BY KEVIN SAWYER – The owner of a popular British bar has completely disabled cell phone reception in his bar because he wants people to actually talk to each other. He hasn’t just asked his patrons to shut off their cell phones or put them in airplane mode. He has actually installed a Faraday Cage on the ceiling of the bar which prevents any manner of signal reception at all.
The pub is called The Gin Tub and is located in Brighton, England. There is a national law in England which prohibits interference with cell phone signals but The Gin Tub is the only exception to that nationwide law. Owner Steven Tyler wants people to begin communicating the old school way by having to talk to them face to face without the rude disruptions brought on by cell phone addiction.
Tyler is adamant about his policy and says that, “Mobile phones have killed pubs. When you go out socially, you don’t need social media. Rather than telling people they can’t use their phones, we have actually disabled them.”
The Faraday Cage doesn’t jam the signals to a cell phone, it just acts as a barrier to prevent the signals from getting into the pub. For those who must use a phone, there are old rotary dial phones located on every table in the pub which are connected to standard land lines to the outside. The cool thing about the in house phones is that you can call another table to talk to someone or just to call up to the bar to have another round of drinks or food delivered.
Tyler believes that cell phone addiction has destroyed the art of conversation, of people really getting to know one another by actually talking to each other. Even though the bar has only been open for a month, his online reviews have been great and the pub has been regularly packed with patrons.
“A lot of people go out to bars and don’t even talk to their friends let alone to dates or new people. I wanted people to interact with each other and not with people who aren’t even in the room with them. Cell phones are killing the social side of going out. They are socializing with people that are not even there with you but we’re not going to let you.”
Tyler says that he has received no complaints about his strategy although he has seen more than a few people struggling with their cell phone and social media addictions while they are there.
“Everyone talks to everyone in my bar,” said Tyler. “We do shared tables here so if you’re two people coming in, we’ll put you with another two. So even if you or your partner has to go to the toilet, you just can’t insulate yourself on your cell phone. You will actually have to talk to them.”
PHOTO CREDITS: The Gin Tub / Facebook