A FISH AND CHIP shop previously owned by the family of a famous comedian in a town in Gwent is set to close for good this weekend, less than a year after new management took it on. 

Joe's Fish Bar, known among locals as the Cwm fish shop, will close permanently after service this Saturday, May 18. 

The  shop, on Marine Street in Cwm, was previously run by the former managers for almost five years, and before that was under the ownership of a famous comedian's brother-in-law. 

Victor Spinetti, a famous Italian comedic actor who had been known for working with the Beatles, grew up in Cwm and his family were the original owners of what has become known as Joe's Fish Bar. 

His brother-in-law, David Hughes of Gilwern, had been running the shop for 34 years when he spoke to the Argus back in 2007, when he also explained he had re-named the shop, opened in 1926, to Joe's Fish Bar in memory of Victor's father. 

The current management team took on the shop's lease in late summer 2023, and had been fighting to keep it open over the last nine months. 

However, rising costs and lack of incoming money has meant the team have had no choice but to call it a day. 

The sad news was posted to the Facebook group Cwm Community on Sunday May 12, detailing the plans to close on Saturday at 6.30pm. 

The post explained how the financial costs have made it impossible to keep open, and thanked the local customers for supporting the new team since they arrived. 

The shop had only recently had a new food hygiene inspection in January, giving them a rating of three, an improvement on the previous rating from April 2023. 

People reacted to the news with sadness but a note of pride, congratulating the team on making such an effort to keep the shop open after the previous management had also found it difficult.