The Carrington Street venue stopped trading on the weekend. Administrator Stephen Duncan, from DuncanPowell, was appointed on Monday.The Saracens Head is the latest domino to fall in The Bloody Mary Group portfolio of hospitality venues.In a statement on Thursday, Mr Duncan said he was called in following a breakdown in lease negotiations between Saracens Head director Brett Viney and the venue’s landlord.“The hotel, like all other hotels, closed their doors in March 2020 due to COVID-19 issues,” Mr Duncan said.“The hotel was able to reopen later in the year … whilst dealing with the landlord in relation to an extension of the lease. “Negotiations in respect of the new lease terms continued for some time. “It eventuated that no agreement was achieved and a court process was initiated to settle the dispute.“Despite the endeavours of the company, there was no alternative other than to place the company in administration.”The closure follows the recent collapse ofStone’s Throw, part of The Bloody Mary Group portfolio, which was placed into liquidation in October with unsecured debts of $1.17m.At the time of that company’s collapse, Mr Viney – a director and shareholder of The Bloody Mary Group, which fell into liquidation on the same day as Stone’s Throw – said it would have no impact on the ongoing operation of the Saracens Head.The Saracens Head, which was built in 1873, was put on the market at the beginning of last year but failed to sell ahead of its insolvency. In 2018, an application to wind up the venue was dismissed in the Federal Court after the pub’s management reached a settlement with supplier AMJ Produce. The company’s current debts were unknown. However, liquidator reports revealed the company was owed $95,000 by The Bloody Mary Group.Last year, the Supreme Court ordered Mr Viney and former business partner and now bankrupt Matthew Mitchell to pay $383,000 after they concealed lucrative deals with major breweries from their then-business partners Michael and Nicholas Crouch. The court found the pair did not disclose the deals for beer taps at the Windmill Hotel, which they later sold for about $425,000 less than they originally paid.Another CBD pub, the Union Hotel, was also reported to be on the market today.



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