Are pubs disappearing across the Uk?

Recently, I read an article by Ollie Mead in Idler magazine. He claims that many traditional pubs are disappearing across the UK. Yet on Lundy, the Marisco Tavern thrives. Ignoring new drinking trends, it’s success does not lie in ‘craft beer or design-led interiors’ Mead (2025). Instead, it relies on something much older, a sense of community that forms around it each week. A community that is fluid but has Lundy at its heart.

My blogs are often inspired by articles or books that I read. This blog post, is not my usual Nature and Walking type of blog. It relates to Business and Marketing; a topic that still interests me after studying it for my first degree. Two articles that I have read this week, peaked my interest.

The first article was in a recent back copy of ‘Idler‘ magazine ( If you haven’t heard of Idler. The company is devoted to helping people slow down, have fun and live well!) The second article, was from ‘We Are Portas’. A creative business agency, headed up by Mary Portas. I have followed Mary Portas since she was on TV with ‘Mary Queen of Shops’ and ‘Secret Shopper’.

Destinations & Experiences

Retail consultant, Mary Portas, has suggested that;

‘Shops, cafes, and social spaces must offer a reason to be there. These places should offer an experience. They need to be more than just destinations for transactions.’ Portas argues that ‘the shops and social spaces that will survive, need to offer people a reason to visit’. She goes on to say ‘These are the places that offer an experience. They need to give people a compelling reason to go.’

A changing Pub Culture

Ollie Mead, writing in Idler magazine, argues that;

‘Many traditional pubs have struggled and continue to struggle, this is due to a shift in consumer desires. People now want more than just somewhere to drink – they want an experience.’ He suggests that the ‘traditional pub is fading, replaced by a wave of craft breweries and taprooms. These venues, he argues, succeed because people today want more than just somewhere to drink — they want an experience.’

Both these social commentators suggest that to survive businesses need to create a place that offers a ‘destination’

So both these articles come together to talk about creating a destination experience. A place people naturally gravitate towards. Welcome in the Marisco Tavern!

The Marisco Tavern – a meeting place

On Lundy it’s where people go to find out the weather forecast or listen to a talk. It’s where walkers end their day after roaming the island. It’s where people come to find information. Is the boat sailing tomorrow? Is the helicopter flying? What’s on the menu tonight? It’s a place where people meet new friends and these friends become friends for life.

More than anything, it’s a hub.

A community on Lundy, that changes each week

Throughout the week I watch a temporary community form within the walls of the Marisco Tavern. People arrive as strangers, but gradually become familiar faces. Someone will stop to say hello to a stranger. Two tables join together for a meal. A board game appears. Conversations drift between weather forecasts, bird sightings, or the latest clues from the letterboxes scattered across the island.

By the end of the week these groups have formed a community on Lundy. Then the next boat or helicopter arrives, everyone disperses, and the next week it begins all over again.

That idea of connection is interesting when you think about Lundy.

Many Visitors view the Marisco as having its own brewery with its Old Light Beer. they often ask if the ale is brewed here! We know its clever branding. But Lundy did once have its own brewery. Still, the question reveals something important. People want that sense of place in what they drink. On an island surrounded by sea, even the beer seems tied to the landscape.

An Interior Designed by History

Mead also describes the aesthetic of modern taprooms. They feature quirky decor and long communal tables. These spaces are designed to encourage conversation between strangers.

In many ways the Marisco Tavern has been its own Interior designer. The life buoys, the plaques, photographs and flags all bringing stories to the Tavern walls.

Table Design is on trend with the community Table 13. It’s one of those places where it’s almost impossible for strangers to sit together and stay strangers. The small tables in the servery pushed closely together to create conversation between tables. This type of table is the type they are now putting into bars, they offer a more community feel.

What these different groups share is not simply the space of the pub, but the rhythm of island life. Climbers arrive from the granite cliffs. Birdwatchers gather to share sightings. Families settle in for meals. Walkers compare routes across the island. Individually they come for different reasons, but together they create the temporary community that gives the Marisco Tavern its atmosphere.

The pub simply becomes a meeting place.

A place to meet like minded people

The Marisco Tavern seems to do build community naturally.

Different groups form their own rituals within the space. Bell ringers gather before or after peals at the church. Climbers arrive after a day on the granite cliffs, still buzzing from their ascents. Interestingly, they rarely sit down. Instead they stand in small circles, animatedly describing the routes they’ve climbed. Morris Dancers, Gamers, Model Airplane enthusiasts, Creative groups including; Singing and art. All meet and share in the Marisco Tavern. Oh and by the way the use of phones is discouraged!

All these small interactions create the atmosphere of the place.

Can we create more Marisco Taverns?

Which makes me wonder: if you recreate the Marisco Tavern somewhere on the mainland, would it feel the same?

You can replicate the tables, the decor and even the beer. But I suspect something would be missing.

Or is it the island itself, and the community it gathers each week, that makes the place what it is?

Because the real secret of the Marisco Tavern is not the pub itself. But Lundy.

That’s why the Marisco Tavern continues to thrive as a destination pub. It is not a craft beer taproom chasing trends. It is something older and simpler.

It is a place where people gather at the end of the day. They share stories of where they’ve been. They briefly become part of a small island community.

When the boat finally sails, they leave. They know that next time they return, the door of the tavern will open. The whole thing will start again.

On Lundy, the Marisco Tavern is still what pubs once were. It is a destination and a meeting place. It serves as a reminder that sometimes community forms as simply as opening a door and walking in.

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