A cocktail bar owner has installed a Faraday cage in his walls to prevent mobile phone signals entering the building.

Steve Tyler of the Gin Tub, in Hove, East Sussex, is hoping customers will be encouraged to talk to each other rather than looking at their screens.

He has installed metal mesh in the walls and ceiling of the bar which absorbs and redistributes the electromagnetic signals from phones and wireless devices to prevents them entering the interior of the building.

The effect was discovered in 1836 by scientist Michael Faraday and is often used in power plants or other highly charged environments to prevent shocks or interference with other electronic equipment. Some wallets are now cloaked in a similar flexible mesh to prevent data and credit card theft.

Mr Tyler said he wanted to force "people to interact in the real world" and remember how to socialise.

“I just wanted people to enjoy a night out in my bar, without being interrupted by their phones,” he told the BBC

“So rather than asking them not to use their phones, I stopped the phones working. I want you to enjoy the experience of going out.

Speaking about the Faraday cage he added: "It's silver foil in the walls and it's copper mesh. And it's not the perfect system, it's not military grade.”