Thursday 8 March: THE TAVERN, WELWYN VILLAGE (Malcolm Allen, Chris Haden, Mike Horsman, Elvis Pile, Rupert Stanley, Andrew Swift, John Westwood)
COMMENT: The Tavern must win the prize for the most succinctly descriptive pub title- no heraldic fripperies, no recognition of local bigwigs, only a one-word statement of the building's function. One of these days I may go into a pub called "The Pub" or "The Boozer", until then the Tavern is the winner in the "no frills pub name" stakes.
Inside there were also no frills except for an evil-looking macaw in a cage. I must be fair, this is quite a frill, even the best appointed pubs seem not normally to go in for macaws as fashion accessories. Be that as it may, the beer and food were fine (though no fish and chips for Elvis) and not expensive. It was made even cheaper by the silver tongued persuasiveness of some Odyssians who got Andrew to see that, having just become a grandfather, he should buy them lunch (or at least a drink). We then had to restrain him from buying the whole meal! Elvis comes up next (grandchild expected shortly). Big attendance needed that day!
To my surprise the Tavern turned out to be another railway pub (the third in a row on the Odyssey, after the Steamer and the Station). It was the Railway Tavern in 1847 when the premises were bought by a Hitchin brewer. It seems in the nineteenth century the kneejerk reaction to any social, political or military event was to open a pub. In midweek I was walking the Thames Path with Anne and we got to Wallingford, Oxfordshire. In the nineteenth century this was a small place of 2,000 people That isn't much bigger than Tewin plus Tewin Wood today. At that time Wallingford had 50 pubs!
Friday, 9 March 2012
Pub Odyssey 60
Tuesday 28 February: The STATION, KNEBWORTH (Mike Horsman, Elvis Pile, Steve Stott, Andrew Swift, John Westwood)
COMMENT: The Station provided a rare opporrtunity for reflection on the human condition, or at least its toilet did. I'll come back to that in a minute, but first some basic history.
The Station Hotel was built in 1883 (actually opening before Knebworth railway station, which happened in 1884). The station's arrival wholly changed the position of Knebworth, previously centred on Knebworth House and the parish church; a community called "New Knebworth" grew up around the station which became so dominant that in the end the "New" was dropped, it became "Knebworth" pure and simple, and the original settlement near the big house and the church became "Old Knebworth". The Station Hotel, now simply the Station, is an indicator of that change and the latest of several pubs on the Odyssey which are distinctively "railway pubs". This one had decent pub food and drink, very competitively priced.
Now to the toilet. It was John Westwood who first went in and encountered The Machine. It offered three options for the human condition (or at least the male condition):
3 condoms and ID lube
1 x natural
1 x dots and ribs
1 x Ultra thin
or
"Stimulatring"
Provides the ultimate sexual buzz for him and her. Battery length of up to 40 minutes. Waterproof.
or
"Blue Zeus"
Enhance and Maintain Sexual Vigour. Vitalility and Performance Herbal Supplement.
The machine's owners, Performance Marketing Ltd (yes, that's really their name) further stated
"If you need assistance or would like to report a fault with the machine call 0870-8503528"
My feeling was that if after the three options you still needed assistance it would take more than a phone call to help you.
COMMENT: The Station provided a rare opporrtunity for reflection on the human condition, or at least its toilet did. I'll come back to that in a minute, but first some basic history.
The Station Hotel was built in 1883 (actually opening before Knebworth railway station, which happened in 1884). The station's arrival wholly changed the position of Knebworth, previously centred on Knebworth House and the parish church; a community called "New Knebworth" grew up around the station which became so dominant that in the end the "New" was dropped, it became "Knebworth" pure and simple, and the original settlement near the big house and the church became "Old Knebworth". The Station Hotel, now simply the Station, is an indicator of that change and the latest of several pubs on the Odyssey which are distinctively "railway pubs". This one had decent pub food and drink, very competitively priced.
Now to the toilet. It was John Westwood who first went in and encountered The Machine. It offered three options for the human condition (or at least the male condition):
3 condoms and ID lube
1 x natural
1 x dots and ribs
1 x Ultra thin
or
"Stimulatring"
Provides the ultimate sexual buzz for him and her. Battery length of up to 40 minutes. Waterproof.
or
"Blue Zeus"
Enhance and Maintain Sexual Vigour. Vitalility and Performance Herbal Supplement.
