Pubmen Assemble in Preston

Firstly apologies and acknowledgements. I can't believe that it is a whole month since we did the trip to Preston which has been reported on by Pub Curmudgeon here and here and by Retired Martin here, here, here, here, here, here and here. (No, I don't know how he keeps on blogging so much and so often!)

I also have to acknowledge the title of this entry and accredit Cooking Lager with the first recorded use of the phrase "Pubmen assemble" in a reply to Pub Curmudgeon on 3rd May 2019 - link.

Now, down to business...but I don't really have much to add that hasn't already been covered.

This was my first 'proper' visit to Preston and I was impressed with the quality of the pubs on offer (but less appreciative of the 4.2 miles walking required to get round them all!)

The Old Vic

This was the easiest pub to find as it was just up the slope as you exit Preston Station. My train was on time and the pubmen had already begun to assemble. A pleasant, proper pub to start the day off on the right foot. Then it went downhill, literally!

The Continental was quite a walk away from the Old Vic, fortunately (for me) it was downhill all the way and, apart from the unscheduled detour into (and out of again) the main Royal Mail Sorting Office car park, it was a pleasant enough stroll.

The Continental

This pub is down by the banks of the River Ribble and the railway bridge over it (both behind me). The Continental may be a destination pub for the real ale aficionados (it hosts regular beer festivals), I personally, didn't think it was worth the detour. It is a pleasant, airy pub with a good beer selection and a lovely looking garden, but not my favourite pub of the day.

Having walked downhill to The Continental it was now time to make our way through the park (a very pleasant green space leading down from the town [sorry, city!] to the river bank.) The slope down to the pub had been gentle, but the last part back up through the park was quite steep for some of us old codgers!

It was at this stage that the micropub/crafties split away from we 'traditionalists' who were headed to The Wellington for some much needed sustenance as well as beer.

The Wellington

I liked the pub, but the service wasn't up to much. Firstly, there was only one cask ale on (which I didn't fancy, so it was Carlsberg for me!) and our food order took well over half an hour to reach us despite there being hardly anyone else in the place!

Moving on and it was a Sam Smith's pub next - the Olde Blue Bell. Just as we arrived, the breakaway group were leaving!

Olde Blue Bell

I have mixed feelings about Sam Smith's pubs. I don't really like OBB so I had their own lager which was fine, but it's their pubs that I'm not so sure about. They certainly fit the description of being 'proper pubs', but to me, the Olde Blue Bell felt a bit sanitised with the standard Sam's wallpaper and a fairly regimented pub layout. Basically, it didn't have any of the quirks that I expect with proper, old pubs.

The next place on the itinerary sounded like a proper pub - the Guild Ale House.

Guild Ale House

It was, instead, a micro! However, as micropubs go, this is one of the better ones with pleasant seating and an interesting interior.

Moving on, it was quite a trek to the next pub on our list. As we walked past a very busy working men's club a man exited on a mobility scooter and headed in the same direction as us. He didn't make it to the pub, though. His interim destination was a mobility scooter showroom where he pulled off the pavement and studied the shiny new machines (with all the bells & whistles) before driving off with a wistful air dreaming of an upgrade.

Soon, we reached The Moorbrook where we caught up with the rest of our tour party.

The Moorbrook

By now my recollections are beginning to get somewhat hazy!

Next, it was back towards the centre and the Vinyl Tap.

Vinyl Tap

As the name suggests, this is dedicated to playing music on vinyl only and, although it looks like a proper pub from the outside, inside it is a cross between an 'old school' record shop and a micropub. The Killers first album playing while we were there, but I'm not sure if they were taking requests!

Next was The Market Tavern Tap...the pub that couldn't afford a signwriter!

The Marklet Tavern Tap

Another proper boozer, but inside wherever a sign had said 'Tavern' it had been crossed out and replaced with 'Tap' handwritten in chalk (seemingly)! It is a good pub, though.

Finally, we arrived at the Black Horse which was quite lively (well, it was almost 7pm on a Friday evening!).

The Black Horse

Fittingly, we finished our day off with a gem of a pub populated with young folk as well as old codgers and the full range of those inbetween. After a final pint here I headed back off to the station in a pleasant alcoholic haze and was home before 11pm.

Another superb day out and my thanks go to the people who organised the itinerary and everything else that goes into these Proper Days Out.

