#85

Wimbledon. I can imagine the vibe is similar.

#86

That sounds grim. Just reading an article about it in the local paper. Blimey.

“urinating through letterboxes”

#87

This one?

It didn’t get closed down after that either. It went out of business when the majority of the South African population left the area after about 2008.

#88

Haha, yeah. That one.

I’ve been in the Red Lion. Was unaware of it’s heritage.

#89

The Aardvark in Rotherhithe and The Bok Bar in Covent Garden (both terrible) also closed around that time too - obviously not enough homesick saffers to keep them going…

#90

Oh, I remember the one in Covent Garden. Before I moved to London I ended up meeting a friend in town and that happened to be the closest pub that was open when an England football match was starting on the TV.

The pub was full of guys in south african rugby shirts singing racist songs at the black England players.

The pub also had one of those early internet-connected jukeboxes.

We drank one pint, popped some money into the jukebox, cued this up, and left:

10 Likes
#91

The thing about me is I genuinely like shit pubs.

1 Like
#92

The Bullfrog in Motherwell.

1 Like
#93

A sensible decision…

Told the story on old DiS once, but the abbreviated version is:

  • Bumped into old school friend after years of non-contact.
  • Meet up for beers a few times - it becomes apparent that his current circle of friends are universally wankers.
  • Meet his younger brother, who I also went to school with - he is a card carrying member of the BNP.
  • Get invited to his stag do in London, which I nervously attend.
  • Meet in The Bok Bar to watch an England rugby match.
  • EVERY other one of his mates is either military or police.
  • They spend the whole match slating every non-white player on both sides plus Ben Cohen for being Jewish.
  • General discussion around hatred of Jews/black/the poor is the only topic of conversation for the entire day. Apparently this is fine in The Bok Bar as no one bats an eyelid.
  • Eventually the decision is made to move onto Infernos in Clapham (not a pub, but could also feature in this thread)
  • I give them the slip and fuck off home
  • I don’t attend the wedding
  • I bump into him and his now wife at an airport several years later and not a word is mentioned.
  • He friends me up on Facebook. I de-friend and never hear from him again.

Jesus, even in bullet point for that is long/boring…

4 Likes
#94

On more than one occasion, I’ve pronounced ‘Antic Pub’ as ‘Antich’ (like the Croatian surname).

I am a fool.

#95

Haha. Genius.

#96

Well, there are pubs that are a bit shit and have a charm because of that, and then there’s pubs that have shit drinks, shit people, shit chairs, shit toilets, and are just shit.

#97

I love em all I do.

#98

Really loud shit music?

#99

Think the worst kind of pub is the type with mumsy decor and terrible acoustic live lounge music covers. In that category, The Wrens Hotel in Leeds and Telegraph Bar in Newcastle

Broad range of how good and bad a Spoons can be, and then you’ve got the starey intimidating places, but none of those can be as bad as those

Yates’s are all uniformly awful too

2 Likes
#100

Is that what the Telegraph is like now? Wowzers.

#101

Yeah. I only went in once before it was redone but it’s awful now

#102

Not that bad.

#103

The Alma in Nottingham, a few months before it closed down

#104

The Olde Cherry Tree, Southgate