The landlord's blog
Plain guides for running a busier pub. Written from behind the bar at Teal Farm, with sources for every fact.
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Bonfire Night in a pub: event ideas that don't need a fireworks display
Bonfire Night 2026 is a Thursday. Here's how a pub can make the most of it, with or without fireworks: the timings, food, a themed quiz, the screens, and the fireworks rules to check first.
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Bonfire Night pub quiz: 20 questions and answers (checked against the history books)
Twenty Bonfire Night quiz questions with answers for a pub round, from the Gunpowder Plot to the fireworks rules, each one checked against a named source, plus a tie-breaker and tips for running the round.
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Christmas party bookings in a pub: how to fill December (and the quiet nights in it)
A practical plan for pub Christmas party bookings in 2026: which dates to sell first, simple party packages, deposits, a booking sheet, and how to fill the Mondays and Tuesdays nobody asks for.
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Christmas pub quiz: how to run it, plus 20 questions and answers
How to run a Christmas pub quiz that fills a quiet December night, with round ideas, a running order, 20 Christmas quiz questions and answers checked against named sources, and a tie-breaker.
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Temporary Event Notices for Christmas and New Year: a plain guide for pubs
Staying open late on Mad Friday, Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve? Here's what a Temporary Event Notice is, the limits, the fee, and the 2026 dates to get it in by, in plain English for pubs in England and Wales.
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Pub quiz software and apps: what to look for before you pay
An honest buyer's checklist for pub quiz software and phone quiz apps in the UK: what your customers need, what the host needs, the price traps, who owns the data, and the questions to ask before you sign anything.
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25 pub quiz tie-breaker questions with answers (and how to settle a draw fairly)
Twenty-five pub quiz tie-breaker questions with number answers, checked against named sources or easy to work out, plus how to run a tie-break so nobody argues, and how to write your own local ones.
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Pub quiz rules: a fair set you can copy (phones, teams, ties and prizes)
A ready-to-use set of pub quiz rules for UK pubs, covering team sizes, phones and cheating, marking and disputes, tie-breaks, prizes and entry fees, with the gambling and licensing points explained in plain English.
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Pub quiz round ideas: 15 rounds that work (and a few with a twist)
Fifteen pub quiz round ideas that work in a real pub, from a local round and table-top hand-outs to connections and "higher or lower", with how to run each one, how hard to make it, and the licence and copyright points to watch.
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How to host a pub quiz: a running order and script you can use tonight
A complete guide to hosting a pub quiz, from the kit and the checklist before doors to a minute-by-minute running order, what to say on the mic, how to mark fast and fairly, and what to do the morning after.
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Music bingo for pubs: how to run a night people come back for
How to run music bingo in a UK pub: making the cards, picking the songs, a running order, settling claims, prizes, and the music licence and gambling rules to check before your first night.
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How to get more customers into a pub on quiet nights (midweek ideas that actually work)
Practical ways to fill a quiet Monday to Wednesday in a UK pub: find out when it's really quiet, give people a reason to come, bring in groups, use your screens, and test one idea at a time so you know what worked.
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Pub digital signage: what it is, what it costs and what to look for
A plain guide to digital signage for pubs: what it means, the cheap and not-so-cheap ways to do it, what to show, the price traps, the advertising and licence rules, and a checklist before you sign up to anything.
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How to show football fixtures in your pub (and get people in before kick-off)
A simple weekly routine for showing football fixtures in a UK pub: where to check them, what to put on your board, screens and socials, the 3pm Saturday rule explained, the licences to check, and how to get people in early.
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How to put a web page on a pub TV (with a streaming stick, an old laptop or a smart TV)
Step-by-step ways to show a web page full screen on a pub TV using a streaming stick, an old laptop or the TV's own browser, plus the settings that stop it going to sleep mid-quiz and fixes for the usual problems.
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Pub marketing ideas that cost little: 15 things to do this week
Fifteen low-cost pub marketing ideas for UK landlords, from fixing your Google listing and asking for reviews the right way to table cards, your own email list and your pub TVs, with the rules to stay on the right side of.
