Saturday 23rd May 2026 

Open Letter,

                This week marks two years since I took my position in a long line of landlords at Sir John Falstaff. It has been one turbulent journey. Those of you that know me, know why I did this; I fell in love with Sir John Falstaff. The building, the history, the very presence that is Sir John and that is why I personify him. I of course had to look past the tired old man, which he most certainly was when I arrived (see pictures below), and focus on acknowledging his age, while striving to preserve his future. This is why I often refer to myself as his Custodian and not ‘The Landlord.’

Many of you have gone out of your way to support me in this challenge. It is easy to talk about him being over 300 years old, named by Shakespeare and loved by Charles Dickens, but the thing that strikes me is the most recent history. For example, I know of one of my patrons that met their other half here and 30 years later (with a few children thrown in) is still a regular. The man that celebrated his 70th birthday here and remembers his first legal pint at the bar at Sir John, well over half a century ago! This isn’t ‘history,’ this is real life.

I have done what I can to date in way of a salute to Sir John’s past; such as putting a dovecote back where it belongs in the garden, putting the ‘o’ back in John and naming my restaurant ‘Cheque 22’ to mark a significant moment in literary history, which you can read about on Sir John’s website.

Carrying on the ‘life’ theme, a two-year old child has only just learned how to form simple sentences, so you will forgive me if I say I am nowhere near able to claim success in my personal Sir John journey. There is a lot more that needs to be done, and that I want to do. Charles Dickens may have seen a drum hanging from a tree in the garden, but I most certainly do not find money growing on them! This of course restricts the pace at which I travel; I have however taken the opportunity to bang Sir John’s drum wherever and whenever I can.

Come along and take the time to experience Sir John. We don’t expect you to have a three-course meal or a bottle of Prosecco; you can experience a bit of history with a shandy and a sandwich if you so wish!

Sir John has a long history of endeavouring to be all things to all people, which continues to this day; people just a tad north of 60 enjoying their lunch at the same time as a 24-year-old playing pool and 40-year-olds drinking too much wine in the garden. Long may this continue. 

We look forward to seeing you soon. And for all those we see often – on behalf of Sir John and me, we thank you for your patronage.                                  

Yours faithfully,

Jay