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LOCALS are furious over the Wetherspoons opening in their posh town – they say it’s out of place and will attract the “wrong type”.
Vacant for four years, locals have long pondered what their beloved old cinema in central Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, might become.
Some said a Côte would fit in perfectly in their picturesque town, while others suggested an Ivy or perhaps a bigger M&S.
But after much anticipation, JD Wetherspoon confirmed in April 2024 plans to “develop its site” in “the former Prezzo restaurant on Station Road”.
Locals hearing the news for the first time quaked in their boots.
“I strongly object to pints at 9am,” exclaimed nearby resident Eric.
He added: “I am very traditional and would like to keep the place as it is.”
While local couple Margaret and David Green blurted out: “It’s not a place we would go to.”
One strong opposer of Wetherspoons, Carol Minter, dubbed the restaurant chain “cheap”, “boring” and “old”.
She said: “I left the city for some country living and this is not cool.”
“We don’t want someone [the owner] with that kind of ethos running a local business near our young people.
“I personally wrote to the council, but I got no response. We need something for our youth but not a boring old Wetherspoons with cheap food.”
Her friend Christian Jarcheh added: “It’s such a shame to see these big companies pushing people out. It’s just a nightmare.”
One long-term resident browsing a gift shop across the road had her say.
She said: “Wetherspoons is not in keeping with the area.
“If I had a choice I’d have an Ivy.
“I can’t be annoyed because there’s nothing I can do about it, but it’ll bring the wrong type of people here”, she warned.
“There will be smashed bottles everywhere”, added another local.
For Pat Anderson, 72, the idea it’ll bring in a similar cliental to the old old Revs is a concern.
She said: “When Revs was open there were only ever three old men in there having a pint, so I don’t know what it’s going to bring.
“I think it’s a shame it’ll become a Wetherspoons.”
Pat also shared what she hoped the building would turn into.
She said: “I was hoping it would become a bigger M&S.
“I think this particular town is not suited to Wetherspoons. It doesn’t appeal to me anyway.”
“Must be those £5 curries. Not for me!”
Meanwhile Mark said people who go to Spoons all seem to share the same expression.
He recalled a recent experience: “I went into another Spoons a little while ago and I was struck by how gloomy it was and how people sit there staring vacantly into space.
“It’ll attract a lot of older people who don’t have much else to do.
“Cheap food. That’s their brand.
“I suppose with heating costs it’s good because you can buy one pint of beer and stay there for hours.”
He added: “I think it’s not the right quality for Beaconsfield. I know that sounds snooty.”
Similarly, Carl Holt, 57, pointed out that an affordable place to eat isn’t exactly what the people of Beaconsfield need – so the question of who it’ll benefit remains.
He said: “A Spoons would help those struggling financially because it’s cheap but these sorts of areas don’t really struggle too much because they’re quite wealthy, so I’m not sure whether it’ll bring too much benefit to this area.
“But nimbies will always resist change”, he added.
Walking along Station Road, it’s scattered with art galleries, a Gail’s bakery, a health food shop, a Crew clothing shop and more.
The town has also housed various celebrities over the years.
Enid Blyton wrote many a legendary tale in her home the “Green House” in Beaconsfield, while various celebs including TV presenter James Cordon, writer G.K Chesterton, and singer Beverley Craven have lived in the town.
For, Julia Jones, “Spoons definitely has a connotation”.
She also shared her fear for a loss of individualism to the area.
However, a group of cheerful residents said: “It’s Beaconsfield so there’s bound to be mixed opinions.”
Keith Gillham continued: “There are a lot of people who live behind gates and wouldn’t dream of going to a Wetherspoons but this town is dead. You can’t get a decent pint of beer anywhere.”
Another local addressed the “element of snobbishness” about Spoons.
Jeremy said: “The building is lovely but Wetherspoons has a particular image – of all the chains it’s probably my least favourite.
“So for me it’s not good news but I’d rather something was here than nothing. Suboptimal but better than nothing.”
Marilyn, who moved to the town 17 years ago said: “I’m surprised we’re having a Wetherspoons in Beaconsfield because the food isn’t that good – but I don’t know.
“Something other than Spoons would be better. What I think would be nice is a Lakeland. Or even a Toby. I’d rather have that than a Spoons.
“Something a bit better quality than Wetherspoons would be nice.
“We haven’t got much at all here now. It was so nice when I first came but we have nothing at all now. But now, nearly everything has gone.”
