tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82851621212913574732024-03-13T17:42:24.444+00:00ReARM ~ RedNev's BlogReal Ale & Real MusicNeville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.comBlogger1586125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-14604972585384211802022-01-04T23:42:00.005+00:002022-01-04T23:42:42.143+00:00My band's next gig<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTQemqvmgDTqANybfmx_32FZtImI9l25sWBfzSLLNGvo9JOgH77tkZuuE0lpSY-QMpNs0xW6A-oOK7gHRbw8EN9Z7XGYFV6xYmlv8hEfoE_Ye3QTdT3BKJVLjMQP6WTwdQ7mRRAOcMWcEmGk7GKygdU5HtuLI1VYm8eKQe_lmXML5_pvjFch_e3w6OIg=s998" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="998" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTQemqvmgDTqANybfmx_32FZtImI9l25sWBfzSLLNGvo9JOgH77tkZuuE0lpSY-QMpNs0xW6A-oOK7gHRbw8EN9Z7XGYFV6xYmlv8hEfoE_Ye3QTdT3BKJVLjMQP6WTwdQ7mRRAOcMWcEmGk7GKygdU5HtuLI1VYm8eKQe_lmXML5_pvjFch_e3w6OIg=w289-h400" width="289" /></a></div><p></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-68007887489554850792021-07-24T13:38:00.003+01:002021-07-24T13:53:11.037+01:00The Tin Shed, Formby<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfa5BLuGkSMOamXTgrb4aCnzYj4b_69vGy0W40E7k_gQhdrCo8857ruAmnHs1KcGtqSRrDPiK6mLa_Eu1gr84WKRKD7L0Ero7fS59Zl4ONXm2qo6fkoq3JUSCZlH7Ey5AtFA74JO2gHJK/s2048/Tin+Shed.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfa5BLuGkSMOamXTgrb4aCnzYj4b_69vGy0W40E7k_gQhdrCo8857ruAmnHs1KcGtqSRrDPiK6mLa_Eu1gr84WKRKD7L0Ero7fS59Zl4ONXm2qo6fkoq3JUSCZlH7Ey5AtFA74JO2gHJK/s320/Tin+Shed.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Tin Shed in Formby village</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's
always good to hear about a new pub, so I was pleased to learn that a
new micropub, the Tin Shed, had opened in Formby a couple of months
ago. My old school friend Roland and I hadn't met since several
months before the first lockdown, so we chose this for our first pint
together for a long time.</span><p></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It
is in a former shop on Brows Lane in Formby village. It is pleasantly
decorated with woodchip and wood planks on one wall, perhaps to suit
the name 'shed', and with some outdoor seating to the front. We were
made very welcome by Jack who runs the pub, and we found there was
generally a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thirst things
first: there are four handpumps with a changing range of real ales.
When we called in, the choice was Wily Fox Dublin' Up Stout, Black
Lodge Pale Ale, Wily Fox Citra Golden, and an unfined Blonde ale.
Roland and I tried them all and we were happy to find they were well
looked after and enjoyable.</span></p><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM25xA8evcbUfZ-9Tbi_jviQolqTtEbhs3pDbW8VzOy2IGsdyCZLYLKmXa2lEMy2Xs0EDaGrFGFdpINGVtFSgZ3u1RsvUmAphvC88EavXqiN96Y73GfkDe0Z9DdlmoWgPFGK0A3uThGTfs/s2048/Tin+Shed+beers.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1535" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM25xA8evcbUfZ-9Tbi_jviQolqTtEbhs3pDbW8VzOy2IGsdyCZLYLKmXa2lEMy2Xs0EDaGrFGFdpINGVtFSgZ3u1RsvUmAphvC88EavXqiN96Y73GfkDe0Z9DdlmoWgPFGK0A3uThGTfs/s320/Tin+Shed+beers.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">Other drinks included Shed Head
and Poretti lagers, Fiery Fox 6.5% cider and Somersby keg cider. Also
available are gluten-free and alcohol-free options, plus spirits,
wines and coffee. You can buy two large wines and a cheesebox for
£20, but otherwise there's no food other than snacks such as crisps;
however, you can take your own food in as long as you're buying the
beer. <br /><br />Your canine pal is welcome, there is free WiFi, and
there is a TV which was on for the sport for part of our visit, but
after a while was switched off. <br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">All
in all, Roland and I had a great afternoon catching up over some good
beers in a great bar that is definitely a welcome addition to the
Formby real ale scene.</span></span></span></span></span><p></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The<span style="font-size: small;">
Tin Shed is at </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">60
Brows Lane, Formby, L37 4ED, less than ten minutes' walk from Formby
Station and near the main bus routes. Their phone number is </span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">01704
808220 and they are on Facebook and Instagram. Opening times are 2pm
to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 2pm to 9pm on Sunday.<br /><br />► </span></span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white; color: #225588;">here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">.</span></span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-20442784998740973802021-06-29T00:15:00.004+01:002021-06-29T00:29:16.803+01:00The Beer Den in Crossens<p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG1OBjHuIqghP9nV7AvdffmFEwTCp83qeY8JzAqzEAGfdvf8ts67Hzeqt69DnAbTS598nFmZubFRBcCdke6ZHui-dC7NdXPHUo8KRDK5YNljonEifrvuThaAu-UrHrt_Rh5Ly5yK_-ppkD/s2048/Beer+Den+2+Crossens.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG1OBjHuIqghP9nV7AvdffmFEwTCp83qeY8JzAqzEAGfdvf8ts67Hzeqt69DnAbTS598nFmZubFRBcCdke6ZHui-dC7NdXPHUo8KRDK5YNljonEifrvuThaAu-UrHrt_Rh5Ly5yK_-ppkD/s320/Beer+Den+2+Crossens.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The recently-opened Beer Den in Crossens</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;">Great
news: Southport has a new real ale micropub! The second branch of the
Beer Den opened in Crossens in northern Southport on Wednesday 19</span><sup style="font-family: inherit;">th</sup><span style="font-family: inherit;"> May. By
4.00 p.m., there was already a queue of thirsty customers waiting for
the doors to open. This is hardly surprising, seeing that Crossens
has been a beer desert since the Plough was demolished.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Converted
from a shop, the single roomed bar is attractively decorated with a
wood panel effect up to waist level and the bar in the far corner.
