WETHERSPOONS has long held a special place in the nation’s heart, but few can truly say they love the chain like John Hunt does.
The 83-year-old pensioner from Weston has been to a total of 900 Spoons in the last seven years.
To put this into context, just over 800 Spoons are currently open in the UK and Ireland.
Chester, as he’s called by friends, takes a bus, train or taxi to get to the different branches across the country.
When he gets there, he usually orders a meal along with a pint of real ale - his drink of choice.
The widower says the reason he does this is to keep himself active and out of the house.
"I don’t want to stay indoors all the time," he said.
"I live on my own, you see and that was it, I ain’t gonna sit indoors watching telly, it’s no good for me."
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The former docks worker keeps a list of all the places he has visited by putting a cross next to them.
He also lists the places he hasn't been to yet - four in Wales, six in Scotland and four in Cornwall.
Asked about his favourite venue, John said: “I did like the one in Tunbridge Wells – the opera house and, and [The Palladium] in Llandudno.
“The opera house one, they still had opera once a year in there.”
Two weeks ago, John celebrated his 900th trip at the Wetherspoons in Kingswinford in Birmingham.
However, with pubs coming and going all the time, he will now have to return to the city to visit a newly-opened branch.
He said: "Some of them have closed down and some of them are opening new ones up, that’s what gets me.
"I think I did them all in Birmingham until someone came up to me and said 'have you done that one in Kings Norton yet?'
"I said 'there was not one there' and they said 'there is'. So I’ve got to go up there now."
He once visited nine pubs in a day in Bournemouth, admitting he was jolly as he left the last venue.
"If you’ve had a pint in every one of them you’ve had a good day," he joked.
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