The Mayor of Beaconsfield Jackson Ng previously told the Bucks Free Press he was glad the building had been put on the market and hoped it would turn into a restaurant or cinema.
Following Spoons’ confirmed arrival he said he welcomed the move as long as the developers “take into consideration the history and prominence” of its location.
He said: “We were disappointed when Prezzo closed – my family loved going there and I know there were mixed feelings locally when Wetherspoons turned up as a replacement.
“Personally, I think it would be great if we had a cinema here, but I also just want something to happen with that site. It has a very prominent position in our unique and beautiful town.
“Ultimately, the most important thing is that there are fewer empty shopfronts in Beaconsfield – I’m just hopeful that work will start, and something will happen there soon. I look forward to having a pint when it does!”
Wetherspoons spokesperson Eddie Gershon said the amount of awards the restaurant chain has won proves its quality.
And despite the opposing views, the pub chain is confident its Beaconsfield opening will prove triumphant – much like the Marlow branch.
Mr Gershon said: “Those interviewed in Beaconsfield about the forthcoming Wetherspoon pub are entitled to their views.
“There are around 15,000 residents in the town plus those who visit, so the views are likely to be from a tiny percentage.
“Wetherspoon opened its pub in Marlow, a town close to Beaconsfield, around six months ago, and the pub had the busiest opening day of any Wetherspoon pub in its history.”
He added: “It continues to be extremely popular with locals and those coming in to the town.
“Wetherspoon runs its pubs to an extremely high standard and they are popular with a wide range of customers.
“The pubs have an excellent reputation for their design, as well as food and drink.”
Mr Gershon continued: “Wetherspoon pubs, have amongst other things, won numerous design awards, awards for the quality of their toilets, has more pubs listed in the Campaign for Real Ale Good Beer Guide 2025 than any other pub company and won awards for its children’s food offering.
“We are confident, that as in nearby Marlow, when the pub opens in Beaconsfield, that it will be a great addition to the town.”
THIS actress broke the mold for Bond Girls and remains to this day the only one to appear in more than one movie.
And 40 years later, this star is still looking glam, even when walking her dog.
Donning a chic black tracksuit and white baseball cap, Maud Adams, 80, kept a low profile as she headed to a dog park in Los Angeles.
Talking them for a walk around Beverly Hills, the Swedish actress made sure she kept the dogs in check on their leashes, before picking her white cocker spaniel up and putting them in her car.
Shooting to fame in the 70s, Maud is best known for her role in the James Bond films, first playing Miss Andrea Anders in 1974’s Man With The Golden Gun.
Miss Anders was the mistress of Francisco Scaramanga, played by Christopher Lee.
Nearly 10 years later, she would make her comeback to the 007 franchise by appearing in 1983’s Octopussy as the eponymous character, graduating to a leading role, before coming back once again two years later in A View To a Kill.
In all three films, Roger Moore played the suited-and-booted super spy.
Speaking with 007.com in 2014, Maud reflected on her time in the franchise fondly, though admits she would “play the roles differently” now.
“I was just trying to focus on doing my job and hoped for the best as I really didn’t understand just how big Bond was in the beginning,” she told the site.
“It was a bit daunting at first, when I realised what I had gotten involved with and also to get so much personal attention.
“Although I had made three feature length movies prior and you always hope for success, I had never worked on a movie where there was so much expectation, before we’d even shot one frame.
“Also, I never expected “Bond” to become such a long running franchise and that my participation would have such a lasting effect on my professional life.”
Following her history-making turn in the series, Maud went on to appear in Blood Legacy, and guest starred in That 70s Show alongside co-stars Kristina Wayborn and Barbara Carrera.
She has been married to her second husband, judge Charles Rubin, since 1999.
With a newfound belief in Bryce Young, the Carolina Panthers enter the 2025 NFL offseason with the most optimism they have had in years. The 2025 season will be crucial for the development of both Young and the Panthers, putting general manager Dan Morgan in a sink-or-swim position. Despite building a mostly young core, Morgan […]
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The Tennessee Titans head into the 2025 offseason with a clear mission. They need to rebuild a roster that endured one of the worst seasons in franchise history. Once a consistent contender in the AFC, Tennessee now finds itself in full-scale reconstruction mode. With limited cap flexibility and a roster in need of upgrades, difficult […]
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The Duke Blue Devils entered Madison Square Garden on Saturday night for a rare late-season non-conference matchup with a very good Illinois squad as considerable favorites, but even the most optimistic supporters of the Dukies likely didn’t have a 43 point victory on their Bingo card. In a 110-63 win, superstar freshman Cooper Flagg did […]
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It’s time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Utah-UCF prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Utah-UCF. There are a number of notable conference games in college basketball on the final Sunday of February. This one might slip under the radar due to the fact that Ohio State versus UCLA will […]
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It’s time to continue our College Basketball odds series with an Ohio State-UCLA prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Ohio State-UCLA. The Ohio State Buckeyes are not a lock to be in the NCAA Tournament, and they really did not help their cause a few days ago. They not only lost to Northwestern […]
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THEY only spent 15 months together at Parkhead before parting ways in 2021.