#264 The Bell Inn, Lower Heyford, Oxfordshire : 1998 to 2019

This is another in the new series of pubs that we visited during Emma Jane's sojourn in the South that we've returned to in recent times. At least, this time, I remember our first visit.

It is quite rare that I remember visits to pubs from almost 20 years ago, but our first visit to The Bell on the evening of Thursday 3rd September 1998 is an exception. The Oxford Canal is a very rural waterway and it tends to meander away from many villages. So, when we arrived at Lower Heyford, we expected to stay in the one pub all night. Unfortunately, we arrived at the tail end of a wake which had occupied the pub and the kitchen was closed for the evening. After taking advice from the locals, we had a pint and moved on to 'The Sausage Pub' (Horse & Groom), but I'm not sure whether we walked or got a taxi!

After a few years we returned, on the evening of Sunday 22nd August 2004.

This time, I have no recollection of the visit as we travelled back from Oxford. It appears that the signage had stayed the same, but that the ivy had been cut back somewhat!

That was the last time we ventured further south than Banbury on the Oxford Canal until this year.

This was a lunchtime stop on Sunday 28th July 2019 and the first thing I noticed was the lack of ivy. Also, the signage had been replaced and it is now The Bell Inn. Apart from that, I don't think it has changed much in 21 years (even the telegraph wires and TV aerials are the same!) The Sunday lunch was very good as was the beer (whatever it was - I don't take notes!)

Interestingly, the canal view from the road bridge has probably changed little more than the pub.

Oxford Canal, Lower Heyford 1998

Oxford Canal, Lower Heyford 2019

#263 The Four Candles, Oxford : 1998 to 2019 (That Déja vu Feeling All Over Again!)

It is very rare that the same pub crops up in consecutive posts on this blog (under the original premise, it should be impossible) and yet here it is.

As we sat upstairs in the The Four Candles I had the feeling that I'd been here before. I thought I remembered it as the place where a fairly distinguished middle-aged gentleman claimed to know me. He was well-spoken dressed in proper teacher/lecturer mode (complete with elbow patches on his jacket). He sat down with us and expected a pint. In these circumstances, I'm far too nice, but, fortunately my friends (in no uncertain terms) told him to go away!

But, no! This couldn't be the same place. So I dismissed the idea and didn't mention it to anyone. That was until today, when I was going through my old photos looking for potential new blog posts and I came across this picture from 1998!

I'm fairly sure that it was lunchtime on Saturday 5th September 1998 (We had three sessions in Oxford on that trip!). Back then it was a Yates's Wine Lodge and I have no other recollections about it.

Fast forward to lunchtime on Saturday 29th July 2019 and this was the view.

Further research (What Pub) shows that it, briefly, became a Slug & Lettuce pub in 2007/08 and then became a Wetherspoon's in 2008.

This is a perfect example of why I first started taking these pictures in 1986 and there will be another example in the following weeks of how memory doesn't necessarily log everything for future reference.

"I come to praise Wetherspoon's, not to bury them"

If you'd told me, many years ago, when I visited my first Wetherspoon's pub that I'd be writing a post in praise of them, I'd've said, "Yer what?!?"

When they first appeared, I thought that Wetherspoon's pubs were something of an abomination...no atmosphere, bad layout, poor service, dubious décor...not really proper pubs.

Over the years, though, they've evolved and many of my initial criticisms have disappeared or been ameliorated to some extent such that I am happy to drink (and eat there) in the absence of a 'proper' alternative.

Over the years, on our canal boating trips we've been saved from 'starvation' by various Wetherspoon establishments and it is my intention to offer thanks and praise.

The first, and finest, example of this is The Plaza, Rugeley. We first ventured in there in 1999 and I was 'blown away' by the interior of this converted cinema. It has saved us on many occasions, bieng one of the few places to get food in the centre of Rugeley...lunchtime or evenings. It has featured as #218 on this blog where you can read more about it.

Plaza, Rugeley 1999

 What follows will be a potted history of the other examples of when and where Wetherspoon's pubs have saved us in some very 'dodgy' places.

This next example doesn't quite fit the pattern, but it is a Wetherspoon's that we've visited more than once - The Golden Bee, Stratford-upon-Avon.

The Golden Bee, Stratford 2002

The next one fits the bill perfectly, although we even had to get a taxi to the Golden Cross Hotel, Bromsgrove. The canal doesn't pass through Bromsgrove, but on this occasion we'd missed getting served food in the canalside hostelries near to Stoke Pound/Stoke Prior, so "Taxi!" it was. Similar circumstances forced us back there several years later.

