Bar talker
Licensees discuss the importance of music in pubs
"Music is essential," according to Michelle Abbott from the Anchor in Wingham, Kent. "Customers like it and it brings them out - especially when you have a band that engages the customers. Music brings people together and raises the pub's profile."
At the other end of the spectrum is Gordon Reid from the Queens Arms, Corton Denham, Dorset. "We don't have any music in the pub at all," he says. "Most of our customers want to talk and the music annoys them."
Lee Price from the Royal Pier, Aberystwyth and John Ellis from the Crown Inn, Oakengates, Shropshire, meanwhile, take a more balanced attitude. "It is important to control the atmosphere and that includes music," Ellis says. Price agrees, saying: "It has to be quiet enough so people can hear their own conversation but loud enough so they can't hear other people's dirty laundry!"
