GEORDIE pub bosses Linda and David Gray are asking visitors to spend a penny for a York charity - in their grandly titled "pee pot".

Their boozer, the Bay Horse, in Marygate, has a steady stream (if you pardon the expression) of visitors who want to use the toilet as they head back to the nearby car park.

So the couple, who took over the pub just three months ago, thought they would cash in on the toilet trade and raise cash for a York charity, Jessie's Fund.

Linda, 50, who has run pubs in Middlesbrough and Northampton, says more than £250 has already been collected - a lot of pennies in anyone's purse.

And only two skinflints, or gentlemen of an extremely strong constitution, have so far refused to cough up. She says: "It's simply people putting coppers in when they ask us to use the toilets.We thought that since a lot of people use them anyway by sneaking in, we might as well take advantage and raise some money for charity."

Jessie's Fund helps sick children by the therapeutic use of music. It was set up in May 1994 by the parents of Jessica George, of York, who died after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.

David, 46, who is busy organising a mini beer festival for later this month, says they wanted to get involved in a local charity. And it doesn't get much more local than Jessie's Fund, which is based in Bootham Terrace.

So, if you're walking along the river, and the sight of all that water gets too much for you, Bar Talk knows the perfect place to relieve yourself - and help a very good cause at the same time.

DON'T forget it's the Blue Bell's third beer festival on Sunday and Monday, with Fossgate closed to traffic in the York pub's honour tomorrow.

Among the unfeasibly large number of ales packed into this Tardis of the licensed trade are: Which Witch Is Which from the Brown Cow Brewery, Selby; Pooh Bear from Nuneaton; Betty Stogs from Cornwall and Scutchers from Suffolk.

All profits from the barbecue, tombola and charity jar go to Yorkshire Cancer Research.

So make your way to the pub the Daily Telegraph called "a simple Edwardian gem well hidden from the inquisitive backpacking and bum-bag cosmos".

NO chance of getting into the Seventh Catton Beer Festival today, I'm afraid - all the tickets sold out in a day.

Those lucky people who can get in are likely to have a fine old time, though. There are beers on offer from breweries across Yorkshire, including Hambleton, Cropton, Malton and Timothy Taylor's in Keighley.

And they have let one southern intruder through - a cider from Hertfordshire.

The annual event was initiated by Simon Ackerley.

After a wine tasting in Low Catton, the men complained: "why isn't there a beer tasting?"

And so it came to pass.

Last year, the intrepid drinkers raised £1,300 for Macmillan Nurses, and a further £350 for the village hall.

This year, they are hoping to earn a grand at least for York Against Cancer.

The organisers have done a fine job in rustling up sponsorship, from big firms such as Interserve to smaller local concerns.

We just wish we could be there to enjoy the merry-making.

Updated: 08:54 Saturday, November 08, 2003