Popular landlord toasts health heroes with quirky video chronicling NHS history

Jess McConnell, landlord at the Albion pub, made ‘Covid The Untold Story’ during lockdown as a tribute to hard working NHS staff, charting the beginnings of the NHS and its development over the years.

The film sees Jess don various guises to perform tongue-in-cheeck impersonations of famous figures as they serve as narrators to the story of the NHS through time.

The video, which was released on Youtube, has been viewed thousands times since its release earlier in August.

Jess said he wanted to commemorate the NHS in his own way as the pandemic continues.

He said the video was made with the help of a number of video editors and producers, all while in lockdown, and Jess was blown away by the reaction it received.

“When lockdown started I had so much free time on my hands and like everyone else in the country I was reviewing my life, family and friends and finally decided to put my thoughts into the film to try and give everyone an uplifting message,” he said.

“All the comments have been extremely positive and very complimentary which has been really nice to see.

Jess, the former boss of Jarrow Brewery, returned to the industry earlier this year as the new landlord at his old watering hole in Walter Street, Jarrow.

Then known as McConnell’s Gin and Ale House, the Jarrow Brewery boss first took on the historic pub in 2014.

The popular haunt would turn out to be the final venue purchased by the brewery before it closed two years later.

Jess took the bar back to its Victorian-era roots, restoring its original name from 1865, the Albion Inn.

As much an entertainer as a landlord, Jess also brought back his famous weekly One O’Clock show, an old school singalong, when he took over the pub.

:: The full video of ‘Covid The Untold Story’ is available in full on Youtube.

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