Boozers hit by soap landlords

Pub bosses are crying into their beer over TV soaps which show landlords as cheats who bully their staff. They fear the poor role models in shows like Coronation Street and EastEnders could stop new blood coming into the industry.

Now a leading pub chain is challenging TV scriptwriters to get to grips with what is really involved in running a local by inviting them to attend training courses for its managers.

Whitbread is also offering to send its best licensees to train soap actors in basic pub skills.

Among the offending storylines in Coronation Street have been Duggie's continuing battle with his staff in the Rovers Return and barman Peter Barlow watering down its whisky.

Meanwhile in EastEnders, Peggy discovered dubious book-keeping at The Queen Vic and Barry was portrayed as not knowing how to clean out beer lines.

Richard Ellis, marketing director for Whitbread Pub Partnerships which runs 1,700 pubs, said: "We understand it's not easy for scriptwriters to keep coming up with new angles, but we are sick of the pub industry always being made to look so amateurish.

"We have a wide variety of people running successful pubs and it is simply not good enough to portray pub businesses in such a negative way."

Any scriptwriters who attend the Whitbread courses will get an insight into everything from pouring a pint to managing the beer cellar, staff motivation and sales promotion.

Mr Ellis said: "The key to their success is good training. We send all new recruits on a comprehensive six-day induction programme which brings them up to speed and can lead to the National Licensee Certificate.

"We are working hard to encourage new blood into the industry. The scriptwriters should call time on the far fetched plots - I challenge them to attend one of our courses and get the real story."