Rick Parker and Debbie were on hand to welcome everyone through the
door, and very soon there was a happy buzz of conversation among the
many customers who turned out.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Both
branches of the Beer Den (the first is nearer the town centre on Duke
Street) are run by the Parker Brewery based in Banks. There were
three handpumps serving two Parker beers, Saxon Red Ale and Viking
Blonde, and a guest beer from Bury's Deeply Vale Brewery, Optimum
Best Bitter. Our group found all the real ales to be in excellent
condition.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Goose Eye Midway Session IPA, Lowenbrau and Camden
Hells Lager were available on tap, and other drinks included the
usual spirits, with some specialist gins, wine and a choice of
bottled beers in the fridge.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">It
is good to see a micropub open in a residential area not previously
served by any pubs and bars at all. Drinkers in Crossens have
previously had to travel to Marshside, Churchtown or even the town
centre for a sociable drink and a chat outside the home with friends
and family - or even people you don't yet know, as happened to me on
opening day.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The
Beer Den is at 125 Rufford Road in Crossens; opening
hours are:</span></p>
<p class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Monday:
Closed</span></p>
<p class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Tues-Thurs: 4-10pm</span></p>
<p class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Fri
& Sat: 2-10pm</span></p>
<p class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Sunday: 2-9pm</span></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span>You
can find it on Facebook and the brewery's website is <b><a href="http://www.theparkerbrewery.co.uk" target="_blank">here</a></b></span><cite><span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">.
If you get hungry after a few drinks, there is a takeaway next door.
<br /><br />► </span></span></span></cite><span style="background-color: white;">This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white;">here</a><span style="background-color: white;">.</span></span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-55625415823998009802021-04-03T02:27:00.012+01:002021-04-18T03:10:29.502+01:00Are COVID-19 passports the answer for pubs?<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlvtt940O_R4Y9wD5eeCgkZVmb6xXYiIpj98_uQ8MXbO4EawpN-roxhjIuyFfMDEXHzv_dmfRoQhO5B-CqRfOT1wWtAUZu5FptDfYxWKLxnETxQLdIkqcsMClInVyU2O0I3MedLyDeu0wM/s558/COVID-19+passport.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="403" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlvtt940O_R4Y9wD5eeCgkZVmb6xXYiIpj98_uQ8MXbO4EawpN-roxhjIuyFfMDEXHzv_dmfRoQhO5B-CqRfOT1wWtAUZu5FptDfYxWKLxnETxQLdIkqcsMClInVyU2O0I3MedLyDeu0wM/s320/COVID-19+passport.png" /></a></div>As we approach the reopening of pubs on 12 April for outside service, a late complication has been thrown into the mix with the suggestion
that pubs and bars may choose to operate a COVID-19 passport policy
so that customers could show that they'd had either a vaccination or
a negative test. As the possibility of COVID passports has been
discussed for months, I don't see why the government is raising the
matter only now - so soon before reopening.</span><p></p><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Pubs need more
notice to help them plan staffing levels and how much drink to order,
especially after a year of lockdowns. The British Beer and Pub
Association (BBPA) has calculated that up to 87 million pints of beer
- equivalent to £331m in sales - will have been thrown away in the
UK as a result of COVID lockdowns.If
pubs operate a passport policy, whether voluntary or mandatory, they
would have to pay for a bouncer on the door to check passports before
admitting people. Many pubs, smaller ones in particular, would
struggle to pay for the extra staff member, especially after a year
of lengthy closures interspersed with restricted trading due to COVID
regulations.</span></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The
BBPA has expressed concern that passports will lead to confrontations
between disappointed customers and staff. While this is distinctly
possible, my view is that such incidents will be more likely if
passports are voluntary because licensees will not be able to argue
that they are simply enforcing the law.</span></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Kate
Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said: "It is crucial
that visiting the pub and other parts of hospitality should not be
subject to mandatory vaccination certification. It is simply
unworkable, would cause conflict between staff and customers.”</span></p>
<p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Both
organisations have pointed to the millions spent by the sector on
ensuring a safe environment for customers and staff, and to the fact
that, when pubs could open, no surges in infections have been linked
to them.<br /><br />CAMRA is opposed to vaccine passports because pubs
have suffered badly over the last twelve months and could do without
unnecessary restrictions. Furthermore, passports could prevent
younger drinkers going to pubs while they wait for the vaccine
rollout to reach their age group.</span></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">► This is word-for-word the article that I wrote for the CAMRA column in two local papers, the </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Southport Visiter</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"> and the </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Ormskirk Advertiser</i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">. The following is my own opinion which did not appear in the papers.</span></p></blockquote><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">In relation to the idea of CV19 passports, I am frequently hearing claims, including from one member of my own CAMRA branch, that insisting on them before entry to pubs would be a form of discrimination. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">This use of the term 'discrimination' usually refers to prejudice in thought or action against people for irrational reasons such as skin colour, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, and so on. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;">A suggestion of discrimination is potentially a serious accusation which needs to be examined.</span></p><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white;">I am a committed equality and diversity person and in my last job, there was a time when I was simultaneously an equal opportunities trainer for my employer and an equality and diversity spokesperson for m</span><span style="background-color: white;">y trade union. </span><span style="background-color: white;">I cannot see how any licensed premises that did refuse admission because the customer didn't have a passport would be guilty of any breach of discrimination laws, no more than if admission was refused on, say, dress code grounds.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> If introduced now it would, for example, certainly prevent younger drinkers from being able to enter pubs, </span><span style="background-color: white;">but not because of irrational prejudice, but as a health & safety measure to try to combat a pandemic that has so far killed 2,840,000 people worldwide. Measures to combat disease are not irrational, so to insist upon them cannot be described as discrimination, even they do disadvantage certain sectors of the population.<br /><br />That is my view on the principle, but there are a number of practicalities that would have to be addressed before a passport scheme could be implemented:<br /></span></span></p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">• The potential for confrontation when people are refused admission must not be underestimated.</span> </blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">• Confrontations would be more likely if the scheme were voluntary because licensees could not argue that a passport was required by law.<br />• Some pubs would struggle to meet the cost of an extra member of staff on the door to check passports before letting people in.<br />• Timing: when would be the best time to implement a passport scheme to ensure that as few people as possible were disadvantaged?