JD Wetherspoon takes legal action over Welsh pub name

JD Wetherspoon has launched legal action against a Welsh pub after it began trading as part of ‘Wetherspoons Ltd’.

The national pub group, led by Sir Tim Martin, has filed a legal claim against the Bridge Head in Abergele, Denbighshire.

The Welsh pub faced controversy earlier this year after it changed its name from the traditional Welsh language name of Pen-y-Bont.

Its new signage includes the name ‘Wetherspoons Ltd’, although the pub is not affiliated with the JD Wetherspoon chain.

Companies House documents show ‘Wetherspoons Ltd’ was incorporated on 10 February this year.

A spokesman for JD Wetherspoon said: "We were made aware of a pub in Abergele in Conwy using the name ’Wetherspoons Ltd’ on their signage.

"Despite a number of requests to the pub owners to remove the reference to Wetherspoons, they refused, and we have therefore had to issue court proceedings asking the court order that they do so.

"We hope that the matter can still be resolved amicably."

Martin’s company has held the trademark for JD Wetherspoon since 1993 and Wetherspoons since 2002.

The name of the business is inspired by JD, a character in the Dukes of Hazzard, while Wetherspoon was the surname of one of Martin’s former teachers.

JD Wetherspoon’s first pub opened in Muswell Hill, London, in 1979.

A spokesman for the Bridge Head told North Wales Live in March: “Wetherspoons Ltd is a legitimate name and an available name. It has been registered with Companies House.”

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