Afternoon Dry Spell Ends for Pubs in England, Wales

For the first time since World War I, the bartender’s dreaded afternoon cry of “Last orders!” will no longer ring out in pubs throughout England and Wales today.

Instead, thanks to new laws that permit all-day drinking, pubs that open at 11 a.m. can continue serving beer and other alcoholic drinks until closing time at 11 p.m.

“We’re hoping for a big crowd,” said Mick McCoy, assistant manager of the Hog in the Pound pub near the Oxford Street shopping district. “We’re stacked up (with beer). We’ve taken on a couple of extra people, just in case.”

Under the old system, pubs were forced to close from 3 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. The bartender’s warning at 2:50 p.m. created a rush for one last pint, and 10 minutes later, to the cry of “Time, gentlemen, please,” the guzzling was over.

The government imposed the rule in 1915 to curb drinking by munitions workers. Scotland went to all-day drinking in 1977, but the restriction held in the 68,000 English and Welsh pubs until today.

The British Medical Assn. opposes the extended hours, fearing increased alcohol-related illness and drunken-driving accidents.

Home Secretary Douglas Hurd, the Cabinet minister responsible for liquor laws, likened the old restriction to a “corset, a straitjacket, which has no particular rhyme or reason.” Parliament agreed and voted overwhelmingly in April to do away with the 2 1/2-hour afternoon dry period Monday through Saturday, while retaining it on Sundays.