Leeds City Guide: The Otley Run Pub Crawl

We wander along the route of The Otley Run and meet some of those undertaking the infamous Leeds pub crawl.

Transcript

00:00 "I've never done it."

00:02 "This is our first time doing the Otloo Run. It's just a pub crawl basically and everybody

00:07 dresses up in costumes. We've come for our mates 21st birthday so everybody is dressed

00:13 up in the background."

00:15 From far Headingley to Leeds City Centre, the Otloo Run is Leeds' infamous pub crawl

00:20 largely undertaken by students along with former students, professionals and stag and

00:24 hen-doos. There's often debate about which establishments are included but it's generally

00:29 considered to be 15 stops beginning at Woody's Alehouse before heading to The Three Horseshoes,

00:36 The New Inn, Headingley Taps, Manahatta, Box, The Skyrack, The Original Oak, Hyde Park,

00:50 The Library, The Pack Horse, The Eldon, Leeds University Union, The Fenton and then down

01:00 to Dry Dock. The vast majority of participants wear a fancy dress and there's a working group

01:05 of police and council workers who regularly review it to reduce antisocial behaviour.

01:09 "I think I've done it about, I think it might be my fourth time. I think I've only completed

01:13 it once though. I keep getting held back by, you know, people that aren't worth it."

01:17 "We're here for Georgie's birthday, we've met Miss British Icons, got Claudia Winkleman,

01:23 Harriet Curtin, Gordon Ramsay, Cassie Pollard, the Queen, rest in peace and Boris Johnson."

01:31 "I'm actually a Leeds girl born and bred and I went to school in Otley which is a town

01:38 about nine miles away where the Otley Run officially starts. I've done the whole Otley

01:44 Run maybe about five times but most people do it starting at this pub called Woody's

01:51 which isn't the official start so arguably are they a real Otley Runners but no it's

01:56 a great atmosphere in the summer, it's really lively, everyone's having fun."

02:01 "We've completed every single pub, like every time, yeah. And we go hard, like we get like

02:06 all the drinks and we just feel different. We shop at every pub, that's our tactic, you

02:13 know. It works honestly and you'll be fine by the end of it, just have like a glass of

02:17 water and go to bed."

02:18 "This is my third or fourth Otley Run, can't really remember for obvious reasons. When

02:23 I've done it previously I was a student here in Leeds, I studied at Leeds Uni and now it's

02:28 my stag do so everyone's in Ireland jerseys except for me."

02:33 "I'm Fergus's dad and this is my first Otley Run, not my first pub crawl, my first Otley

02:38 Run."

02:39 "We're just going to pace ourselves and see where we make it to."

02:43 "If you get through it, you get through it, if you don't, you don't."

02:45 "We're speaking to our friends and our aim is to get to the 11th pub, they've not made

02:50 it past there yet."

02:51 "For anyone who hasn't done it before, you won't complete it. You think you will but

02:54 you won't. Also eat. Like people say eating is cheating, no no no no no no no. If you

03:00 don't eat, you don't complete."

03:01 [BLANK_AUDIO]