<br />• How do we deal with those who cannot have the vaccine for genuine medical reasons? (In my view, this doesn't include a dislike of needles)<br />• Any new CV19 variants against which existing vaccines were inadequate would instantly make the passport scheme pointless. </span></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">• We would need adequate measures to prevent forged passports. </span></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">• Far from encouraging confidence in pub-going, the scheme may well deter some drinkers from returning to the pub. </span></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">I've not heard of any surges in infections that have been linked to pubs and bars. Indeed, every one I visited during the gaps in lockdowns was very conscientious in administering and enforcing the official guidance, so we have to question whether the cost, effort and practical difficulties involved in such a scheme would be worthwhile. Although I don't have a problem with the principle of CV19 passports, I consider that the difficulties I've referred to and the potential consequences render the idea a non-starter.</span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-75265640571324942622021-03-18T18:23:00.006+00:002021-03-18T18:29:01.752+00:00Harassment down the pub<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoVT0yuELp2bJ5FxDO2VleVv41mD7X9HolTp7yisB4ENCh7GxdValOt9FjjKU2y5U1ugoSzRXQrzTErfYmclDCY2LMaso_hrNDIVi0_UiCoBGwLdnZpphzezVHZvOlcN70Q1CTF4YKBtgq/s2048/Old+Ship+-+closed+cropped.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoVT0yuELp2bJ5FxDO2VleVv41mD7X9HolTp7yisB4ENCh7GxdValOt9FjjKU2y5U1ugoSzRXQrzTErfYmclDCY2LMaso_hrNDIVi0_UiCoBGwLdnZpphzezVHZvOlcN70Q1CTF4YKBtgq/w284-h213/Old+Ship+-+closed+cropped.jpg" width="284" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Old Ship today - closed down</span></td></tr></tbody></table>This is a slightly unusual story of sexual harassment that I witnessed at least 30 years ago in my local at the time, the Old Ship in Southport, now closed.<br /><div><br /></div><div>The pub was quiet. I was at one table with two or three friends, on another table was a bunch of noisy lads, and at the far end of the room were three young women, who I thought were about 16, dressed up to the nines for a night out. The lads began cat calling down the pub and I remember hearing terms such as 'jail bait' being bandied around. They didn't just call out once, which would have been bad enough, but went on and on until I noticed that the young women were beginning to look rather intimidated.<br /><br />The staff should have stopped the verbal harassment, but as they hadn't, I decided to go and have a word with the women myself. I told them that we weren't all like those idiots and I hoped that their behaviour hadn't put them off returning, although in reality I didn't expect they'd ever come back after what had gone on. When I'd chatted to them for a few minutes, I stood up and said I'd leave them in peace and return to my own group, at which point one of them said, "Can we join you?" I was surprised but said yes. I strolled down the pub, past the table with the sexist idiots, followed by the three young women.</div><div><br />They sat with us until the pub closed, were very pleasant company and left with us to go to a late bar we were heading for. I've sometimes wondered how the idiots interpreted what they had witnessed: me walking over to a table, chatting to three very young women, walking back with them all in tow and finally leaving the pub with them.<br /><br />Unfortunately at the late bar, the bouncer refused to admit them because of their age. In vain I argued that they were part of our group, and so I ended up apologising to the women that they weren't allowed to go in with us; they took the disappointment in their stride - perhaps it had happened before. We didn't see them again, but I hadn't expected to anyway.<br /><br />It would be good to be able to say that such bad behaviour is much less likely to happen nowadays, but I really doubt there has been significant change in the intervening decades.<br /></div>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-13938676034526514402021-02-21T23:59:00.004+00:002021-02-22T00:06:38.518+00:00Hospitality: no further room for mistakes<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2mBRf3UThPWkPW4-Gfl2c3kkmnAPyd4RXzgRZM_PAo9-g-PwQh7TN_v9olY4VnOFt_xDgM3kuUXq9AzZJa2hyphenhyphenpWPp148_9BEwDyQBeaZIPPRLTdRUIwD0BAEjzxYVT7oYy6YWEwGWTQD7/s830/Belvedere.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="830" data-original-width="740" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2mBRf3UThPWkPW4-Gfl2c3kkmnAPyd4RXzgRZM_PAo9-g-PwQh7TN_v9olY4VnOFt_xDgM3kuUXq9AzZJa2hyphenhyphenpWPp148_9BEwDyQBeaZIPPRLTdRUIwD0BAEjzxYVT7oYy6YWEwGWTQD7/s320/Belvedere.png" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">I've been told the pandemic may have <br />already killed off the Belvedere in Liverpool</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>The constant refrain we have heard from the government during the pandemic is that they are 'following the science', and yet sometimes that is the last thing they appear to do. To give just one example: the insistence that the UK must be open over the whole Christmas period, until a last-minute U-turn limited it to one day. A pandemic cannot be defeated by breezy optimism and a conviction that the British Bulldog spirit will see us through.<br /><br /></div><div>The hospitality industry has had many restrictions - some reasonable, some less so - and shutdowns imposed upon it, often at very short notice, causing huge amounts of avoidable waste. It is impossible for pubs and restaurants to order adequate stocks of food and drink to meet customers' requirements while simultaneously be ready to close at the drop of a hat. Food and beer are perishable – real ale particularly because once the cask is opened, it must be consumed in days, not weeks.</div><div><br /></div><div>A survey across the hospitality sector by Lumina Intelligence found that 67% of businesses wouldn't be able to reopen if the sale of alcohol was banned, with 19% stating that such a restriction would have an extreme impact upon their businesses. Furthermore, the British Beer & Pub Association has found that limiting reopening to outdoor service would leave 60% of pubs closed while causing an estimated drop in turnover for the sector of £1.5 billion compared to normal trading.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some parts of the national media haven't helped by demanding dates for the lifting of lockdown, with one national paper proclaiming “Free by Summer”. Unjustifiably raising hopes only causes extreme disappointment if they cannot be fulfilled, and is likely to encourage further breaches of restrictions as people conclude that our leaders don't have coherent plans.</div><div><br /></div><div>Restrictions such as requiring pub customers to have a 'substantial meal' with their drinks, and then debating in public as to whether a Scotch egg constituted one, gave the impression that policy was being made up on the hoof.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hospitality is rapidly approaching a 'make-or-break' situation; after nearly a year there is now little room for yet more wrong decisions to be made. Let's hope that measures are proportionate and considered, and not based on back-of-the-envelope science and knee-jerk reactions.</div>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-53015988350524221742021-02-11T00:47:00.001+00:002021-02-11T00:47:52.568+00:00Pubs with no beer? You cannot be serious!<p><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNQES20tq0WzjwaNQCT5JdGtEDjdejOgTiP7B7y3AhPnZKnYS0oKtKVYI20UzFJUd9uQ1ynocS1h7JImdjnsG-yKaSQJcYBzemCmoRAj6Ln-6QuMdqZAQvCdLanGFb5ueSZnXdmbBMd1h/s1600/Walker+Crown+adj.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNQES20tq0WzjwaNQCT5JdGtEDjdejOgTiP7B7y3AhPnZKnYS0oKtKVYI20UzFJUd9uQ1ynocS1h7JImdjnsG-yKaSQJcYBzemCmoRAj6Ln-6QuMdqZAQvCdLanGFb5ueSZnXdmbBMd1h/s320/Walker+Crown+adj.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The fine frontage of the Crown <br />on Lime Street, Liverpool</span></td></tr></tbody></table>It
is rumoured that as lockdown eases, the government may allow pubs and
bars to reopen without the 10.00 pm curfew and with no requirement to
have a substantial meal. This all sounds quite hopeful - until you
hear that they are also considering banning any alcohol sales.</span></p><p><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">T</span><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">he
chief medical officer Chris Whitty is concerned that drinking alcohol
will destroy any attempts to maintain social distancing. This is not
a scientific judgment: it is simply an opinion, and it's not one that
is borne out by my own experiences last summer. Every pub I went into
observed all the rules and required their customers to do the same.
