Tim Martin Doesn't Even Get A Free Pint When He Is In Wetherspoon Pubs
Tim Martin, despite owning more than 800 Wetherspoon pubs, always makes sure to pay for his Abbot Ale
Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has revealed that he doesn't even get a free pint when he goes into one of his 870-odd establishments.
Martin, who started the UK's largest pub chain back in 1979, explained how he believes it's important that he pays and is seen to pay for things that he gets in his pubs, as well as - quite rightly - pointing out that there is such a thing as too many free pints.
Martin also revealed what he eats and drinks when he sits down for some scran in a Wetherspoon pub.
Speaking to LADbible, the 66-year-old said: "If I'm in a Wetherspoon pub in the evening, I'll have a couple of pints of Abbot [Ale, made by Greene King].
"My preferred meal is fish and chips, even though it's a bit high on the old calories.
"I'll have a glass of Merlot after the meal, and if I'm really pushing the boat out, I'll have two.
"During the day I'll have a coffee and a wrap or a salad or something like that at lunch.
"I try to go for the small traditional breakfast, and there, you have my life wrapped up."
He continued: "I always pay, because I always think that if I don't pay it gives a very bad impression.
"So, I pay - and I don't claim it back on expenses."
Of course, you might have realised that he's essentially paying himself for his own things, but at the end of the day, he still has to fork over the cash, just like every other Wetherspoon customer.
"Most people are amazed that I pay," he added. "My children's friends, for example, think that I must have started the company so that I could drink for free.
"In [my] first pub, I discovered after a few months that drinking for free is not a good idea.
"It's possible to overdo it."
It certainly is - anyone who has been to a party with a free bar can relate to that.
Even the free bar isn't really free, you just have to pay for it another way.
You might think that retirement might offer Martin an option to while away his evenings with free pints, but he also claims that will never happen.
He explained: "I think we're built to work, and I'm happy to do a day's work.
"I enjoy a pint more in the evening [after a day of work], so I'm hoping to continue until five years after I'm dead."
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: UK News, Wetherspoon, Food And Drink, Pub
Tom Wood