England's oldest pub Ye Olde Fighting Cocks closes over coronavirus struggles

Like many hospitality businesses, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks will not survive the challenges of the pandemic. Photo / Unsplash

When they laid foundations for Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, the year was supposedly 793.

To give some perspective, Vikings still roamed around, massive wars and plagues abounded and New Zealand was still a few hundred years from being discovered.

The pub, which was first recorded as being an alehouse in 1756 under the name The Three Pidgeons, has survived a lot. However, Covid-19 may be the final straw.

Affectionately called 'The Fighters' or 'The Cocks' by locals, the public house is an hour's drive from London, in St Albans and, like many very old pubs, claims to be the oldest in Britain.

Currently, it is owned by Mitchells & Butlers, one of Britain's largest pub chains and leased to Christo Tofalli.

Tofalli said the move came after "challenging" trading conditions due to Covid-19 but hoped the pub will reopen under new management with the same spirit as before.

"After a sustained period of extremely challenging trading conditions, YOFC Ltd has gone into administration," Tofalli wrote in a Facebook post on February 5.

"Along with my team, I have tried everything to keep the pub going," he wrote.

"However, the past two years have been unprecedented for the hospitality industry, and have defeated all of us who have been trying our hardest to ensure this multi-award-winning pub could continue trading into the future.

"It goes without saying I am heartbroken: this pub has been so much more than just a business to me, and I feel honoured to have played even a small part in its history."

Hours after the closure was announced, Tofalli said he was overwhelmed with supportive messages from locals and visitors from several countries.

"I've never seen anything like it," he told the BBC.

"With all the messages I have had, it speaks for itself what we achieved."