Fareham pub set to close, The Lord Arthur Lee, will always be synonymous with incident when driver smashed car into venue and drove around

The Lord Arthur Lee in West Street, Fareham, is set to be closed alongside six other JD Wetherspoon pubs. It comes just weeks after the firm announced the sale of 32 pubs across the country.

The pub shot to prominence in May 2003 when a banned drinker smashed his car through the front doors before driving around inside the bar. Customers dived for cover as the driver reversed his Vauxhall Cavalier into the pub and crashed into the bar. He destroyed tables, chairs and glasses during the terrifying incident that left staff needing counselling and one requesting a transfer.

The man had been barred from the Wetherspoon pub the night before for begging for drinks from other customers. Before he crashed his car into the pub he had broken 12 of the building's windows with a large weightlifter's dumbbell.

SEE ALSO: Pub up for sale

A witness said at the time: ‘It was terrifying. The car flew across the entrance and smashed into the bar. He was driving around the pub for what seemed like five minutes, pulling three-point turns and taking out pillars.

‘I have never seen anything like it. If the pub had been busier he would have killed someone.’

The driver tried to escape from the pub but members of the public restrained him until the police arrived. There was only a handful of people in the pub at the time of the incident which happened half an hour after opening in the morning.

Inspector Simon Wrigglesworth of Fareham Police said after the incident: ‘It was a completely bizarre incident and a very serious and frightening one. It caused complete mayhem. Had there been more people in the pub there was a distinct possibility that someone could have been killed.’

The then duty manager added: ‘When I got to the pub there was a car in the middle of the room and wood was everywhere. You couldn't tell whether it was chairs or tables. It was all smashed up. It was horrendous.’

At Portsmouth Crown Court, the driver pleaded guilty to four charges including two of damaging property, being reckless as to whether life was endangered, and one of dangerous driving.

The man was sentenced to a three-year community rehabilitation order under the supervision of a psychiatrist with 100 hours of community service. He was also disqualified from driving for two years.

After the sentence, the duty manager blasted it as ‘outrageous’ before adding: ‘We were expecting him to at least get sent to prison - we feel totally let down.’

Savills and CBRE have been appointed to manage the sale of the pubs up for sale. Senior director at CBRE Toby Hall said: 'Most of the properties are coming to the market for the first time in many years which should give them a broad appeal to both local and national buyers.'

Wetherspoon also owns The Crown in West Street.