Sometimes I forgot and more than once I was ordered by bar staff:
“Oi, Neville! Go back and sanitise your hands!”</span></p><p><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">I</span><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">f
pubs can't serve alcohol, there is a greater danger of the virus
spreading in unsupervised conditions such as when groups of friends
gather in one house, not for a party as such, but just to have a few
drinks from supermarkets. Such behaviour will continue if reopened
pubs can sell only non-alcohol drinks: very few regular pubgoers will
return just for tea, coffee and soft drinks.<br /></span><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;"><br />Kate Nicholls,
Chief Executive of UKHospitality, tweeted: “Reopening in name only
inflicts irreparable damage on hospitality as we saw October to
December with restrictions with little meaningful impact on health or
harm, pushing revenues as low as 20% to 30%. Unsustainable for
restaurants and pubs.”</span></p><p><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">She explained how pub and bar
operators had taken meticulous measures to reopen safely last summer,
and how few cases of COVID-19 infections had been caused by the
industry. She emphasised that, operating under such extreme
limitations, the pubs and hospitality industry did not break even.</span></p><p><span style="color: #000066; font-family: inherit;">While
there is always the occasional idiot on either side of the bar who
will selfishly break any rule that gets in the way, when pubs
reopened last year I saw no chaotic scenes of drunken abandonment,
and neither did anyone else I know. This industry's problem during
the pandemic is that decisions are being made about its future by
politicians who know nothing about it because they never go into pubs
themselves, except for photo opportunities at election time. That
simply isn't good enough.</span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-58059592726170690712021-01-11T20:25:00.006+00:002021-01-14T13:59:01.496+00:00CAMRA - coping manfully with the 20th century<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZ4z5SdbBvfRgiOUhL-mXEIhEgSdMZPEei5ewoBzq0fvaI6sH6v0NN6XycDUgGIrVHHF9Ki9mIJWzJAYOZLoH8lbe98dVL4qIAPQOtEXAv02ypNtRAjW_Bjsq8D7f7NMT9OVu8hEydIvm/s495/Del+RAT+womenfolk.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="391" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZ4z5SdbBvfRgiOUhL-mXEIhEgSdMZPEei5ewoBzq0fvaI6sH6v0NN6XycDUgGIrVHHF9Ki9mIJWzJAYOZLoH8lbe98dVL4qIAPQOtEXAv02ypNtRAjW_Bjsq8D7f7NMT9OVu8hEydIvm/s320/Del+RAT+womenfolk.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">From Viz magazine: I have occasionally heard <br />such sentiments - supposedly made in jest.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>In my capacity as press officer of CAMRA's Southport & West Lancs branch, I sometimes use national CAMRA press releases in my articles in the local papers, and one thing that increasingly irritates me about them is the description of Nik Antona as the campaign's national 'chairman'. This term was even used when two women, the late Paula Waters and Jackie Parker, held the post.<p></p><p>I have belonged to a number of organisations, campaigns and political parties over the years and CAMRA is the only one that still uses such old-fashioned terminology. When I became a union rep in 1984, my union had scrapped gender-specific terms years earlier and - believe it or not - the world didn't implode. There are three main reasons why I feel that change is long overdue:</p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Use of terms such as 'chairman' reinforces the stereotype of CAMRA as a lads' drinking club rather than a campaign to represent all real ale drinkers, an image problem that has discouraged some people, mostly but not exclusively women, from joining. Such a stereotype also has the effect of diminishing any influence we may hope to have. Viz magazine had a cartoon strip that mercilessly took the mickey out of real ale drinkers, and if we're being honest, we real ale drinkers have all met people who resembled the Viz caricatures.</li><li>Gender-specific terms are on the decline in general, with terms such as police officer, fire fighter and seafarer increasingly becoming the norm. There are women in the acting profession who prefer the term 'actors' to 'actresses'. Some gender-specific terms have become completely obsolete, such as baxter for a female baker and brewster for a female brewer; I have seen one or two beer writers pretentiously, but pointlessly, using the latter term, but they really are swimming against the tide.</li><li>Whether you agree or not, it is a fact that some people find such terminology irritating, or worse. For a mass membership organisation, discouraging potential supporters by using outdated language really is an own goal, one that is both wholly unnecessary and very easy to prevent. </li></ul><div style="text-align: left;">One argument that I've heard deployed against change is, "I'm not a piece of furniture!" This is, frankly, quite silly. The term 'chair' when used as the title of the person presiding over a meeting is being used symbolically, not literally. Other examples are:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>The use of the term 'the crown' in reference to our head of state: as far as I know, the queen has never been heard to say, "I'm not a piece of jewelry". </li><li>The Crown Prosecution Service will take you to court in the queen's name and not on behalf of an expensive trinket, and the Netflix series 'The Crown' is not a multipart documentary about royal jewelry. </li><li>Magistrates are routinely referred to as 'the bench', and yet you don't hear them complain, "I'm not a piece of furniture!"</li></ul><div>Dea Latis is an organisation committed to "bringing beer to women". While I welcome this organisation and its aims, surely this is something CAMRA should have been doing; I think we missed a trick here and our image is part of the problem. <br /><br />A genuine commitment to equality and diversity has to include the language we employ. Clinging on to outdated terms simply reinforces stereotypical attitudes, especially among our detractors. We are foolish to give them ammunition, while at the same time discouraging people who might otherwise support us.<br /><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In
CAMRA's 50th anniversary year, surely it's about time the
organisation took a decisive step forward into the 1980s.</span></p></div></div><p></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-26100193663029941252020-12-22T01:02:00.007+00:002020-12-23T01:58:14.615+00:00Pub closures – an ongoing misfortune<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40RSKYn-nH2QSjm4f4YQir1hruYybBE8JfWloscB8Viag3B_s8N7DqAwz_ACcQDwa00Z6HgJsfs5gA4WrwUdd1952qnwqQuyXxwxeL0jC1iIXbx_UdGmrNGfiuPFuTSCIGSOoHvcmytd-/s403/1+del+2.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="304" data-original-width="403" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40RSKYn-nH2QSjm4f4YQir1hruYybBE8JfWloscB8Viag3B_s8N7DqAwz_ACcQDwa00Z6HgJsfs5gA4WrwUdd1952qnwqQuyXxwxeL0jC1iIXbx_UdGmrNGfiuPFuTSCIGSOoHvcmytd-/s320/1+del+2.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The closed down Old Ship</span></td></tr></tbody></table>The Christmas and New Year holiday is often an occasion to reflect on the past as well as look forward <span style="font-family: inherit;">to the future. This post is about a couple of local real
ale pubs that I used to frequent but which are now closed.</span><p></p><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">First
is the Old Ship on Eastbank Street, Southport. I discovered this pub
at a time when I was helping run a folk song club that had become
homeless. A friend who worked at the brewery (Tetley Walker) arranged
for us to use the function room which became our club's home for
several years. I began to go there at other times and made many
friends there.
