The owner, tenant or manager (licensee) of a public house is properly known as the “pub landlord”. The term publican has come into use since Victorian times to designate the pub landlord, which usage is strictly speaking incorrect, a publican being properly the appellation of a Roman public contractor or tax farmer. Each pub generally has “locals” or regulars; people who drink there regularly. The pub that people visit most often is called their local. In many cases, this will be the pub nearest to their home, but some people choose their local for other reasons: proximity to work, a venue for their friends, the availability of a particular cask ale, non-smoking or formerly as a place to smoke freely, or maybe a darts team or pool table. Until the 1970s most of the larger public houses also featured an off-sales counter or attached shop for the sales of beers, wines and spirits for home consumption.
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