'I'm under pressure to change my pub's name but I refuse to give in'

01 August 2023 , 10:42

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Businessman Mike Newton with his bulldog Atticus

A stubborn landlord is refusing to cave into pressure to change the name of his pub - and says he thought complaints were a prank.

Mike Newton renamed the former Sea Lion pub to The Old Bulldog, after his bulldog Atticus, just over a year ago. But he has now received a letter from, Peta - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, asking him to change the name of his boozer to The Old Mutt.

The Peta letter added: "We would be glad to contribute to the costs of a new sign and could even help with creating an adorable mutt-focused design."

Peta says 'bulldogs and other flat-faced breeds are afflicted with brachycephalic syndrome, which causes laboured breathing, snorting, coughing, retching, tiring easily, and fainting'.

Businessman Mike Newton has blasted 'left wing wokery' - as he faces mounting pressure to change the name of his Stoke-on-Trent pub. The Old Bulldog has been the new name of the former Sea Lion pub, in Longton, for more than a year. It is named after his bulldog Atticus. But Peta - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals - has now written to Mike calling on him to change the name of the Anchor Terrace boozer. The organisation says 'bulldogs and other flat-faced breeds are afflicted with brachycephalic syndrome, which causes laboured breathing, snorting, coughing, retching, tiring easily, and fainting'.

Mike says: "I think it is very important that, while we all understand the need to provide animal welfare, our national symbols are not attacked. I also think the overwhelming majority of bulldogs and flat face breeds are happy, healthy dogs and as long as their owners care for them, feed them the right diet, and give them exercise, there is absolutely no reason why there should be any ban on them."

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Mike purchased the pub with his cousin James Knowles just before the start of the Covid pandemic, reports the Stoke Sentinel. Mike from Stoke says: "We decided to change the name. The girls have got a bulldog and I have Atticus. We thought The Old Bulldog would be a good name.

"We were feeling a bit insulted when we got this very patronising letter from the charity that represents the worst of wokism, telling us how to run our business. It has been hard enough to make money in the pub trade in recent years.

"Initially I thought the letter was a prank. But then it turned out to be deadly serious. I do not think big charity should interfere with the small business. And I also do not think that woke people should be attacking our national symbols. I think, in the Potteries and Staffordshire generally, we do not like being told what to do and we like to display a bit of bulldog spirit when someone comes along and says, 'This is how you have to do it'."

Atticus is pictured in The Old Bulldog with customers

Mike, who grew up in the area, has created dozens of jobs since he brought the pub. He say: "I have grown up around here and have strong links to the area. I want to put something back in the community. We have a wonderfully loyal client base. Potteries people are fantastic.

"We backed ourselves to make it work. Covid came along and then the cost of living crisis. We have had to work really hard. I am grateful to the management team of Angela, Courtney and Jess. We have probably created a dozen jobs and put £25,000 investment into the community."

A Peta spokesman said: "Bulldogs have been bred so that their snouts are pushed against their skulls and there isn’t enough space to accommodate healthy anatomical features, making them prone to breathing problems. This is the leading cause of death for bulldogs.

"I hope you’ll agree that breeding dogs with unnatural features that cause severe health problems is cruel. This is why restrictions have been imposed on breeding breathing-impaired breeds in Norway and the Netherlands and why many other countries are looking to follow suit."

Jonathan Bamber