There's a calculated reason Wetherspoon pubs have weirdly designed carpets
If you've ever enjoyed a quaff in any one of Wetherspoon's 800-plus establishments, you will no doubt have have remarked at their interesting decor.
More specifically, you will have noticed the choice of carpet, which is unique to each and every boozer in these fair isles.
And many of you will no doubt have suffered the effects of these bizarre designs, which have a tendency to leave the well-lubricated staggering to the bar.
But what's the reason behind them? Is Tim Martin playing some kind of sick joke on us?
Advert
Well, maybe, but also probably not.
Speaking previously, Jon Randall, Wetherspoon's head of property development and acquisitions, said bosses think very carefully about their carpets.
He said: "We place particular emphasis on the design of our new pubs, investing heavily in every aspect, as well as in the refurbishment of our older premises.
"With more than 900 pubs, that is a lot of carpet. All of our new pub carpets are individually designed, some with details to reflect aspects of the building's history or local area.
Advert
"It is great to see some of our customers, who are obviously loyal fans, taking an active interest with this unusual online collection."
But while most of us take the carpets for granted, focusing more on the contents of the glass in our hand than the building we're in, one man has taken it very seriously.
Kit Caless has spent much of his free time compiling a list of as many of their rugs as possible, setting up a blog and asking people to send in their snaps.
"I read this book by a friend of mine, Will Wiles, The Way Inn; in that novel, the main character visits the same hotel chain everywhere he goes," Kit told the Press Association.
Advert
"In each hotel, there’s a piece of art outside the lift, and he finally figures out that the art all matches up into one big, massive art piece.
"I was reading that book while I was in a Wetherspoon pub in Canterbury, and I finished it and I just looked down at the carpet and it was really complicated. I wondered whether the carpet matched another Wetherspoon one.
"Then, I got really interested, because, for a corporate chain to not repeat itself is a really rare thing. So I started looking into it – and it just sort of snowballed."
However, Kit's not alone.
Advert
A while back, a contestant on TV show Tenable left host Warwick Davies confused when he revealed his burning passion for Wetherspoon carpets, too.
A clip of the show was uploaded to social media and showed guest Darryl being questioned about his 'unusual' hobby - Warwick's words, not ours.
In the clip, Warwick asks: "I hear you have an unusual hobby, Darryl."
Darryl responds: "I don't think it's unusual. I like to visit different Wetherspoons and take photographs of the carpets."
Warwick then looks blankly at the camera before asking: "What?"
Dominic Smithers