</span></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The
manager Charlie Oliver was popular and was known for his well-kept
Walkers ales. Bikers liked the pub, which had a great rock juke box.
I remember Meatloaf was blasting out with “I'll do anything for
love but I won't do that”. One biker at the bar asked, “What
won't he do for love?” His mate replied, “Lose weight.”</span></p><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">On
another occasion, a young man was being obnoxious. When Charlie
politely asked him to leave, he began to argue, at which five bikers
simply stood up. He then decided discretion was the better part of
valour and hurriedly left. </span>
</span></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAp49Cr9KSABaBCBF58-9duqkN4mABJAoD563xxJaPnsqdpCBPqqlOs8AySVj7Nv8oJs4vehQmKZYhowZ4NLrKS1RlgUORSRNCOojV2yKXz3OyyfMloHOFneeMnG4NO_SIFkjYG1lIs7fZ/s456/1+del+1.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="341" data-original-width="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAp49Cr9KSABaBCBF58-9duqkN4mABJAoD563xxJaPnsqdpCBPqqlOs8AySVj7Nv8oJs4vehQmKZYhowZ4NLrKS1RlgUORSRNCOojV2yKXz3OyyfMloHOFneeMnG4NO_SIFkjYG1lIs7fZ/s320/1+del+1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Falstaff after its last short-lived refurbishment</span></td></tr></tbody></table>The
Falstaff on King Street later became my local, and we used to hold
informal song sessions there. It was managed by Gail Heyes (now at
the Guest House), had an extensive choice of well-kept real ales that
drew drinkers from far and wide, and a good value food menu as well.
We held a few successful musical charity fundraisers there.
Unfortunately this pub later had two extensive refurbishments in the
space of 18 months, the most recent just over four years ago. <p></p><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">Regrettably
both of these pubs</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">
have been closed and boarded up for some time, two of the 13,600 pubs
that have closed in the UK since 2000. People walking past them now just see boarded up buildings, and most will be unaware that they used to be thriving community pubs, focal points for people to meet, have a few drinks and enjoy each other's company.<br /><br />I'm sure most pubgoers realise that pub closures will accelerate as a result of the current pandemic. Our towns and cities will have more boarded up pubs to be sold for change of use or redevelopment. The government seems intent on doing the bare minimum to help - what's been offered has been wholly inadequate - and indeed seems to be opting for tier restrictions that are doing more harm than good. I'm not convinced that this is entirely due to their habitual incompetence - I suspect that there may be a hidden agenda, as I wrote <b><a href="https://rednev-rearm.blogspot.com/2020/09/10pm-pub-closure-stupidity-or-hidden.html" target="_blank">here</a></b> in September - but either way, the vaccine rollout will come too late to save thousands of pub from closure.</span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-67875544406644665012020-12-10T09:30:00.014+00:002020-12-11T19:30:09.986+00:00Support pubs for the long-term good<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsCvgklQ8Pb4hcpECUerO0FEmZo5P8e7tbw1BPXQwumnRtA9K0Z8DQLPpxt_fDOWDOvplp4aaDhkpDJGE5-IrNvn7ORBIOYTBOb7ybPdX7Mta-EWeNQSyq0tBbOwcLhWmX53qPnRF3gqQO/s2048/Old+Ship+-+closed+cropped.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsCvgklQ8Pb4hcpECUerO0FEmZo5P8e7tbw1BPXQwumnRtA9K0Z8DQLPpxt_fDOWDOvplp4aaDhkpDJGE5-IrNvn7ORBIOYTBOb7ybPdX7Mta-EWeNQSyq0tBbOwcLhWmX53qPnRF3gqQO/w268-h202/Old+Ship+-+closed+cropped.jpg" width="268" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Many pubs were already struggling <br />pre-CV19 such as Southport's Old Ship </span></td></tr></tbody></table>Regrettably, politicians adopting sad faces and praising pubs as the hearts of our communities won't save a single one from the consequences of prolonged closure or extremely restricted activity during the COVID-19 emergency. Decisive action is needed, not just for pubs but for the hospitality industry in general. The £1000 one-off payment in this month to wet-led pubs is like giving a single chip to someone who hasn't eaten for a week. <br /><br />I, and many others, have explained the social value of pubs both before and during the pandemic, but there are also good pragmatic reasons for supporting the hospitality industry through the current problems. The licensees of most pubs are tenants running their own individual businesses in premises rented from a pub company; the days of pub managers employed by the brewery are largely in the past. If a licensee goes bankrupt, the pub's owners can advertise for another tenant, or they may decide to sell the building for redevelopment. Nowadays, a pub on a prime site can be worth much more to the owners closed and sold than open and operating, and if that happens, the business and the employment it provides is lost permanently.<br /><br />It's consequently very worrying that we are in danger of losing many of our treasured locals because of the pandemic restrictions. If whole swathes of the hospitality industry do disappear permanently, the rise in long-term unemployment will be considerable. Unemployment doesn't come cheap.<br /><br />In this situation, it makes more sense to help those businesses and jobs survive now and preserve as much of the hospitality industry's infrastructure as possible rather than having to pay for a huge increase in unemployment benefits for many years to come. Now is the time for our government to take the long view, but what's on offer at present is no more than crocodile tears and sympathy. Unfortunately, as we have a clueless government that believes to be 'oven ready' means taking a year or more to achieve absolutely nothing, I'm not optimistic.<br /><br />► Many pubs were already struggling even before the pandemic, such as my one-time local, the Old Ship in Southport town centre, which had already closed when the pandemic struck.Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-44474775663315492122020-12-05T15:54:00.003+00:002020-12-05T15:57:58.954+00:00Al fresco Jagpie gig this Sunday<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKm7lhwOyk0KWlh-vVFDyMSoOR1MXZH2RT_hb4bd1NkGwHkjvA3yAotejfXysvfOyzrKbkQqFyCoxDsRLQso4eVPxQIb9DXFtWGcUV0EL_mtvIno3KGMvRUvEhdYwnF-zdo4Fm5P3SsgsG/s1000/Jagpie+6.12.20.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="988" data-original-width="1000" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKm7lhwOyk0KWlh-vVFDyMSoOR1MXZH2RT_hb4bd1NkGwHkjvA3yAotejfXysvfOyzrKbkQqFyCoxDsRLQso4eVPxQIb9DXFtWGcUV0EL_mtvIno3KGMvRUvEhdYwnF-zdo4Fm5P3SsgsG/w400-h395/Jagpie+6.12.20.png" width="400" /></a></div><p></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-4585634253311888132020-11-23T12:07:00.000+00:002020-11-25T12:04:02.622+00:00Roscoe Head, classic Liverpool pub, saved<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"></span></span></span></strong></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AoR2YHE1j6IIsDE4I6z_c592PQasszQ_DW05UPw4H5tznAe-7EFFgRgpCgS0FsxhafuRGfWrH7LcHF5fjL52nh8QQxUfdrR3nMO-NaKsD9EDAtZ7wmeMIIhCGsLPe7Rdh-bpXLIXJIL5/s600/Roscoe+Head.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AoR2YHE1j6IIsDE4I6z_c592PQasszQ_DW05UPw4H5tznAe-7EFFgRgpCgS0FsxhafuRGfWrH7LcHF5fjL52nh8QQxUfdrR3nMO-NaKsD9EDAtZ7wmeMIIhCGsLPe7Rdh-bpXLIXJIL5/s320/Roscoe+Head.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></strong></span></div><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Roscoe Head in Liverpool is one of only five pubs to have been in every issue of the CAMRA</span></span></strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><br />Good Beer Guide, and the only one in the
