Hurray for the smoking ban!

So I heard today that after 18 months of smoking being banned from pubs in Scotland, heart attacks are down by a wonderful 17%. I thought it was a good idea, but that's a brilliant result.

Naturally, quality of air in these same establishments has dramatically improved too. Although it wasn't always so. I remember going into my esteemed local, the Cask and Barrel, on the first night of the smoking ban. As expected, there was no trace of smokey smells. In its place however, was a rather more embarassing and pungent scent - punters. It really, really stank. I've not encountered body odour like it since - well, ever.

There's a happy ending though. Only a week later I returned, though not without a certain degree of trepidation. (Well, it is a very good pub. I wasn't going to give up on it that easily.) And hey presto - no smell. It would seem that the regulars had caught on very rapidly, and all rushed out in the intervening week and invested in deodorant.

So all the scare stories about takings in pubs nose-diving can be happily offset by the boom in personal hygiene. Another benefit of the jolly old smoking ban. Hurrah!