As inflation drives up prices across the UK, a night out in Birmingham is starting to feel out of reach for many. Richard Gullick hits the city centre to ask locals if socialising is becoming unaffordable—and what that means for jobs, culture, and community.
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00:01A couple of pints to take away a cab home, what used to be a normal Saturday night, now feels like a monthly treat.
00:08It's not just drink prices, entry fees, parking, even soft drinks have crept up, and it's hitting those on tighter budgets first.
00:16Whether you're a student, a young worker, or just trying to make ends meet, more people are being priced out of the night time scene.
00:23When people stay home, the knock-on effects ripple through the whole local economy.
00:27So we've come into the heart of Birmingham to ask, how much does a typical night out in Birmingham cost you these days?
00:35If you're going out for drinks throughout the evening, you probably won't get much change out of £100, £150.
00:43I know how much it should cost, and I know it always costs about over £100 for sure.
00:47But it depends where you're going, what you're doing, whether you're going to the cheapest places and you're just drinking,
00:53or whether you're trying to make a proper night of it, go to some cocktail baths, stuff like that, that'll rocket up the price a good bit.
00:59So at least £100, probably more, if you're getting taxis home and taxis there.
01:06I would say, personally, it would cost over £100 with meal, wine, beer, whatever.
01:14And that's not just for a special occasion, that's just for meeting up on a Saturday for a night out.
01:20The cost of the night doesn't end with the last round.
01:23A taxi, late-night food and maybe a cloakroom charge.
01:26Before you know it, you've spent a small fortune.
01:29Some venues say they're struggling too.
01:31Rising energy bills, higher wages and supply costs all add pressure.
01:35And those costs are often passed on to punters.
01:38That's led some to cut back.
01:40Fewer nights out, cheaper venues or skipping it altogether.
01:43It's part of a bigger trend across UK cities.
01:46But here in Birmingham, where nightlife fuels a big part of the economy, it hits hard.
01:50So we asked, have rising costs made you change?
01:53How often you go out or where you go?
01:56Yeah, because you can't do as much as you like to do.
01:59You just have to budget everything you do.
02:03Not necessarily.
02:04I think if you want to go out, you want to go out.
02:05But I understand that it would affect a lot of people's ability to go out if they've, you know, some people might have to choose between how much they eat.
02:14And if they've got kids to feed, they might have to make that decision about not going out then.
02:18Yes, I'd say I would occasionally splurge for the more expensive places, especially me and my partner going out together.
02:27Now it's less of a consideration.
02:29Generally, when we go out, we will stay in together and we'll only go out as a group.
02:34So we kind of go out less, as it were.
02:36And when we do go out, we do tend to earn cheaper.
02:38I think it's the rising cost aspect because people's wages aren't going up because of everything that's happening in the economy.
02:46So I think people are choosing now what dates to actually go out.
02:49They're not going out every Saturday anymore.
02:51They might go out once a month and choose where they want to go that is affordable to them.