Things didn’t quite go to plan for one of them in Glasgow though and they weren’t given many opportunities to share the pitch with one another during that time.
But they still managed to form a decent partnership anytime both of them did get the nod.
Four years later the duo have linked up once again.
But they’ve been spotted together at the side of the pitch, instead of on it.
Former Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths shared a picture on social media of him catching up with old team-mate Patryk Klimala.
Griffiths, 34, is currently in Australia after moving down under in 2022 after leaving Falkirk.
The ex-Dundee and Livingston forward is now plying his trade with semi-professional outfit Mandurah City in Western Australia and has been there for two years.
He’s found his new home across the globe and it looks like his old pal Klimala is also enjoying his time in the country with Sydney FC.
Unfortunately for the pair though, they are quite literally playing in opposite sides of the country.
They must travel over 2,000 miles to meet up with each other in their respective cities.
But they were just up the road from each other last night as Klimala’s Sydney made the trip to face Perth Glory.
Perth is just an hour-long drive from Mandurah, and Griffiths took advantage of the fairly short commute.
He attended the A-League clash and watched his old pal in action as the game finished goalless.
Griffiths shared a snap of their meeting on Instagram, with the caption: “Great to catch up with @PatrykKlimala last night.”
Klimala, 26, has been in Australia since joining Sydney on loan from Slask Wroclaw in September.
He’s scored 10 goals and provided five assists in 22 games in all competition for the club this season.
Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
A NEW pub and restaurant has just opened its doors in the heart of Glasgow.
The Noble is the latest venture run by the Superlative Collection – the expert team behind the likes of The Duke’s Umbrella, Gōst and Blue Dog – to serve up pints and plates to customers.
Located on the city‘s Bothwell Street, the idea is to re-imagine the classic British pub, taking an elevated yet unpretentious approach to hospitality.
And we were invited along to try out one of the airy, relaxed spot’s new signature dishes – the Glasgow Pie.
The playful menu has been dreamed up by kitchen boss John Molloy.
It’s a real mix of serious, high brow dishes next to Scottish casual classics with the likes of oysters sitting alongside a roll on square slice sausage with brown sauce.
But the star of the show is undoubtedly the Glasgow Pie, which is a magical mash-up of Scottish and Indian culinary cultures.
I wish my pal had captured the look of delight on my face as I saw the plate heading towards our table – my eyes were as big as, well, pies.
The dish consists of an aromatic and perfectly spiced chicken tikka curry topped with flack pastry and served with basmati rice and crisp poppadoms.
The curry itself packs a real punch, heavy with spiced while avoiding being too hot.
Meanwhile, the pastry top is that perfect combo of crisp and soggy.
While the rice and poppadoms are clearly the side show, they’re also really well cooked and help balance the richness of the rest of the meal.
I have honestly never had anything like it and I’m a bit sad that it’s taken me to the ripe age of 45 to experience what is surely to become a classic on the Glasgow eating scene.
Now open to the public, The Noble – which draws inspiration from the historic Noble House, a docklands tavern where everyone, from dockers to dukes, was welcome – will be open daily from 9am until late.
And there’s a bold claim on the breakfast menu which claims to include the ‘best bacon roll in Scotland’.
Thick cut smoky bacon is served with slow cooked pork belly in a buttered milk bun. I feel like this is a challenge I’ll have to take on next.
Director of food, John Molloy, says: “The Noble offers a brand new experience to Glasgow’s bustling city centre – all the character and comfort of a classic British pub, but with a hint of elegance that’ll really set it aside.
“We’ve taken a playful route with the menus, which feature nostalgic snacks and elevated pub classics with a Scottish flair. I can’t wait to welcome people of Glasgow and beyond through the doors of our public house, The Noble.”
