'Rock to Restock' fundraiser for South Shields pub The Voyager after stock stolen in raid

The team at The Voyager pub in Anderson Street were left dismayed after the break-in, which police said was reported at around 8.15pm on Monday, November 1.

Officers say the offender stole various items from the venue, including a lot of the pub’s stock.

After hearing of the incident, Dreadnought singer Craig Bankhead, from Sunderland, has decided to help landlady Michelle Lowe get the business back on its feet by holding a ‘Rock to Restock’ benefit concert.

Taking place on Wednesday, November 24, Dreadnought will play for free at the venue, with all proceeds going to The Voyager to help replace stock and cover the running costs of the pub.

Craig commented: “It is one of the very few live music pubs still on the scene and something like this can absolutely devastate a pub, especially following the pandemic.

"People need to understand the fragility of pubs, they are very much a use or lose it type of thing at the moment, so we hope that people can come and support to give the pub a new audience.

"We’re doing it free of charge to try and support Michelle with all proceeds that night going to her so she can restock the bar and get her and all the staff back on their feet again.

"If The Voyager had to close on the back of something like this, it would be a massive loss to those who like to play or watch live music.”

Michelle has described the break in as “devastating” and has expressed her gratitude to Craig and other local businesses for their support following the incident.

She said: “At the moment, we are just getting through week-by-week due to the Covid pandemic so it is absolutely devastating.

"The pandemic has changed the drinking habits of people, so the days of being six-deep at the bar are gone for the time being so things like this are just disheartening.

"When Craig told me what he was going to do I was just overwhelmed but at the same time felt like I was taking charity from others.

"Since we’ve put the announcement on Facebook, I’ve had loads of small local businesses get in touch with me to offer raffle prizes and other types of support to help us out.

"I just burst into tears at all the support, I do things like this for other people when they need it so I’m gobsmacked that others are willing to do the same in return for me.”

Police have confirmed that they are investigating the break in and have asked for anyone with information relating to the incident to get in touch with them.

A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: “An investigation has been launched following a report of a burglary at The Voyager pub in South Shields.

“It was reported that about 8.15pm on Monday (November 1) an offender gained entry to the premises and stole various items.

“An investigation is ongoing to identify those responsible. Anyone with information can contact police via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of our website or by calling 101 quoting log NP-20211102-0770.”

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