Golden Cross Hotel, Bromsgrove 2002

Now for one that I had completely forgotten about - The Bear & Ragged Staff, Bedworth. As I recall, The Navigation by the canal was closed (or not doing food) meaning that we had to walk into Bedworth which, back in 2005 was quite a deprived area following the closure of the local coal mines, so pubs serving food were few and far between.

The Bear & Ragged Staff, Bedworth 2005

 Although we've visited quite a few Wetherspoon's just for a drink (Coventry, Rugby, Leamington Spa, Leicester, Stone, Wolverhampton to name a few) this next one was one of the best 'Saviour Pubs' on the list. We'd moored by the Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port, the first two pubs we visited were dire (in different ways) and walking further into the town gave only the prospect of pizza, kebab or fish & chips on the street for lunch. Then we espied the shining beacon that was The Thomas Telford, Ellesmere Port. Lunch was excellent!

The Thomas Telford, Ellesmere Port 2012

Later on that same year, we found ourselves in Bingley (twice) on the Leeds & LIverpool Canal. At lunchtime there were no pubs doing food and the town was overshadowed by the brooding, boarded up, brutalist building that had been the headquarters of the Bradford & Bingley Building Society. However, we were saved by The Myrtle Grove, Bingley. On our subsequent evening visit we found proper food in a proper pub.

The Myrtle Grove, Bingley 2012

Along the Ashby Canal stands the town of Hinckley which we'd visited in the past and not had a problem finding food. On this occasion, the only place we could find was The Baron of Hinckley. And very welcome it was too!

The Baron of Hinckley, Hinckley 2014

Ilkeston, on the Erewash Canal is not somewhere that we visit often and with the town standing on top of the hill that the canal skirts around, it is quite a slog to get to the town centre. There are several pubs there, but only The Observatory, Ilkeston was doing food.

The Observatory, Ilkeston 2015

This next one is somewhat embarrasing for me. We were in the centre of Birmingham (my home city!) and yet still managed to miss the last orders for food in several places that stopped serving food at 8:30 - 9:00 pm. I was very frustrated by this lack of opening times and we ended up eating in The Briar Rose, Birmingham.

The Briar Rose, Birmingham 2018

This is one that you'll find most difficult to believe, but on our most recent canal trip, we found ourselves in Oxford one lunchtime and the best place we could find was The Four Candles, Oxford. We were moored on the river for the first time, so didn't really know where we were and didn't really have time to do much exploring, so it was a joyous moment when the Wetherspoon's hoved into view! I had one of the best value pizzas ever, here!

The Four Candles, Oxford 2019

 Finally, we move on to Hayes on the Grand Union Canal. There were quite a few basic boozers available but only The Botwell Inn, Hayes was offering food.

The Botwell Inn, Hayes 2019

 It was after three pints here that I contrived to fall into the canal...but that's another story!

So, here endeth my paean to JD Wetherspoon and how their pubs have saved us from 'starvation' over the past 20 years of canal boating...all hail Tim Martin!!

#262 Swan Hotel, Brewood, Staffordshire : 1987 to 2018

Another village that we probably could have visited more is Brewood on the Shropshire Union Canal. There are three pubs (were four, but the Admiral Rodney is now a small housing estate!)

The pub we're most likely to visit in Brewood is the Bridge Inn (#224) which is the first pub you come across as you ascend from the canal cutting into the village. There are occasions, though, when we make the short walk into the centre of the village where both the Red Lion and Swan stand on the sides of the village square.

The first time we ventured into the Swan Hotel was on the evening of Wednesday 8th July 1987.

Back then it was an M&B pub and quite a lively, basic village local.

It was a good number of years before we set foot in the Swan Hotel again.

 This was a lunchtime visit on Wednesday 31st August 2005, just 18 years since our first encounter. The main change was that it had beome a Free House. Inside it was little different from before.

We didn't leave it so long before the next visit which was on the evening of Wednesday 8th September 2010.

This time there were no discernible changes - inside or out.

Our most recent visit was a lunchtime stop on Sunday 26th August 2018.

Remarkably, it was still unchanged from 2005. It also doesn't do food on a Sunday lunchtime so I survived on a diet of pub snacks and a couple of pints of Salopian Lemon Dream, which was gorgeous!