North. Opened in 1870, this unspoilt pub c</span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">onsists
of a main bar, two small rooms and a tiny snug. </span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">As
t</span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">here
is no jukebox or fruit machine, conversation, good beer and a warm
welcome</span></span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">
are what you get.</span></span></strong></span><p></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western"><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">Despite
its obvious attractions and the success of the business, this pub has
been at risk for many years with the owners charging inflated prices
for supplying a limited choice of drinks, unreasonable rent, and
plans to redevelop the site. The licensee, Carol Ross who took over
the running of the pub in 1997 from her mother, has campaigned for
many years for a fair deal for pub licensees in general, and for the
Roscoe Head in particular.</span></span></span></span></strong></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western"><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">All
her exhausting and stressful hard work has finally paid off: the
pub's owners have just agreed to sell her the freehold. This classic
pub is a popular destination across Merseyside, not just for real ale
drinkers, but for anyone who likes to enjoy a drink with friends in a
relaxed, friendly and welcoming environment. This sale ensures that
the Roscoe Head will provide just that for generations to come.</span></span></span></span></strong></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">Carol
had a special word for the pub's supporters: ”</span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I
want to say a very special big thank you to all my Roscoe Head family
of supporters who have continued to fight this battle with me for
over 10 years.”</span></span></span></span></p><p align="LEFT" class="western"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJK1ijuJm03iU8UfTZISsXmlokv1Fc5JCIlpoSl_biCUqtPBC0kXNCYkMLd1HZuqNF39jr6c5eWuY2b03sfHd71FhO95uxZSmoqmIY8ZvjrzGNCIt0ZQsFF7_ROWbivIeLUhxLpAzG98u2/s456/Del+roscoe.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJK1ijuJm03iU8UfTZISsXmlokv1Fc5JCIlpoSl_biCUqtPBC0kXNCYkMLd1HZuqNF39jr6c5eWuY2b03sfHd71FhO95uxZSmoqmIY8ZvjrzGNCIt0ZQsFF7_ROWbivIeLUhxLpAzG98u2/s320/Del+roscoe.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Carol at the front of a demonstration <br />in support of the Roscoe Head in 2015</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table></span>CAMRA Liverpool & Districts branch announced: “We were just as surprised as everyone else but this is absolutely tremendous news and of great significance. Carol has managed to prise this CAMRA award winning pub from her Pubco owner New River Retail who are renowned for converting pubs into retail and residential units<span style="font-size: small;">.</span>”</p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western"><span style="font-family: inherit;">With
our unique heritage of British locals in even more danger than usual
because of the pandemic, such good news makes an encouraging change.</span></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western"><strong><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Roscoe Head is on Roscoe Street, Liverpool L1 2SX, less than 10
minutes' walk from Central Station, just around the corner from
Liverpool's iconic Bombed Out Church. Do pay it a visit when you can.
</span><a href="https://www.roscoehead.co.uk/" target="_blank">Website</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">. <br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span></strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">► This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white; color: #777233;">here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">.</span></span>
</p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-2235057426320093772020-11-14T20:44:00.003+00:002020-11-14T20:44:25.732+00:00New micropub for Southport<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNx7FyYLBJcexxz1bxGy8-zUnqMTSNljO7JRHTl2iQIdyWbnlOyMx7UXXsqrAXKuPMy3cn60XUNLYCG-NMApGv-5Xz2h7nK3mYAbzUCFwsTfbbmCFqrCr8hHIcHlu8z6p9dcYbWaaeBLSO/s228/Del+beer+den.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="191" data-original-width="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNx7FyYLBJcexxz1bxGy8-zUnqMTSNljO7JRHTl2iQIdyWbnlOyMx7UXXsqrAXKuPMy3cn60XUNLYCG-NMApGv-5Xz2h7nK3mYAbzUCFwsTfbbmCFqrCr8hHIcHlu8z6p9dcYbWaaeBLSO/s0/Del+beer+den.png" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first Beer Den<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>Some
good news for a change! Parker Brewery has just been given planning
permission to convert a former shop at 125 Rufford Road, Southport,
into a new micropub. The brewery already runs the popular Beer Den
which opened just over two years ago on Duke Street, Southport. Work
has only just begun on the new pub, and it will be run in a similar
way to its older sibling serving<span style="font-size: small;">
local cask ales, wines, fizz, spirits and coffee.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Parker
Brewery is in Banks, just north of Southport, and it produces both
traditional and modern ales in casks and bottles. The new Beer Den
(as it will also be called) will sell the brewery's real ales
alongside local guest ales. This micropub will be a welcome
development in Crossens, a beer desert at present, with thirsty
drinkers currently having to trek either to the Shrimper or to the
pubs in Churchtown. I'll let you know the opening date when it
becomes available.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">► This is taken from an article that I wrote for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">Southport Visiter</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"> and Ormskirk Advertiser.</span></span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-71847938086978278892020-10-29T16:56:00.001+00:002020-10-29T18:28:48.078+00:00Mass pub extinction imminent<p><span style="color: #333366;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHDSaMFeUjg2YciOkPwxpbRsr9PPr2JCSdKcoZHN1j_ZOLAYd2Xcvq0-TbR4TdFTzgr5wgc5j6mSUT4oLv23uLwUhYLxXI_GNAp63mx_qGL-6L86niLdkpG0uXz6EsjguCd2-PWWwYa9TZ/s1010/Pubs+extiction+risk.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="748" data-original-width="1010" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHDSaMFeUjg2YciOkPwxpbRsr9PPr2JCSdKcoZHN1j_ZOLAYd2Xcvq0-TbR4TdFTzgr5wgc5j6mSUT4oLv23uLwUhYLxXI_GNAp63mx_qGL-6L86niLdkpG0uXz6EsjguCd2-PWWwYa9TZ/s320/Pubs+extiction+risk.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">It
is bad news that the pubs in Lancashire and Merseyside have been
forcibly closed, even though similar businesses like restaurants are
allowed to stay open. This is despite the fact that pub licensees
have done everything asked of them to make their venues COVID-secure.
