Ambleside’s popular Golden Rule pub continues to thrive following lockdown | The Westmorland Gazette – The Westmorland Gazette

A POPULAR Ambleside pub is still going strong after lockdown with the owner praising the brewery and his right-hand man

The Golden Rule pub, located in Smithy Brow, is run by owner John Lockley and the bar is manned by John Wrenall.

The past 40years have seen Mr Lockley and Mr Wrenall man the pub, which has achieved great success and popularity in the area. It also has the distinction of being one of two pubs to hold the name The Golden Rule.

With its walls displaying impressive local artists' work, and maps of the area for people to plan their routes, the warm and friendly atmosphere has made the pub the popular attraction for walkers and hikers it is today.

There are only two known pubs in Britain called the Golden Rule, with the other being in Edinburgh.

Mr Lockley said: For me its been heaven here.

I cant really ever say theres been a time Ive regretted running this place.

This was the first pub I owned and it literally came out of the blue.

I was in the office of my old job one day, I was running a factory, and my mate came in who owned a pub in Ulverston, and through him I knew a guy from the brewery, and he said do you fancy running a pub? Here we are.

I had a great job, company car, nice pension, but it was driving me daft so I thought on it for three days before going for it. That was 40 years ago.

The Golden Rule comes from two places. It first came from the Biblical tale of the Good Samaritan and treating others as you would wish to be treated, but another rule is from the Napoleonic era.

If you stopped serving spirits and closed on Sundays, a pub could get certain tax advantages. But a landlord could be fined for selling whiskey on Sunday breaking the Golden Rule.

There was another Golden Rule pub in Bedford but that closed down, the only other one is in Edinburgh.

During the renaissance of Lakeland rock climbing, everyone was coming here to do all the big climbs.

In the 90s, it became paragliding. It was the hub for that sort of thing. We used to have 15-20 people in sleeping bags downstairs planning their routes, and then going climbing. During lockdown, our brewery has been very understanding with rents and things. Financially, we survived the hit.

If it werent for John Wrenall, I wouldnt be able to run this place. Hes the best kind of man to have on your side. We will never change this place.

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Ambleside's popular Golden Rule pub continues to thrive following lockdown | The Westmorland Gazette - The Westmorland Gazette