#261 Royal Oak, Gnosall, Staffordshire : 1996 to 2018

On our fairly frequent trips along the Shropshire Union Canal we haven't stopped at Gnosall/Gnosall Heath as often as we probably should given the number of pubs within walking distance of the cut!

The Boat Inn (#241) is canalside, so often we don't venture any further and, the first time we did was on the evening of Tuesday 3rd September 1996.

I remember little about it; we probably had a pint and moved on!

It was a while before we returned, although we'd stopped at Gnosall on other occasions.

This was on the evening of Tuesday 30th August 2005 on our way back from Chester. In the intervening nine years it had undergone considerable changes and, seemingly, a change of ownership from Ansell's to (I assume) a pubco.

It took us another thirteen years before we returned, this time on the evening of Sunday 26th August 2018.

Unsurprisingly, it had changed again, both externally and inside. The interior is now somewhat soulless and modern. Although we got there just in time, we decided not to eat as it still wasn't yet 7pm - that turned out to be a miscalculation on our part (as detailed in the entry for the Boat Inn)! Again, we had one pint and moved on.

A Slow 'Race' Around Uttoxeter

I've somewhat fallen behind in reporting on our Proper Pubs Day Out in Uttoxeter, mostly because my holiday jaunts got in the way. The trip has been extensively covered here and here by Pub Curmudgeon. So, I'll try and race through it with a few of observations.

We were a select band of just four (Paul, Peter, John and me) that met up at Stoke Station for the short journey to Uttoxeter on board this train.

The Staffordshire countryside looked lovely, if a little sodden, as we made our way to our destination (although I must say that it was the only time on a train that you could hear overhanging tree branches slapping against the carriage!)

It was a short(ish) stroll from the station to our first pub.

The Old Swan is the town's Wetherspoon's and, at just after 11am it was ticking over nicely.

Next up was a short walk away, which would be something of the theme of the day as most these great boozers are within 1- 2 minutes walk of each other!

Ye Olde Talbot was the scene of my first ever pint of Bass!

I found it to be reasonably palatable and would down a few more before the end of the day!

Next up was our lunch stop.

The Bank House Hotel is slightly away from the centre of Uttoxeter (a whole 5 minutes walk!) and this was where I had my first ever pint of Pedigree. I didn't like it as much as the Bass, but my companions rated it as one of the beers of the day. Lunch was good, both in value and content, especially as we had the personal attention of the chef!

Then we moved on to (probably) the most well-known pub in Uttoxeter.

The Vaults is a tremendous little pub with at least four Bass hand pumps. I partook of the Bass once more! I'd taken this picture a little earlier and it shows the landlady/barmaid just arriving for work as it doesn't open until midday.

Then it was time to move on, but the next pub on our itinerary was about a mile out of town and, as fully paid up members of the Old Codgers Society, none of us were particularly looking forward to the walk. This is where Paul's wife Jackie came to the rescue. By some strange coincidence she was in the neighbourhood in her car and free to take us to The Plough.

It is a pleasant enough little inn that fulfils the criteria of being a 'Proper Pub', but I'm not sure that it would have been worth the walk there and back.

Soon, we were heading back into town for the next stop of the day. 

Thanks to Jackie and Paul for arranging our little 'excursion'.

Next up was The Old Star which was just off the Market Square. By this time my memory was starting to fade. It was another lovely little boozer in a town of lovely little boozers!

Then it was on to our only micro of the day.

The Horse & Dove was a pleasant, airy micro with a good layout and beer. I'm not sure what the building was before and I've been trying to decipher the ghost sign on the upper floor. I've managed this much "Wilks Favourite ***uouse Millinery Dresses", but that only helps a bit.

While we were in the pub I took this photo which gives a good idea as to how close the pubs are.

Ye Olde Talbot being our second pub of the day.

The next pub was a bit further away but still no more than 5 minutes!

The Smithfield Hotel was another proper pub that was fairly busy, it now being 6pm on a Friday evening. Paul had with him a photo of the pub he'd taken in the mid 1980's and in comparison to today's shot there were few apparent differences.

We were on the final leg of our day out heading for what should have been the last pub of the day.

All I remember about the Black Swan is that this is where I finally succumbed and reverted to a half of Carling!

As we had a little bit of time to spare, we ventured back into The Vaults for a final half before the journey home...Carling for me again!

The trains were on time...and so ended another fine Proper Pubs Day Out. Not as many attendees as on other occasions, but we all had a good time so, as ever, its quality, not quantity that matters!