It feels as though pubs are being made a scapegoat for the pandemic.</span><p></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">In
my last job, some colleagues used to be amazed that I would go out at
weekends into Southport town centre or, on occasion, into Liverpool.
'You'd never catch me doing that,' they'd say. They seemed to think
the town centre at weekends was like something out of an old Wild
West movie. I wasted my breath stating that I always felt safe and
rarely saw any trouble much beyond an occasional argument.</span></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">I
feel that such misconceptions have made pubs and bars easy targets
for government measures that are intended more to make a point to the
populace than to control the virus. The leader of Pendle council said
as much to the government official with whom he was discussing Tier 3
restrictions: the official agreed.</span></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">In
other words, it looks as though pubs have been closed to teach us a
lesson: CAMRA and other organisations have asked for the evidence
that pubs are the cause of spreading the infection, but to date have
received no reply.</span></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">CAMRA
Chief Executive Tom Stainer said: “Even if pubs serving food can
stay open, the restrictions will see an even bigger reduction in
footfall and trade, making businesses unviable. The Government
urgently needs to increase the financial support available to all
pubs to help them pay staff wages, meet fixed costs and to make up
for lost business.</span></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">“We
also need a long-term support package for the beer and pubs industry
covering not just the period of the Tier 3 restrictions, but also the
weeks and months that follow as pubs and breweries try to get back on
their feet.</span></p>
<p class="western"><span style="color: #333366; font-family: inherit;">“This
is a real sink or swim moment for local pubs and the breweries that
serve them – without proper support, we risk thousands of local businesses that are now under
additional restrictions not surviving beyond Christmas.”<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">► This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white; color: #777233;">here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">.</span></span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-34052185512325535702020-10-19T17:21:00.004+01:002020-10-19T21:35:34.306+01:00Tracks Of My Tiers<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEXDnV3FV1dPWEdFFmV-UHn82kS7n3T_s0gmq7Lu9J7qfKzjAXZD__wtEm6ZhYheWZ9fjCpTEdbPa4xyLIfAatI2lQ8bkvYAYOXZhY-1-rwx6XBvTd2FALNIlzXJo_mX_nS5OTWPkjI5tf/s1200/Brew2You.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEXDnV3FV1dPWEdFFmV-UHn82kS7n3T_s0gmq7Lu9J7qfKzjAXZD__wtEm6ZhYheWZ9fjCpTEdbPa4xyLIfAatI2lQ8bkvYAYOXZhY-1-rwx6XBvTd2FALNIlzXJo_mX_nS5OTWPkjI5tf/s320/Brew2You.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;">The
Tier 3 restrictions that have been imposed upon Merseyside and
Lancashire mean that drink-based pubs have now been closed for a
second time this year, while food pubs can sell you drinks but only
when you are having a meal. Some pubs are now offering takeaway and
delivery services. Local CAMRA members have been telling me which
pubs and breweries in our area that are doing this.</span><p></p>
<ul>
<li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Grasshopper, 70 Sandon Road, Southport. </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;">Delivery
every day of real ales, ciders and wine. Order via Facebook. Tel:
</span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">01704
569794.</span></span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Tap & Bottles, </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">19A
Cambridge Walks, Southport, are doing</span></span> beer deliveries.
Order via Facebook. Tel: <span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">01704
544322.</span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Beer Den </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">65/67
Duke Street, Southport. </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Takeaways
on Thursday to Saturday, plus deliveries. See their Facebook page.
Tel: 01704 329007. </span></span></span>
</span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Parker Brewer</span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">y,
</span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">Unit
3, Gravel Lane, Banks, Southport say “anyone interested in
takeaways or deliveries, get in touch”. Tel: 01704 620718.</span></span></span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Rock the Boat Brewery, </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">6
Little Crosby Village. L23 4TS are doing </span></span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">takeaways.
Tel: </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">07727
959356.</span></span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Dog & Gun, 233 Long Lane Aughton, </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">L39
5BU. </span></span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Takeaway
real ale, cider and food. Tel: </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">01695
421999</span></span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Beer Station, 3 Victoria Buildings, Victoria Road, Formby, have said they intend to instal two extra fridges for bottled beer takeaway.
