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When Tony Waddington was a teenager pulling pints behind a bar, he remembers characters from all walks of life coming together to put the world to rights. After 50 years in the business, he fears drinking habits are shifting away from pubs.
Situated on the Coast to Coast walking route in the North York Moors National Park, Tony has been the landlord of the Arncliffe Arms in Glaisdale for four and a half years and will be handing in his keys in October, leaving its future in doubt.
The 68-year-old says the tough decision was taken following a nosedive in takings, forcing him to let staff go to keep on top of bills.
"The atmosphere and the characters and everything else were totally different back then, it was a different culture," the landlord admits.
"The culture these days is young'uns on their phones if you can get them to come out.
"They don't seem to want to meet and greet and socialise as much as people did back in the day."
Tony says the pub used to be the "hub of every village" and people would go to talk about their days and any problems they had.
"You talked to a barman or a barmaid, we were there just to listen and help people out.
"You knew which pub to go to to meet a bricklayer, a scaffolder. Now you just flick online and it's all there."
According to the latest research by charity Drinkaware, 73% of alcohol in the UK is purchased in supermarkets and convenience stores for home consumption.
Adults are twice as likely to drink weekly at home as they are in pubs, bars or restaurants (40% vs 21%).
The charity says most home drinking is moderate, but warns its routine and private nature means risks can build gradually and remain less visible.
"I like people to have a drink and enjoy themselves, but we can have a word with them and suggest that they go home or suggest they don't go on to the top shelf," Tony explains.
"When they're at home, there's nobody to stop them. There's no time called at 23:00."
A way to combat this, according to the landlord, is to tackle supermarkets selling alcohol at such low prices.
"They shouldn't be using it as a loss leader to draw people into the shops to buy other products," he adds.
'It's a lifestyle'
At the six-room B&B pub, a stopping point before the final Coast to Coast leg to Robin Hood's Bay, the landlord says his shifts can stretch to 18 hours a day due to staffing cutbacks.
Since April 2025, employers have had to pay National Insurance at 15% on salaries above £5,000, up from 13.8% on salaries above £9,100.
The government also increased the minimum wage by 4.1% to £12.71 per hour in April for workers aged over 21, which made the publican reduce staff from four to two.
"I just financially cannot afford to continue," Tony says.
"If you're a landlord, it isn't a job - it's a lifestyle.
"You get up in the morning, you cook breakfast for your residents, you're cleaning, tidying, it's an all-day lifestyle. You can't do this nine to five."
Turning 69 this year, Tony has decided to move back home to Leeds and relieve himself of the pressures of running a pub.
"People seem to go in thinking it's a super duper job, but there's an awful lot of background work to be done," he adds.
Speaking on a visit to Scarborough last week, the former minister for employment, Dame Diana Johnson, said Tony's case was "really sad to hear".
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), she said: "I know that hospitality and pubs in particular have had a hard time, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic.
"There's been support that's gone into supporting pubs, and there's support that was announced around business rates, and £4.3bn was announced to help small businesses and pubs.
"I'd also say that the national living wage has gone up, but we think that's a fair amount for it to go up."
Alison Hume, the MP for Scarborough and Whitby, admitted that increases to National Insurance contributions "have hit smaller employers hard" but added that "we are now backing up our promise to help them with breaks".
She told the LDRS: "We've reduced the VAT on attractions, we're giving children free bus travel in August, and obviously we're always looking at how we can help the hospitality industry – it is tough, and I would be lying if I said it wasn't."
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