The Publican's 30th Birthday: Martin Duckworth

Martin Duckworth, former editor of The Publican Newspaper and director of Innput Communications, helps mark The Publican Newspaper's 30th Birthday.

• What were you doing 30 years ago?​

I was a cub reporter with Home Counties Newspapers, working on the Luton News and Herts Advertiser (St Albans)

What has been the biggest change in the pub industry in the past 30 years?​

The radical change from boozers and beer palaces to female-friendly environments, where comfort and style have replaced nicotine-covered walls and ceilings, and ambience and service mean more than the price of a pint

Which individual has had the biggest impact on the pub trade in the past 30 years?​

There can really be only one man - that's Tim Martin. He took on the big boys, rewrote the rules and shook up the pub trade by demonstrating that modern facilities, consumer choice, value of money and good customer service can all be achieved, and are a blueprint for massive success. Clean toilets, too!

What are the biggest challenges facing the industry over the next 30 years?​

Self interest must be banished and the trade needs to at last speak as one strong voice. The industry must then work as one to restore the image of the pub after endless savage attacks by an ill-informed media in the wake of licensing reform.

Pubs must continue to adapt and innovate to attract the next generation of pub-goers

When did you first read a copy of The Publican?​

Sometime during 1980. I had just started working on Whitbread News, that company's employee and pub newspaper

Do you have a message for us on our 30th birthday?​

To continue to campaign for and promote all the things that are great about the industry as effectively as the newspaper has for the last 30 years.