Stonegate Pub Company shares The Horns reopening plans

On Saturday evening (October 21), the pub in Hempstead Road shared that the night would be its last.

The manager, Jane Giles, and her team said that despite trying their hardest to keep the pub and music venue open, it proved “totally unsustainable”, forcing them to shut the doors.

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However, its operator Stonegate Pub Company confirmed today (October 25) that it is trying to get a new manager in place to take over.

A spokesperson said: “The Horns, Watford, is currently closed as a new management agreement is set to be put in place.

“We hope to reopen the site soon once the publican taking the pub forward has been confirmed.

“To keep up to date with the latest news, please visit The Horn’s website or Facebook page.”

The Horns. (Image: Watford Observer Camera Club/Vlad Dan)

Stonegate operates several pubs in the town including The Cother Arms, The Partridge, Prince George, Walkabout, and Rifle Volunteer.

The goodbye message from the team at The Horns said: “We’ve tried our hardest to get us through this, but sadly we can’t.

“The pub is totally unsustainable, and I can’t keep it running any longer. I’m truly very sorry for any inconvenience caused.

“Thank you massively to the bands, friends, and customers for all your help fundraisers and gigs over the years.”

The Horns (Image: Stephen Danzig)

Around this time last year (October 30, 2022), The Horns initially announced it had closed “for the last time” before an “extraordinary” response from locals and meetings with Stonegate produced fresh hope it would be able to keep going.

It reopened with a fundraiser and #savethehornswatford campaign before eventually making Saturday’s announcement, with the news generating hundreds of comments from locals.

Its importance to Watford’s music and nightlife scenes was highlighted by former staff and patrons as well as bands that had played the venue.

There were musicians who referred to it as their “spiritual home”, on social media, and many shared their hope that “it won’t be the last we hear of The Horns”.