After lying dormant for 104 days, on 4 July Britain’s pubs burst back open in what became dubbed ‘Super Saturday’, and much of the nation popped in for a pint or ten as socially-starved revellers shrugged off crisis caution.
Brits are known for their love of the humble pub, which has been a staple of community life for more than a thousand years.
The new era has brought some noticeable changes, finding arrows on the floor to help crowd control and yellow tape to indicate appropriate distancing, and hand sanitiser stations at the door.
But in a country where a tax hike of a few pennies on a pint makes national news, changes also included a premium on all drinks in many places, as desperate pub chains attempted to claw back some of the lost revenue.
The UK has copped criticism for its handling of the COVID-19 crisis, exempting 70 countries from incoming mandatory quarantine and arguably attempting to re-open the economy too soon, with over 288,000 cases to date, the worst death toll in Europe, and the all-important R number only slightly below 1.
Britain’s Health Minister, Matt Hancock, warned anyone breaking social distancing regulations would be arrested and prosecuted, but the reality is it has proven difficult to police. The Government’s approach has largely been to issue ‘guidelines’ rather than rules, and the Super Saturday crowds saw little in the way of enforcement.
Official guidance allows people from two separate households to gather together in indoor places (such as pubs) so long as they maintain the mandated one-metre social distancing from others around them. Groups of up to six people from different households are permitted to gather in outdoor locations. Gyms, salons and nightclubs remain closed at this stage.
Media covering Super Saturday noted many venues ignoring social distancing requirements altogether, with a house full of patrons packed in as they have always done.
London’s streets were back to normal, hosting drunkenness, brawls and vomiting, as around 15 million pints were pulled and celebrations swelled into the evening.
Police were prepared and challenged, but largely stood by as the population let off steam. West Midlands’ Sergeant Richard Cooke tweeted “Just got home after a long shift late shift peppered with pub fights, domestic violence and drunken drugged-up fools”.
There were reports of a massive brawl at Tamworth’s Three Tuns pub soon after the ale began flowing and a dozen men traded fists as onlookers gawked. Another was caught on camera outside the Rockvilla Hotel in Rock Ferry, Wirral, and police used a helicopter to drive more than 200 people out of an ‘illegal rave’ in a forest on Teesside.
The city of Leicester is still in lockdown due to a recent spike in cases, and police called more officers in to work than on New Year’s Eve’, preventing people attempting to sneak out to pubs outside the contained area.
Businesses in London’s effervescent Soho district reported the situation got out of control by 8pm, as impromptu dance parties erupted on the streets, with barely anyone wearing masks and sheer numbers making it virtually impossible to keep distance.
Finding it all too much of a good thing, some pubs made the decision to close up early after incidents of anti-social behaviour.
The Rockvilla Hotel announced it was closing indefinitely, citing disappointment with the brawl outside, which it said had been caused by people unhappy they were told to leave, as the pub attempted to enforce rules around patron numbers and distancing.
Many suggested the failure to respect containment measures threatened to “throw away” the hard work done to date in reducing the virus, and some police predict a fresh coronavirus onslaught after the weekend’s back-step.
It is too soon to know if Super Saturday will be a super spreader, but already at least three pubs have closed down again after people have tested positive for COVID-19.
The Fox and Hounds, in Batley, West Yorkshire, reported that a customer had phoned in that they had tested positive. Staff at the pub have reportedly since taken tests, and the venue is being deep-cleaned before re-opening. It had taken specific measures to protect occupants, including directional crowd control outside, a one-in one-out policy for amenities, and limiting overall numbers inside.
The Village Home Pub in Alverstoke, Hampshire, had a member of staff’s family test positive, and all staff have now been tested there also, awaiting results.
And in Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, the Lighthouse Kitchen and Carvery is understood to be working through a list of customers’ contact details, despite no suspected or confirmed cases and all staff testing negative. The manager explained to the BBC.
“I felt I had to keep my customers and my staff safe which is why I chose to shut the pub. I’m gutted, but safety comes first. We could have opened today but chose not to as I think that’s the right thing to do.”
Disregarding reports of widespread recklessness, Health Secretary Matt Hancock hailed Super Saturday a success, suggesting that on the whole drinkers had “very, very, largely acted responsibly”.
The police joined the back-slapping, offering it wasn’t the carnage so many had predicted.
But the government’s former chief scientific adviser, Sir David King, was unamused, critical of Boris Johnson’s decision he branded the move as “unacceptable … it’s immoral” and that the best thing for economic recovery was to ensure the virus’ eradication as soon as possible.
Echoing the 4th of July and general pandemonium taking place across the Atlantic in the US, where a second wave seems to have firmly taken hold and new daily cases have topped 50 thousand, the outcome of Super Saturday contagion will not be known for around two weeks.