East End pub calls last orders

AN East End pub rumoured to be owned by a premier league footballer has called last orders only two months after it was reopened. The recently refurbished The Britannia in Bow Common Lane in Mile End caused a stir when it was officially reopened in Octo

AN East End pub rumoured to be owned by a premier league footballer has called last orders only two months after it was reopened.

The recently refurbished The Britannia in Bow Common Lane in Mile End caused a stir when it was officially reopened in October after being bought out earlier in the year.

Punters were expecting to see Chelsea player Joe Cole propping up the bar after it emerged the 28-year-old was a business partner in the property company which had bought the land.

But there will be no chance of spotting the footballer now as the pub closed its doors on New Year's Day.

And former landlord Mark Fuller thinks it could be the end for the boozer which was run by the well-know publican Ron Martin for 24 years before he died last July.

Mr Fuller said: "The owners were always going to give it until the New Year to see if it was viable. But it was not making any money.

"I don't think the owners are interested in keeping it as a pub."

The building lies in a conservation area and flats are believed to have already been built above the pub.