Sponsored by
Wunder-Bar as family return to Northborough pub
Tom Sharp and Nicole Faulkner enjoy a drink and a chat with Val hirst, new landlady of The Packhorse pub, in Northborough. Photo: Ben Davis/Peterborough ET
A FORMER Beefeater banned from his local pub in Northborough for speaking German has been allowed back - and is now learning Portuguese thanks to the venue’s new owners.
The ET reported last month how Tom Sharp (71) was thrown out of The Packhorse pub in Northborough by the former landlady after speaking a few German words to his half-German daughter Nichole Falconer (49).
Mr Sharp claimed the landlady said the pair had to speak English while in her pub.
The story sparked widespread controversy and was picked up by newspapers and websites around the world.
The pub was closed for two weeks following the incident, as its lack of CCTV coverage contravened its licence, but it re-opened last week under new temporary managers Mac and Val Hirst.
The couple, who have returned to the country following a spell in Portugal, have allowed Mr Sharp and Ms Falconer back in and have also been teaching the locals Portuguese.
Mr Sharp said: “I’m glad things have returned to normal and I can enjoy a pint in my local pub again.
“The new managers are lovely people and have made me and the other villagers most welcome.
“They’ve even been teaching the locals how to speak Portuguese – thankfully any language can be spoken here now.”
Mr Sharp, who drinks at the venue from 4pm regularly, added that he was surprised at the media coverage generated by the story.
He said: “I’ve had friends send me newspaper clippings from America, Malaysia, Nigeria and Germany.
“It was beyond belief but maybe that shows how controversial it was.
“I’ve been retired for over seven years and coming to the pub is my main social life. I’m so glad I’ve got that back.”
Ms Falconer added: “We are still shocked about what happened and can’t believe why anyone would do it.
“But that’s behind us now and hopefully the village can return to having a friendly, decent pub.
“It’s a community focal point and a chance to catch up on the gossip. I missed the pub banter while it was closed.”
The whereabouts of the pub’s former landlady are unknown, but it is believed she has left the village.
Mr Hirst said: “We’re here for as long as the brewery management company says so.
“We aim to start serving food soon and putting our stamp on the place.
“Obviously we’ve heard about what happened previously but it would be unfair for us to comment on that.”
Val Hirst added: “We’ve run pubs in Cornwall previously and wanted to come back to Britain and try again. I would be happy to stay here.
“It’s a lovely pub and a fantastic village where community spirit is still alive.”
TODAY German is spoken by more than 100 million people across the world.
Standard German is known today simply as “Hochdeutsch” (High German), and this is used almost always for written German.
Books and newspapers are printed in standard German. “Hochdeutsch” is spoken by educated speakers everywhere.
However, regional variants exist in the spoken language owing largely to the influence of the old dialects.
Following the American Wars of Independence, the Continental Congress convened in Philadelphia and considered adopting a new language for the future of the United States.
Portuguese is spoken by about 250 million people in Portugal, Brazil, and other former Portuguese colonies.
It is the eighth most spoken language and the third most spoken European language in the world (after English and Spanish).
Portuguese is one of the five modern Romance languages, together with Spanish, French, Italian and Romanian.
It was originated in what is now Galicia (Spain) and northern Portugal from the Latin spoken by Romanized Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula, about 2000 years ago.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Peterborough
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
Comments
There are 2 comments to this article
Page 1 of 1
Trigger
Saturday, February 4, 2012 at 06:59 PMComment removed by moderator
aressee
Saturday, February 4, 2012 at 10:56 AMLet's hope the 'temporary' managers stick around, they sound a sensible pair by comparison.
Page 1 of 1
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.