Cast into the pit

Cheltenham ladies and gentlemen have been yelling fire and brimstone over the conversion of a former Baptist church into a student pub. They have been incensed not so much by the transformation of a house of God into a student den of iniquity but by its name: "Pullpit", thinking it will encourage students to be promiscuous.

But Bass, the brewers responsible for the revamp, can explain. "It is a spelling mistake," says a spokeswoman. "The pub is going to be called The Pulpit. The signwriter got it wrong."