Martin Clunes reckons the UK government doesn’t ‘know anything about the countryside’ as our village pubs close down at record rates
Miffed Martin Clunes has blasted the Government for “not knowing anything about the countryside” as Britain’s village pubs shut at a rate of four a day.
It comes as the Doc Martin actor stars in a new film celebrating the nation’s struggling boozers.
Clunes, 64, takes centre stage in British comedy Mother’s Pride, playing grumpy landlord Mick Harley who is battling to keep his failing Somerset local alive.
He warned the loss of watering holes is devastating for rural communities like the one he now lives in. The Men Behaving Badly star said: “We’re very isolated where I live now in Dorset, and so many of the pubs are closing around here.”
The film centres on the struggling Drovers Arms, a rundown pub trying to survive against a flashy gastropub rival across the road.
Its landlord Mick is still grieving his late wife while his dysfunctional family scrambles together a desperate plan to save the business.
Despite the comedy tone, Clunes says the story highlights a very real problem facing the countryside.
He added: “This film is like an ode to the pub.
“For those people stuck to bar stools around the country, this is often their only contact with people.
“And there is an awful lot of isolation in the countryside. And if you take that one thing away, it can have a monumental impact.”
Director Nick Moorcroft had the idea for the film after seeing the decline of rural pubs while scouting locations.
Writers visited more than 500 pubs before settling on the Somerset village of Norton St Philip, where the historic Fleur de Lys doubled as the struggling Drovers Arms.
The film opens in cinemas on Friday.