London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Scottish community awarded £500,000 to buy Britain’s remotest pub

Scottish community awarded £500,000 to buy Britain’s remotest pub

Residents of Knoydart peninsula, which is only accessible by boat or 18-mile hike, awarded grant to buy Old Forge pub

Mainland Britain’s remotest pub is set to be placed in the hands of its local community after tensions emerged with its Belgian owner.

Residents of the Knoydart peninsula on Scotland’s west coast have been awarded a grant of more than £500,000 by the Scottish Land Fund to buy the Old Forge pub, which is accessible only by boat or a roughly 18-mile hike across peat bogs and mountains.

“We are delighted that the Scottish Land Fund has chosen to support our community-ownership bid of the Old Forge. This project is of huge importance to Knoydart and we are now in a strong position to make it a reality,” said Jacqui Wallace and Rhona Miller, the co-chairs of the Old Forge Community Benefit Society.

Inside the Old Forge.


The pub is listed among the Guinness World Records as mainland Britain’s most remote. Its future became the subject of controversy as the local community became disenchanted with its owner, Jean-Pierre Robinet.

They were unhappy about the pub’s closure during the winter, which they argue is the most important time of the year for it to be open, and the effect of that and reduced staffing on attracting people to the area. The pub is central to the area’s tourist trade because of its position on the main sailing route to Skye, the Outer Hebrides and the Small Isles. It attracts yachtspeople, as well as hillwalkers and boat-trippers.

Robinet has previously said the Old Forge is the peninsula’s biggest employer and that he tries to “do the best for the community”. But, after 10 years, he wants to move on and put it up for sale for offers over £425,000.

After a community share offer that raised £240,000, the residents face a race to get the deal done before any private buyer steps in. The structure of their offer means local people would be required to own 75% of the shares. And they pinned their hopes for raising the rest of the money on their grant application.

With that now granted, the 110 residents of the rugged peninsula seem likely to get their wish.

Theirs was one of several projects to be allocated money by the Scottish Land Fund on Wednesday. The committee’s chair, Cara Gillespie, said: “It is a privilege and a pleasure to be involved in empowering our communities to take control of their destiny through ownership of local land and buildings.” She said the projects would support local economies and strengthen the resilience of their communities.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×