A LANDLORD is hoping that real ale buffs will lend a helping hand in solving the mystery of a missing landmark clock when they raise their pints at the weekend.

A special brew celebrating the old Potts' Clock of Consett will feature in an annual beer festival at the town's Grey Horse pub.

Landlord Paul Conroy said Potts' Clock had stood for many years in the tower of Middle Street.

Notoriously unreliable, the clock was the inspiration behind many colloquialisms, including "you're as much good as Potts' Clock".

And anyone found idly loitering would be told "you're standing there like Potts' clock".

The clock vanished from the tower but later reappeared in the upstairs window of the DIY store Craftrite, run by Cosmo Dimambro in the town's Front Street, only now the clock was back in working order.

It disappeared again when the shop closed a year ago to make way for a clothing store.

Mr Conroy, who runs the prize-winning Derwentrose Brewery at the pub, has now decided to name a new 4.2 per cent ale in the clock's memory.

He said: "When we last had a competition to name a new brew some regulars who wanted the ale to be named after Potts' clock weren't happy with the choice of the Works.

"They persisted in calling it by their favoured name, Potts' clock, so I decided to make the new brew."

Brian Page, a regular at the pub, has made a T-shirt to coincide with the launch asking: "Where is Pott's Clock? Try the Grey Horse Consett."

The Grey Horse Pub Beer Festival will feature 32 beers, with 16 on tap at any one time, and will run from Saturday to Monday.