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Pub events calendar 2027: event ideas for every month
Every date a UK pub should plan around in 2027, month by month, from Burns Night and the Six Nations to Halloween on a Sunday and Christmas on a Saturday, with a simple event idea for each and the lead times to start promoting.
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January in a pub: how to get through the quietest month
January is skint, cold and full of people doing Dry January. Here's a practical plan for pubs: what to sell, which nights to push, cheap events that work, and how to keep the regulars coming in until payday.
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Six Nations 2027 in your pub: every fixture, kick-off time and a plan for each weekend
All 15 men's Six Nations 2027 fixtures with UK kick-off times, the weekends that matter most for pubs, and a simple plan for food, bookings, screens and a rugby quiz, plus the licences to check.
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Halloween pub event ideas: for families, for adults, and for next year
Halloween 2026 is a Saturday. Here are pub event ideas that work, from a kids disco to an adults' fancy dress night, plus decorations on a budget, the safety and ID points to watch, and a plan to start earlier next year.
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How to run a pub quiz that fills a quiet Tuesday
A plain plan for a midweek quiz people come back for: the timing, the rounds, the prizes and the small habits that keep the back tables playing.
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Why the back of the room can't hear your quiz (and how to fix it without a new PA)
The real reasons questions get lost at the back tables, and cheap fixes you can try this week, from mic habits and speaker placement to putting the questions on your TVs.
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What to put on your pub TVs when the football isn't on
Your screens are on for hours with nothing worth watching. Here's what earns its place, what needs a licence, and what you're not allowed to show at all.
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Is anyone reading your pub TVs? A two-week test
A simple test using a code word and a till button to find out if your screen offers actually get read, plus what to change if nobody bites.
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Building your own customer email list legally in a UK pub
The UK GDPR and PECR basics for collecting customer emails in a pub: a separate opt-in, nothing pre-ticked, an easy way out, and records you can show. Plain English, not legal advice.
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Music in the pub: what the PPL PRS licence covers for quiz music rounds and music bingo
Music rounds and music bingo mean playing recorded music to customers. Here's what TheMusicLicence is, when you need it, what affects the price and what to ask before your first music night.
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Phone quizzes in pubs: what works and what flops (our first week at Teal Farm)
Real numbers from the first days of an all-day phone quiz at Teal Farm in Washington: what people did, where they dropped off, and what we'd tell any landlord thinking of trying one.
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Bingo at the quiz break: how to run it without the arguments
A quick game of bingo keeps people in their seats at the quiz break. Here's how to run it fairly, settle claims without a row, and why playing it for fun keeps things simple.
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Pre-match quizzes: getting people in before kick-off
Most match-day crowds arrive five minutes before kick-off. A short quiz about the local club gives them a reason to come earlier. Here's how to run one, plus the licences to check.
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How much does a quiz night really cost a pub?
Host, prizes, paper and kit, added up line by line with the workings shown, plus the simple sum that tells you how many extra drinks it needs to pay for itself.
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Cheap ways to put your offers on your pub TVs
From a USB stick in the back of the telly to proper screen software, here are the cheap ways to get your own offers on your pub TVs, what each one costs and where each one falls down.
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Prizes that bring people back
Bar tabs, weekly winners and monthly champions: how to pick prizes that get spent in your pub, write rules that keep it fair, and stay on the right side of the gambling and licensing rules.
Shaun's articles
Pieces Shaun has written for the trade press, and where he's been in the news. They open on the publisher's site.
Pub Social
How many pints does your CO2 cylinder give you? A pub cellar check
Pub Social
Are customers reading your pub TVs? Try this two-week test
The Morning Advertiser
Licensee finds £1.31 of north-east pint goes to Treasury
The Morning Advertiser
Licensee launches free gross profit calculator for pub operators
Want this running in your pub?
StockTap TV puts your quiz nights, games, offers and match-day screens on every TV, run from your phone. £34 a month for the whole pub. Nothing extra to pay. 14-day free trial. We're taking 10 founding pubs.