Xmas all wrapped up

Pub to herald festive season with £20,000 of decorations

Broughty Ferry hotel, bar and restaurant The Fort has invested more than £20,000 converting its frontage into wrapping paper — in the form of giant illuminated Christmas decorations — this year.

The plans will see the front of Fort Street venue and the firm’s adjacent Italian restaurant, Borgotaro, decorated in gift paper.

John Black, owner of the family-run pub, is looking to deliver the early gift on November 23 with an official launch event.

And he said there were no last minute wrapping headaches when coming up with the idea.

John — who admitted he’s a big fan of the festive holidays — said: “We’ve been planning this since last February.

“The wrapping paper will cover the three buildings heading down towards the Eagle Inn. We have invested more than £20,000 in this — we’ve seen the drawings and it looks great.

“All the signage will be arriving on November 16 and it will take around two to three days to set up.

“We’ve spent the last six years internally renovating all the buildings, and externally they’ve all been re-plastered, so it feels like a nice way to finish it off for Christmas.

“This isn’t a one off — we’ll be looking to expand on the idea in the future and get more businesses involved.”

John has submitted a planning application to turn a vacant property at number 48 Fort Street into a licenced venue.

If approved, it would see the Fort’s reach stretch along from Long Lane almost to King Street, beside the Eagle Coaching Inn.

The hope is to transform the property into a wine bar and lounge, as an addition to the existing business.

A PUB is putting its wrapping skills to the test in the run-up to Christmas.

The Fort Hotel in Broughty Ferry will unveil its ambitious Christmas decor later this month at an official launch event. Inset: John Black.