The machine's owners, Performance Marketing Ltd (yes, that's really their name) further stated
"If you need assistance or would like to report a fault with the machine call 0870-8503528"
My feeling was that if after the three options you still needed assistance it would take more than a phone call to help you.
Friday, 24 February 2012
Pub Odyssey 59
Tuesday 21 February: THE LUDWICK ARMS, WELWYN GARDEN CITY (Mike Horsman, Elvis Pile)
COMMENT: A small turnout for quite a reasonable pub, decent cheap food and beer. It's too new to appear in any of my reference books, being a 1950s pub- a "never had it so good" pub you might say, though its hard to imagine the semi-aristocratic, Jane Austen-reading 1950s Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, feeling very much at home there. The imagination reels at the idea of Supermac popping in to see the football (its a sports pub) or to listen to a gig (its a music venue). On the other hand Supermac might have quite enjoyed chatting to the little girl running around the pub who had come in for a pub lunch with Mum and Grandpa. Macmillan was good with children. I read a marvellous story about him told by his niece by marriage, the present Duchess of Devonshire. Apparently Macmillan visited Chatsworth for Christmas when his government was in dire straits (Profumo scandal etc) and by mistake was put at the dinner table between two of his great-nephews, aged ten and eight. The boys didn't know quite what to say to the elderly statesman, then one of them had an idea. "I say, Uncle Harold, I read in Old Moore's Almanac that your government is going down in six months! What do you think?"" Supermac looked at him severely; the dinner table fell silent, and after a long, long pause he replied:
"I think that's probably about right.".
COMMENT: A small turnout for quite a reasonable pub, decent cheap food and beer. It's too new to appear in any of my reference books, being a 1950s pub- a "never had it so good" pub you might say, though its hard to imagine the semi-aristocratic, Jane Austen-reading 1950s Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, feeling very much at home there. The imagination reels at the idea of Supermac popping in to see the football (its a sports pub) or to listen to a gig (its a music venue). On the other hand Supermac might have quite enjoyed chatting to the little girl running around the pub who had come in for a pub lunch with Mum and Grandpa. Macmillan was good with children. I read a marvellous story about him told by his niece by marriage, the present Duchess of Devonshire. Apparently Macmillan visited Chatsworth for Christmas when his government was in dire straits (Profumo scandal etc) and by mistake was put at the dinner table between two of his great-nephews, aged ten and eight. The boys didn't know quite what to say to the elderly statesman, then one of them had an idea. "I say, Uncle Harold, I read in Old Moore's Almanac that your government is going down in six months! What do you think?"" Supermac looked at him severely; the dinner table fell silent, and after a long, long pause he replied:
"I think that's probably about right.".
Pub Odyssey 58
Tuesday 14 February: THE STEAMER, Welwyn Village (Mike Horsman, Elvis pile, Bob Polydorou, Steve Stott)
COMMENT: It may have been Valentine's Day, but this was in no way a romantic destination for anyone, including Odyssians. The Steamer is a small pub which has attached to it a Chinese restaurant. The pub had, I'm sorry to say, a rather "failing" look about it (few customers, no tea or coffee even though advertised inside and outside the pub- the machine had broken apparently); however, the Chinese food was excellent and since they provide a takeaway service the Horsmans will probably be using their facilities again. The connection between the failing pub and the high quality Chinese was not umbilical- you paid for their services seperately- but I couldn't help regretting the absence from the Odyssey this week of Andrew Swift, who would undoubtedly have treated us to his best thoughts about the failure of British enterprise and the way the Chinese are taking over the world, etc, etc.
The Steamer has a picture on the sign of a "steaming" horse pulling a loan up the hill on which the pub stands, but that's a romantic fantasy. The pub is a railway pub. It opened for business about 1850 as the"The Steam Engine", linked to the creation of the Geat Northern Railway. That's about the time that other railway pubs on the Odyssey, the two Cowper Arms at Digswell and Letty Green, were also founded.
COMMENT: It may have been Valentine's Day, but this was in no way a romantic destination for anyone, including Odyssians. The Steamer is a small pub which has attached to it a Chinese restaurant. The pub had, I'm sorry to say, a rather "failing" look about it (few customers, no tea or coffee even though advertised inside and outside the pub- the machine had broken apparently); however, the Chinese food was excellent and since they provide a takeaway service the Horsmans will probably be using their facilities again. The connection between the failing pub and the high quality Chinese was not umbilical- you paid for their services seperately- but I couldn't help regretting the absence from the Odyssey this week of Andrew Swift, who would undoubtedly have treated us to his best thoughts about the failure of British enterprise and the way the Chinese are taking over the world, etc, etc.
