Northcote Pub landlords celebrate 40 years as licensees

The News, Portsmouth

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00:00Hi my name is Barry Kuehl and I'm the landlord of the Northcote Hotel.

00:05Hi and I'm Lynne Kuehl and I'm Barry's wife.

00:09So tell me a little bit about, especially the last 40 years in the pub trade.

00:16We came into the pub trade in 1984 in March. We had the Leopard at Purbrook

00:24for six years and then in 1990 we moved here to the Northcote and we've been here ever since.

00:32My wife's family were publicans for many many years,

00:36her mother and father and her grandparents and my great-grandparents were publicans.

00:44Regarding my family, my dad was born in a pub in Portsmouth, my great-grandmother died in a pub

00:54in Portsmouth and our grandson Jordan was born in this pub upstairs in the bathroom 18

01:01years ago, very unexpectedly. He was three months early and she didn't know that she was pregnant

01:10but he's now 18, six foot odd tall and works behind the bar for us now.

01:17So he's had a bit of a journey in the pub trade as well.

01:20So we've got a really nice pub here, excuse me, with really nice customers I have to say.

01:28They've looked after us, we've looked after them, quite a good camaraderie in the pub and

01:35they are really just genuinely nice people.

01:38So tell me what it is about the pub trade that's kept you in it for so many years?

01:42I think it's probably the fact that it's the community thing and

01:48socialising, a big social aspect to the pub obviously because you've got to say

01:52that we've made lots and lots of friends over the years within the pub trade.

01:58We've also seen an awful lot of changes.

02:01I was just about to ask that.

02:02Yeah an awful lot of changes within the pub trade but we've tried to adapt as we've gone

02:07along and to get to 40 years is quite an achievement in all those changes.

02:15Especially for me, having been born into the pub trade and watched my grandparents and my parents

02:23and now us and the way that everything is today.

02:29And I've always said, we've never said that we're the best at what we do but we haven't done bad.

02:36So to survive it.

02:38And it's like you said, we've got a lovely pub here and we've got really lovely people.

02:45We had a bit of a do last Saturday where one of our original customers of 40 years ago

02:53actually came in from Purbrook.

02:56His brother couldn't make it but so I think that's testament to sometimes who you are,

03:02how you do things and I don't think we've done too bad.

03:10We're not perfect but we've made mistakes like everybody but

03:13genuinely I think we've done a pretty good job but I'm blowing my own trumpet now.

03:20So tell me what the future holds for you both.

03:24Are you still excited to be in the trade and to deliver that service every day?

03:30It's not an easy job, you have to be a customer focused person don't you?

03:37A lot of people seem to think this job is easy, it's not.

03:40But the fact, again, I always think if you do a job well

03:44and make it look easy for people then you're doing a good job.

03:50Which I always like to think that we've done, we've always had certain standards

03:55since we've been in the pub trade from day one.

03:58We've had our own way of doing it and it's worked for us.

04:03I still enjoy the company, the camaraderie of the customers and whatever so it still

04:12turns me on I suppose in a way if you like.

04:15When I come down the stairs it's nice to see all these people and to interact with them.

04:20And he's also known as you can see for his fancy shirt.

04:25It's a great shirt.

04:26Oh that's one of about 30 that he's got in the wardrobe.

04:31Any future plans for, you know, are you planning to stay here?

04:37We've just 18 months ago signed a new five-year tenancy

04:42so obviously to safeguard our daughter and our grandson more than anything.

04:49So it looks as if we're probably going to see that through.

04:55Sam's come on the tenancy with us now.

04:59So if we want to take a back seat and, you know, do other things elsewhere then

05:04she can carry on with Jordan.

05:06If that's what they want to do then they're quite entitled to.

05:10She's very well known Sam within the local area.

05:13She's taken on more responsibility obviously the older that we're getting now.

05:19She does a very good job and the brewery were quite happy for her to come on the tenancy.

05:28So like that it all works quite well for us.

05:31So we believe that you're the longest serving tenants,

05:37landlords, sorry, in Portsmouth but possibly Hampshire as well?

05:41Somebody said, yeah, whether that's true or not I don't know how you would actually find that out.

05:47I'm not quite sure but we were told somebody done a dive into the archives of

05:54publicans in within Hampshire and they said you were the longest serving so I don't really know.

05:59How does that make you feel?

06:02Yeah quite proud of it really personally.

06:05In a way, yeah, it's like I just said it's a case of survival.

06:10A lot these days and when you're, certainly for us where we are, we've got an awful lot of

06:15competition around us but at the end of the day sometimes I always feel if it's your personality

06:23that appeals to different people, Barry appeals to a certain clientele with the football,

06:30I can relate to other people, Sam's a different generation, Jordan's a different generation.

06:35So we've got a bit of a mix going on amongst us as a family type thing and so if you've got

06:43a certain personality that people take to then, you know, happy days is my day.

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