A Ten Minute Favour Turns Into 50 Years Behind the Bar

What began as a simple favour expected to last just 10 minutes has turned into half a century behind the bar for a pub worker in Cambridgeshire.

Glyn Jones first stepped behind the bar at The Prince Albert in Ely in 1976 after being asked to help during a particularly busy period. He never imagined that the short shift would become a 50 year chapter of his life.

Now 76, Jones continues to work at the pub from Thursday to Sunday. Dressed in his familiar shirt, colourful tie and braces, he remains a regular presence behind the bar and says he has no immediate plans to retire.

Looking back, Jones says the years have passed remarkably quickly.

He recalls that when he began working at the pub, a pint cost around 20 pence. The pub has changed considerably since then, but his enthusiasm for the job has remained.

Jones says working behind the bar also had a personal impact. He describes himself as shy when he first started, but believes meeting customers and becoming part of the pub community helped him gain confidence.

Over the decades, his distinctive appearance also became part of the character of the pub. Jones has traditionally worked in a shirt and tie with braces, making him easily recognizable to generations of customers.

One regular customer even created a long running joke about him. The customer would repeatedly claim that whenever Jones blew the horn to signal closing time, his trousers would fall down.

The story was told so often that Jones eventually began to believe it himself.

His five decades at The Prince Albert were not his only long term commitment. For 48 years, Jones also worked as a laboratory technician at the University of Cambridge’s Department for Plant Sciences.

Balancing his university career with regular shifts at the pub meant that working behind the bar became an enduring part of his life rather than simply a second job.

Friends, colleagues and customers recently gathered to celebrate his remarkable service. Around 90 people attended a surprise party marking his 50 years at the pub.

Jones was presented with an award from the Campaign for Real Ale, along with a special plaque from Greene King in recognition of his extraordinary length of service.

Mike Connelly, who has managed the pub for 14 years, said Jones has become one of the most dependable people associated with the establishment.

During his time at The Prince Albert, Jones has worked under six different landlords. Connelly says his reliability and commitment have remained constant throughout all those changes.

Despite a new landlord preparing to take over the pub, Jones intends to continue working there.

For him, retirement does not yet appear to be part of the plan.

The original 10 minute favour has therefore become a remarkable 50 year career, filled with changing customers, different landlords and countless pints served across generations.

Jones himself has jokingly described the experience as the “longest 10 minutes in history.”

Connelly is already looking beyond the half century milestone. He says Jones should continue until he reaches 60 years behind the bar.

For a man who only intended to help during a busy spell in 1976, that next milestone may be the perfect continuation of an extraordinary pub story.

Courtesy: BBC