Greene King have finally stopped serving Harveys in the Lewes Arms. As a response, the Friends of the Lewes Arms have introduced a ‘vigil’ whereby former LA drinkers take it in turns to stand outside the door of the pub and try to persuade would-be customers that it is not the done thing to enter. There has, inevitably, been a drop-off in customers, mostly because the majority of the drinkers there are regulars who are loyal to Harveys. On Friday night there was much talk of what to do: there was a general mood of sadness but determination amongst the regulars to boycott the pub. Since then regular LA drinkers have been popping up in unlikely places. On Sunday it was reported that there was a ‘Lewes Arms’ table in the Elephant and Castle.

Manek Dubash, who was part of the first vigil on Tuesday afternoon, said “the support this lunchtime from passers-by and from people who were going to enter the Lewes Arms but, on hearing our arguments, then didn't, was tremendous… It really was worth doing: we turned away all bar three people who would otherwise have gone in.” Two Viva Lewes reporters popped in on Monday lunchtime to see what the atmosphere was like. They reported an almost empty pub (there were two Greene King representatives there, perhaps to bolster numbers) and the fact that there is now a ‘Loyalty Card’ on tables (ironically enough) offering a free tenth drink, rather like that used by Caffe Nero. There is, however, a rather serious spelling mistake on the card, which bears the legend ‘LOYATY CARD.’ Oops. AL