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‘A digital detox’: The Nottinghamshire pub where using your phone gets you thrown out

In an unassuming-looking pub in the centre of Mansfield, people are being asked, or rather told, to forget about modern technology and embrace some good old-fashioned conversation.

On entering, customers are greeted with a sign explaining this is a ‘digital detox’ pub and customers should refrain from using all mobile devices.

This includes phones, smart or otherwise, laptops and other technology while inside the building. There is also a no swearing policy. They only accept cash, and no dogs are allowed.

Welcome to the White Hart, part of an empire run by the unusual Samuel Smith’s Brewery. I could find no phone number or Facebook page for the pub online, and the brewery website is sparse. So the only way to find out anything more at all about this famous Church Street boozer is to ‘investigate’ it by abandoning the 21st century and strolling in.

Inside, a lack of music and televisions creates a subdued yet calm feel to the place, while the decor and furniture appear to have not been changed for decades.

Photographs and paintings of Mansfield’s history hang all around the walls, along with a folder by the front door full of more pictures and historical information. The red patterned carpet had a homely feel, like walking into an old working men’s club.

It really did feel like going back in time. For the next 45 minutes, I had a surreal yet unique experience, which made me think about how much technology has crept into almost every moment of our lives.

Two customers, Robbie and Luke, were enjoying their quiet time and tell me it’s a nice throwback to how things used to be.

“You just don’t see place like this anymore. It’s a relic,” said Robbie, 34.

“I think it’s a good concept. It’s getting people socialising when a lot of the time people are on their phones so from a social aspect it’s a positive,” he added.

“Especially compared to most pubs in Nottingham, it’s a nice change and makes you think about how pubs used to be in the days before phones and all that,” said Luke, 23.

But the White Hart is not the only pub run by the brewery that has decided to ban all mobile phones and other devices. Samuel Smith’s Brewery runs more than 200 pubs nationwide, and its chain-wide policy is enforceable on all clients.

When I asked the barman if I would be thrown out for going on my phone, he said he would ask me to step outside – but then if I did it a second time, I would be asked to leave.

Samuel Smith’s owner, Humphrey Smith, is known for his traditional values. An internal memo to staff at the time of the introduction of the rules is reported to have instructed managers that “our pubs are for social conversation person to person” and that customers should go outside to answer phone calls.

The pub chain also said it had banned televisions and music in order to maintain what it once described on its own website as an “traditional, uncompromisingly Victorian aesthetic”.

There is some solid research which shows shunning the smartphone will actually encourage us to talk more and get greater enjoyment from human interaction. It’s not just an educated assumption – plenty of experts will tell you it’s fact.

Among many other similar studies, research published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology in 2023 found that when people use phones at the same time as spending time with others they socialise less and don’t enjoy conversations as much.

For Robbie and Luke, the rules certainly don’t deter them from enjoying their pints.

“The swearing ban is a bit harsh because it’s a working man’s town – but I don’t mind it,” said Luke.

“It’s not a place I’d visit regularly but I stumbled across it and it was a really nice surprise. Very affordable too,” added Robbie.

Affordable is definitely true in terms of 2025 prices. A pint of Taddy lager set me back £3.80 and the pool table only charged 60p per game.

However, when I asked the landlady if she would like to comment on the unique rules, she refused and explained that all internal affairs with the pub and the brewery are private.

Despite this disappointment, I relaxed and enjoyed my drink whilst chatting to Robbie, Luke and the barman. The lack of phones meant the four of us were babbling for about half an hour – it was either that or dead silence.

It was a pub experience that I will not forget and it is extraordinary to see a business of this kind operating in 2025, when most of us can’t go more than a few minutes without glancing at a screen.

After saying goodbye to my three new friends I headed out of the pub and wandered towards the marketplace, a mere 60 yards away, to see if I could find any White Hart regulars. It wasn’t a particularly busy day at the market but there was a steady flow of foot traffic on the square.

No-one I spoke to frequented there but one woman said that she had felt intimidated by the tone of the place when visiting.

“I’ve been in a few times but I didn’t really like the feel in there. It was so quiet and I felt like I had to drink up,” said Claire Miller, 52.

“I don’t know anyone who’s a regular there because most people I know who come into town for a drink go elsewhere,” she added.

It is certainly a controversial set of prohibitions. But what is also clear is that there is a stark difference between those who do not mind and those who think Victorian era rules should have been left in the 19th century.

Samuel Smith’s Brewery were approached for comment but did not respond.