The Steamer has a picture on the sign of a "steaming" horse pulling a loan up the hill on which the pub stands, but that's a romantic fantasy. The pub is a railway pub. It opened for business about 1850 as the"The Steam Engine", linked to the creation of the Geat Northern Railway. That's about the time that other railway pubs on the Odyssey, the two Cowper Arms at Digswell and Letty Green, were also founded.
Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Pub Odyssey 57
Tuesday 7 February: THE CORK, WELWYN GARDEN CITY (Mike Horsman, Chris Parkinson, Elvis Pile, Bob Polydorou, Steve Stott, Andrew Swift)
COMMENT: This is the first time on the Odyssey that we have been into a pub which used to be a bank. I've done it before in London, and very splendid such pubs can be- the Old Bankof England in Chancery Lane, for instance, with its spendid woodwork and ceramics and frescos. The Cork was emphatically not like that; it was somewhat basic and as one of us said, maybe a place at times to avoid eye contact with the rest of the clientele. Not however at this lunchtime; the clientele looked perfectly friendly and included a baby in a highchair with whom I was actually trying (and failing) to establish eye contact. The staff were friendly too and our young waitress showed I thought exemplary patience in trying to get the food orders from a selection of fuddy-duddies (us) who were showing signs of early onset age-related confusion (or so she must have thought). But in fairness I must say after all this that the food and beer were fine and very cheap.
The Cork is owned by a pubco called Stonegate who actually are the people who inflicted on the English pub scene the now celebrated faux-witty pub sign "Slug and Lettuce", the title of one of their pub "brands"; however, another of their brands abandons weak witticism for grim realism, being called "Scream". Well, they said it. Stonegate are also capable of barefaced impudence; the Cork is one of their pubs in a brand called "Great Traditional Pubs". There is no touch of greatness about the Cork, and it is about as close to a traditional pub as I am to being a dancer in "Hot Gossip". It's all so brazen you've got to admire it. And when its all said and done we had a convivial lunch with decent food and beer served by staff who had the right attitude. You could go to a lot of genuinely traditional pubs and not get as much.
COMMENT: This is the first time on the Odyssey that we have been into a pub which used to be a bank. I've done it before in London, and very splendid such pubs can be- the Old Bankof England in Chancery Lane, for instance, with its spendid woodwork and ceramics and frescos. The Cork was emphatically not like that; it was somewhat basic and as one of us said, maybe a place at times to avoid eye contact with the rest of the clientele. Not however at this lunchtime; the clientele looked perfectly friendly and included a baby in a highchair with whom I was actually trying (and failing) to establish eye contact. The staff were friendly too and our young waitress showed I thought exemplary patience in trying to get the food orders from a selection of fuddy-duddies (us) who were showing signs of early onset age-related confusion (or so she must have thought). But in fairness I must say after all this that the food and beer were fine and very cheap.
The Cork is owned by a pubco called Stonegate who actually are the people who inflicted on the English pub scene the now celebrated faux-witty pub sign "Slug and Lettuce", the title of one of their pub "brands"; however, another of their brands abandons weak witticism for grim realism, being called "Scream". Well, they said it. Stonegate are also capable of barefaced impudence; the Cork is one of their pubs in a brand called "Great Traditional Pubs". There is no touch of greatness about the Cork, and it is about as close to a traditional pub as I am to being a dancer in "Hot Gossip". It's all so brazen you've got to admire it. And when its all said and done we had a convivial lunch with decent food and beer served by staff who had the right attitude. You could go to a lot of genuinely traditional pubs and not get as much.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
Pub Odyssey 56
Monday 30 January: THE RED LION WOOLMER GREEN (Chris Haden, Mike Horsman, Elvis Pile, Bob Polydorou, Andrew Swift, Roger Toms)
COMMENT: This pub was nice, very cheap, good pub food and remarkably well patrronised for a Monday in January. There weren't many frills but the essentials were fine and obviously they had a winning formula, to judge by the number of punters present. The pub first appears in 1780; the freehold was later held by the famous diarist John Carrington who had as landlady the marvellously named "widow Crow". On January 23 1804, a week more than 208 years before we arrived, Carrington stood outside the Red Lion while the Duchess of Ankester's corpse stopped there on its way to burial in Lincolnshire. "Herce and 3 Coaches" noted Carrington (I love his spelling). Nothing so dramatic while we were there. However, the current building isn't the one Carrington knew.. In 1927 it was rebuilt on its former ground plan. 1927 was a vintage year for pubs in Woolmer Green, the Chequers was rebuilt in the same year apparently. In fact when you look at the two pubs you can see the architectural similarity.
