Four and a half years on from pubs having to shut their doors due to Covid, many are still reeling from the knock-on effects.
Case in point: The Harrison in King's Cross. Affectionately known as the 'Harry', aside from being a lovely little backstreet boozer serving a good Sunday lunch, it plays a vital role in the grassroots music and comedy scene, with a steady programme of artists performing here.
Sadly, the pub has been made to pay its landlords the full rent for the entire Covid period — totalling almost £100,000. As you can imagine, the management doesn't have this kind of cash lying around, and has turned to Crowdfunder to raise the money.
As the Harrison's management says, "This is despite Boris Johnson promising the burden of Covid Rent Debt would be split fairly between the Landlords and Tenants, according to means. Our Landlords are the third richest family in the country, with a fortune of £25 billion, over 40 times richer than the King.
"As you can imagine, the whole process has been pretty hard to swallow."
The pub is now on the home straight — at the time of writing, with just £10k to pay back. But they've only got just over a couple of weeks to do so. Anyone who wants to bung the Harrison a few quid can do so on their Crowdfunder. Otherwise, the Harry is hosting an all-day folk festival fundraiser at nearby venue Jamboree on 29 September.
