Vaughan Moore & Mason Moore | 23 April 2022

NEW DETAILS have emerged over a national pub giant’s plans to make a triumphant comeback to the Hinckley area.

As first reported by LeicestershireLive, cut-price beer chain, Wetherspoons, have their sights set on taking on a currently empty unit housed inside of Hinckley’s Crescent shopping and leisure complex.

Planning documents lodged with Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council (HBBC), show that ‘Spoons want to transform the currently-vacant former Guess How Much! discount store retail unit into a brand new pub.

They would even enlarge two existing entrance doors and install three new bin stores in the service area – and the documents further reveal that the 8,773 sq ft space would be able to hold an impressive capacity of 840 customers in total.

Documents further state that JD Wetherspoons would be employing many people to man the site – with around 80 in total – with hopes to have 30 employees working full time, whilst 50 employees would be working on a part-time basis.

The proposed trading hours for the site are from 8am to 12am from Monday to Friday. And, it would operate for the same hours over the course of the weekend.

On Sundays and Bank Holidays, it would trade from 8am until 1am, staying open an extra hour later.

At the time of publication (Saturday, 23 April), no name for the proposed pub has been announced, as the plans are still ‘awaiting decision’ as they are in the early stages.

But, Wetherspoons are typically known to name their boozers after local historic figures, fictional characters from local works, and iconic local landmarks.

The Crescent has been home to many a new opening this year, with many empty spaces being used once again – Bikaneri, an Indian restaurant, based in the former Rossini’s, and Sticky Sisters, based in the former Burger King.

Currently, those wanting to tuck in to some of the chain’s pub grub have to travel over to Nuneaton’s Felix Holt, or Leicester city centre’s two sites – The Corn Exchange and The High Cross.

The only other dedicated drinking hole in The Crescent is a micropub named the Elbow Room Ale and Cider House, which opened back in 2015 and boasts a variety of independent cask and draft ciders, ales, and lagers.

The history of Hinckley’s Wetherspoons

As many will remember, Hinckley’s former Wetherspoons branch – The Baron of Hinckley – infamously poured its last pint on September 22, 2019.

The former Baron quietly became ‘The New Baron’, owned by local publican Nirad Solanki and his wife, Payal Solanki, who own Elmesthorpe Brewery Company.

In December 2018, when plans to close The Baron in September 2019 were revealed, ‘Spoons boss Tim Martin explained: “Drinkers of Hinckley can approach me if they haven’t got another pub there within two or three years.”

Since then, Hinckley residents have been longing for the chain to make a return with a brand new site.
Back in June 2021, Wetherspoons spokesperson Eddie Gershon provided a major update to the Free Press, confirming that Hinckley was “on the list” of their towns where they were looking for new locations.