COMMENT: This pub was nice, very cheap, good pub food and remarkably well patrronised for a Monday in January. There weren't many frills but the essentials were fine and obviously they had a winning formula, to judge by the number of punters present. The pub first appears in 1780; the freehold was later held by the famous diarist John Carrington who had as landlady the marvellously named "widow Crow". On January 23 1804, a week more than 208 years before we arrived, Carrington stood outside the Red Lion while the Duchess of Ankester's corpse stopped there on its way to burial in Lincolnshire. "Herce and 3 Coaches" noted Carrington (I love his spelling). Nothing so dramatic while we were there. However, the current building isn't the one Carrington knew.. In 1927 it was rebuilt on its former ground plan. 1927 was a vintage year for pubs in Woolmer Green, the Chequers was rebuilt in the same year apparently. In fact when you look at the two pubs you can see the architectural similarity.
Thursday, 26 January 2012
Pub Odyssey 55
Tuesday 24 January: THE BEEHIVE, WELWYN GARDEN CITY (Chris Haden, Mike Horsman, Elvis Pile, David Room, Andrew Swift)
COMMENT: The Beehive was a surprise in various respects. I had a feeling that as we moved towards the last third of the 87 pubs originally identified they would get grimmer and grimmer, since we had "used up" the nice ones earlier on. Not so; the Beehive was very nice, extremely well refurbished, large (100 covers), good beer, good cheap food, a carvery, etc etc. It was a great success so far as we were concerned. As Andrew said, it would be a worthy competitor for the custom of the many nice village pubs which get so much trade from Welwyn Garden City. The staff (specifically the landlady) were interactive and friendly as well. I pass over the fact that Chris Haden found viagra on sale somewhere in the pub; you'd have to ask him where.
To the pub historian the Beehive was a surprise in other respects as well. In my ignorance I'd assumed it was associated with the creation of suburban Welwyn Garden City, therefore built in the interwar years or the 1950s. Again, not so; the landlady said it was an ancient pub which went back to the eighteenth century or earlier. W. Branch Johnston, in his book "Hertfordshire Inns" is succinct and unflattering. "In 1842 a remote beerhouse on a country lane". In the tradition of multi-tasking characteristic of rural pubs in pre-modern times, at least one early licensee was also a grocer. The name, the "Beehive" is not common but there are other pubs round the country with this name. It probably only means there were hives close by when the pub was founded but in some places it was used an a symbol of industrious behaviour associated with bees- a Cheltenham "Beehive" has on the sign "By Industry We Live". Debatable in modern Britain.
COMMENT: The Beehive was a surprise in various respects. I had a feeling that as we moved towards the last third of the 87 pubs originally identified they would get grimmer and grimmer, since we had "used up" the nice ones earlier on. Not so; the Beehive was very nice, extremely well refurbished, large (100 covers), good beer, good cheap food, a carvery, etc etc. It was a great success so far as we were concerned. As Andrew said, it would be a worthy competitor for the custom of the many nice village pubs which get so much trade from Welwyn Garden City. The staff (specifically the landlady) were interactive and friendly as well. I pass over the fact that Chris Haden found viagra on sale somewhere in the pub; you'd have to ask him where.
To the pub historian the Beehive was a surprise in other respects as well. In my ignorance I'd assumed it was associated with the creation of suburban Welwyn Garden City, therefore built in the interwar years or the 1950s. Again, not so; the landlady said it was an ancient pub which went back to the eighteenth century or earlier. W. Branch Johnston, in his book "Hertfordshire Inns" is succinct and unflattering. "In 1842 a remote beerhouse on a country lane". In the tradition of multi-tasking characteristic of rural pubs in pre-modern times, at least one early licensee was also a grocer. The name, the "Beehive" is not common but there are other pubs round the country with this name. It probably only means there were hives close by when the pub was founded but in some places it was used an a symbol of industrious behaviour associated with bees- a Cheltenham "Beehive" has on the sign "By Industry We Live". Debatable in modern Britain.
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