Yes, Mitchells & Butlers does sound like a comedy duo or a brand up up-market smokes, but it's actually the owner of a string of eateries that O2 will be equipping with gratis Wi-Fi.
M&B runs Irish theme-pubs O'Neill's, plus Nicholson's pubs; All Bar One; the posh version of All Bar One, Brown's; and 1970s throwbacks Harvester and Toby Carvery; and a variety of other brands.
It has some 1600 of these purveyors of grub'n'grog throughout the land, and they'll all get free Wi-Fi by the end of the year.
Diners will get free access to the WLANs no matter which mobile phone network they subscribe to, O2 said. ®