over old buildings, such as banks, and converted them, and the projects can take up to eight months or more.

"But by taking over pubs, the basic structure is already there, so we can carry out refurbishments in four to six weeks and then get them opened up again, so it is a much quicker turnaround."

When it re-opens, it will be the third Wetherspoon pub in the area, with the company already owning the Isambard Kingdom Brunel at one end of Guildhall Walk, and the Lloyds Bar Trafalgar in nearby Edinburgh Road.