News / 15-05-2018

As the Royal wedding of HRH Prince Harry and Meghan Markle fast approaches on 19 May 2018, licensed operators should note that they may benefit from extended hours under The Licensing Act 2003 (Royal Wedding Licensing Hours) Order 2018.

Which licensed operators will benefit?

Operators with premises licences that permit the sale of alcohol on the premises and clubs supplying alcohol to its members for consumption on the premises who are currently authorised to sell/supply alcohol up to (or beyond) 11pm.

How will they benefit?

The above operators will be permitted to sell or supply alcohol and late night refreshment until 1.00am on both Friday 18 and Saturday 19 May 2018. However, it should be noted that the hours for regulated entertainment and the sale/supply of alcohol off the premises are not extended.

As an example, on Friday 18 and Saturday 19 May, a pub which has a premises licence permitting the sale of alcohol on and off the premises, regulated entertainment and late night refreshment until midnight (12.00am) Fridays and Saturdays can operate at the following times:

• Until 1.00am for the sale of alcohol  (an extra hour is permitted)
• Until 1.00am for late night refreshment (an extra hour is permitted)
• Until 12.00am for off-sales of alcohol (no increase is permitted)
• Until 12.00am for regulated entertainment (no increase is permitted)

If you have any queries about the hours which apply to your business, please contact Joanna Onisiforou for guidance. Joanna can also help with any queries regarding the personal licence training courses for the sale of alcohol which we now offer at our London offices.