The owner of the smallest pub in Europe must be among one of Britain’s tallest landlords, towering at 6ft 5in – and always banging his head. 

Barry Hayes, 60, is the owner of The Circus Tavern in Manchester city centre, which is just 45 feet long, with the bar itself only three feet in length. 

The giant landlord, who has owned the pub for 15 years, said: ‘There’s so many times I’ve banged my head.’

Good luck swinging a cat in here if this is your local, which counts George Best among its past punters – a shrine in so-called ‘George’s Corner’ marks where the footballer liked to stand. Mr Hayes said: ‘Officially, you can fit around 45 people in the pub if they are all sat down.

‘But around 70 people can fit inside if they are stood up talking.’ 

The tiny size of the boozer – especially packed on match days – means it might be the only one in the whole country where it is acceptable to queue single file for a pint, just to fit everyone in. 

It is good news for Gen Z punters, who tend to line up for a drink like they are at a bus stop, rather than approaching the bar, according to pub landlords. 

The bizarre behaviour has resulted in an Instagram page called Pub Queues, dedicated to campaigning against the phenomenon and educating Gen Z on how to properly order a drink. 

Barry Hayes (pictured, in ‘George’s Corner’, a shrine to where footballer George Best liked to stand when having a drink), 60, is the owner of The Circus Tavern in Manchester city centre – which is just 45 feet long, with the bar itself only three feet in length

The giant landlord, who has owned the pub for 15 years, said: ‘There’s so many times I’ve banged my head’

Good luck swinging a cat in here if this is your local, Mr Hayes said: ‘Officially, you can fit around 45 people in the pub if they are all sat down’ 

Customers often say, when they come into the Manchester pub, ‘”Wow, is that really it?”‘, Mr Hayes said. 

He explained the pub, which was built in 1790, is made up of two rooms and by the time you’ve walked just a few feet inside, you are already at the bar. 

The landlord said he regularly struggles to serve customers because of how small it is. 

And with the owner looming over his customers at a staggering 6ft 5in, The Circus Tavern may well be Europe’s smallest bar with the biggest landlord.  

There is even writing on the front of the building reading: ‘The smallest bar in Europe, the biggest welcome in the world.’  

Mr Hayes took over the lease for the pub in 2010. He said: ‘The person who had the pub put an advertisement in the local paper.

‘We made a business plan and that was it.’ 

It is definitely a spot for Gen Z drinkers, who might find their obsession with queuing up to get a drink, rather than approaching the bar, actually helps with crowd control in a minute boozer like this.   

There is even writing on the front of the building reading: ‘The smallest bar in Europe, the biggest welcome in the world’ (pictured, with landlord Barry Hayes)

Landlord Mr Hayes admires the memory wall of photographs in his tiny pub in Manchester

The tiny tavern is nestled between other buildings on the city centre street 

Mr Hayes (pictured) took over the lease for the pub in 2010

Customers often say, when they come into the  pub, ‘”Wow, is that really it?”‘, he said

The landlord said he regularly struggles to serve customers because of how small it is (pictured, writing on the outside of the building proclaiming its tiny size) 

Pub owner Mr Hayes said: ‘Around 70 people can fit inside if they are stood up talking’

The tiny size of the boozer means it might be the only one in the whole country where it is acceptable to queue single file for a pint, just to fit everyone in

The Circus Tavern counts George Best among its past punters – a shrine in so-called ‘George’s Corner’ (pictured) marks where the footballer liked to stand

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Pubs across the UK plead with Gen Z punters to stop forming single file queues at the bar

Pub owners reckon younger drinkers’ love for lining up is a remnant of Covid social distancing – many of these pubgoers will have first begun drinking socially during the pandemic. 

Establishments in Leeds, London, Scotland and Manchester have even resorted to putting up signs with instructions on how to behave at the bar. 

A sign put up at the bar in a flagship Premier Inn hotel last year, which actually recommended queuing for a drink rather than advising against it, caused uproar among punters. 

The notice at the chain’s Gatwick Airport branch read: ‘We want to provide a fair service to everyone. Queue up at the beginning of the bar and we’ll be with you soon.’ 

But angry Brits responded furiously to the signage, arguing that queuing for a pint puts a stop to the age-old tradition of huddling around the pumps.  

Do you know a smaller bar? Email sophie.carlin@mailonline.co.uk