NEIGHBOURS confronted their local landlady during a hotly fought licensing bid over two Park Street pubs.

The Duke of Albany and The Prince of Wales in Weymouth's Park district applied to change their licences at a meeting of Weymouth and Portland Borough Council's licensing committee.

Licensee Patricia Muirhead applied to serve alcohol in the pubs, on either corner of Bath Street, until 2am during the weekend and midnight during the week.

But a group of Bath Street residents put forward their objections.

Jacqueline Berg said: "With the best will in the world the landlady cannot regulate her patrons - I'm sure she tries her best.

"There are frequent violent altercations which spill out on to the street.

"The doorsteps are frequently used as a toilet and there is vomit." She added: "It's like they are in your sitting room as they go past."

Six other residents joined Mrs Berg.

They were not permitted to speak at the meeting because they had not written letters of objection, but passed around protest posters reading "Not in my back yard". Mrs Berg objected to the proposed extended hours of live music. She said: "Hearing Elvis week in, week out, until really late becomes draining, believe me.

"These are listed buildings, very tightly packed.

"We have no double glazing but we love our houses and we love our road."

The Duke of Albany has recently been sold but Mrs Muirhead will remain its landlady for another three weeks.

She said: "There's a real hornet's nest being stirred up here today.

"We don't have the trouble in the pub that people would like to make out. I police the pub myself.

"For a street that does have a lot of trouble and fights going on I think I've done quite well in the five years that I've been there to sort out which people I didn't want in my pub, and I feel I run an orderly house."

Mrs Muirhead said residents were wrongly blaming her pubs for the noise caused by a local "drug house".

The committee decided that the pubs could remain open until midnight throughout the week and live music could be played in the Prince of Wales on Saturdays from 8.30pm until 11pm and on Sundays from 6pm until 9pm.

Mrs Muirhead said: "I will appeal."