Tel:</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">01704
807450.</span></span></span></span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The
Cricketers, </span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">24
Chapel Street, Ormskirk,</span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
is doing a food and drink takeaway service. Tel: 01695 571123 </span></span></span>
</span></p>
</li><li><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Cheshire
Lines, King Street, Southport, say, “</span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Sunday
delivery service so get your roast & cask orders in by messaging
us, calling 07787 406 504 or phoning 01704 807710 on Sunday”.</span></span></span></p></li></ul>
<p align="LEFT" class="western" style="font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">I've
tried to ensure these details are correct. If any other local pubs
and breweries are doing deliveries or takeaways, tell the local branch of CAMRA via the
contact details on the CAMRA Southport & West Lancs <b><a href="https://www.southport.camra.org.uk/" target="_blank">website</a></b> for inclusion in a future column in the local papers.</span></p>
<p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">►
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">You
can order on-line from other beer businesses using CAMRA's Brew2You
</span><b><a href="https://brew2you.co.uk/" target="_blank">website</a></b><span style="font-weight: normal;"> which aims to support pubs and breweries
through these difficult times. This site</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
connects you with local businesses selling great beer, and perhaps
other drinks too.</span></span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
Y</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">our
money will be paid in full to the businesses concerned, with only 5%
admin fee to cover costs, thereby making this service completely free
to the businesses using it.</span></span></span></span></p><p align="LEFT" class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">► This is adapted from an article that I wrote for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the </span>Southport Visiter<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"> and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white; color: #777233;">here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">.</span></span></p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-59038267704497230012020-10-12T11:25:00.014+01:002020-10-19T17:33:01.529+01:00Death by a thousand cuts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIkLDS1fnvtrMYZITjEgIT04Vl05RRlz-c2KK1ceX_z3eq3q9aVaT032KIu-klnO1JeG39oJUS1E_RFC4YJp6gvrMOJ6h_5_U3ES819xwX8N_cBU2lqToDVNGEH8RyM7ZaBpq5MLbH3aU/s846/Untitled.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="846" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIkLDS1fnvtrMYZITjEgIT04Vl05RRlz-c2KK1ceX_z3eq3q9aVaT032KIu-klnO1JeG39oJUS1E_RFC4YJp6gvrMOJ6h_5_U3ES819xwX8N_cBU2lqToDVNGEH8RyM7ZaBpq5MLbH3aU/s320/Untitled.png" width="320" /></a></div>At the time of writing, the general view is that pubs in our area (the Liverpool City Region: Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral), are going to be closed in the latest measures against COVID-19. As a campaigning organisation, CAMRA has written to the government demanding that they release the evidence that pubs, along with other hospitality outlets, are hotbeds of coronavirus infection. To date, no reply has been received. </span></div><br />My own experience as a regular pubgoer is that pubs are taking their responsibilities for the health and safety of their staff and customers very seriously: they have to because they do not want their businesses to be closed down. The restrictions currently in place have significantly changed the experience of going to the pub, and have also reduced the numbers of people they can take in. <br /><br />Most pubs are small, individual businesses that are not supported by the pub company that owns the building. Unlike in the past when most pubs were run by breweries who had a salaried manager on site, nowadays the pub is a stand-alone business with the licensee renting the premises from the owning company. The success or failure of these businesses rests entirely upon the licensee. If a pub fails, the owning company simply has a valuable piece of property to sell for redevelopment, while the licensee loses everything.
<br /><br />One pub landlady told me a few days ago that she is slowly going bankrupt during the current restrictions; another enforced pub closure will only speed up that process. Hospitality accounts for a huge amount of employment in our economy, and pubs provide a valuable antidote to isolation, especially nowadays when the number of single-occupied households is at its highest ever.
<br /><br />Closing pubs is an easy fix for a government that wishes to show that it is 'doing something'. It is not enough to do something: it is essential to do the right thing, especially when thousands of small businesses and jobs are at stake.<div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">► This is adapted from an article that I wrote for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the </span>Southport Visiter<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"> and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are </span><a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html" style="background-color: white; color: #777233;">here</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">.</span></span></div>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-858223933380559512020-09-28T17:00:00.013+01:002020-12-11T21:01:44.501+00:0010pm pub closure - stupidity or hidden agenda?<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7Hx35-obTtKOpMdyTdcUJMy-DcZsCe-FucaLlzUgnhX073GFzD6sS2Cba1bVfzXp-pJekQAD_tUEeuZ1Z9f-9fjTqJHlDjmsgq5qtpTBmGhT_rGZ-C2Xh6OMPXXHqrY2cOktfUt74JCi/s624/1+PUB.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="464" data-original-width="624" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7Hx35-obTtKOpMdyTdcUJMy-DcZsCe-FucaLlzUgnhX073GFzD6sS2Cba1bVfzXp-pJekQAD_tUEeuZ1Z9f-9fjTqJHlDjmsgq5qtpTBmGhT_rGZ-C2Xh6OMPXXHqrY2cOktfUt74JCi/w285-h212/1+PUB.png" width="285" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shape of things to come?</td></tr></tbody></table>Like most people I know, I try to follow the CV19 restrictions and I can see the logic for many of them. In other words, I am not a Covidiot. That said, I have to say that the latest restrictions on pubs and bars seem guaranteed to achieve the precise opposite of the ostensible aim, i.e. restricting the spread of the virus.<p></p><p>Like most places, Southport where I live has a range of establishments where you can buy alcohol for consumption on the premises, such as pubs, bars, clubs, hotels, restaurants and micropubs. Their closing times are correspondingly varied from 10.00 p.m. to well after midnight. As a result, the times when people are leaving are automatically staggered over several hours.<br /><br />Now we have the situation that all venues have to stop serving at 9.30 p.m. and be closed by 10.00 p.m. My first thought was that throwing everyone out on the streets at precisely the same time when previously they would have left in dribs and drabs over several hours was the height of uninformed stupidity, and if anything is likely to spread the virus. I heard on the news earlier today that Greene King have made a similar point, suggesting that many drinkers head straight for supermarkets to buy supplies to continue drinking at home with their friends, which would also help spread the virus.<br /><br />But then I began to wonder whether it is stupidity, or is there another motive at work here? If this particular restriction does cause an upsurge, I am certain that the government will blame the pubs and not their own rules. They will then have the perfect excuse to close pubs down altogether. The question is: why would they want to do that?<br /><br />I have long held the view that the Establishment in this country, supported by much of the media, does not like ordinary people gathering in large numbers. This has applied throughout history: for example, Peterloo, Chartists, suffragettes, the general strike, the miners' strike all led to vicious overreactions and clampdowns by the state. It is noticeable that certain sections of the Establishment and the media will always condemn any collective action such as a strike, regardless of the cause and how peacefully it is conducted - ordinary people acting together is anathema to them. I have been going on demonstrations since the 1970s, and I have never seen any trouble. However, you might have a couple of dozen hotheads on a demonstration of hundreds of thousands, and guess who the attention will invariably be focussed on?<br /><br />What does all this have to do with pubs? Every day, in every town and city, thousands will go out for a drink in an environment that involves alcohol, and this spontaneous gathering of ordinary people is unwelcome in certain quarters, because it cannot easily be controlled. The fact that the vast majority of pub-goers are simply socialising and enjoying themselves is irrelevant to the mindset that I am describing.<br /><br />What other evidence is there for hostility to pubs?<br /></p><ul><li>Beer tax in the UK is among the highest in Europe.<br /></li><li>Business rates are set at unrealistically high levels.</li><li>There isn't much protection for tenants of predatory pub-owning companies. The minimal safeguards that do exist were grudgingly granted after the strenuous representations by pubcos resulted in the dilution of the measures to near worthlessness.<br /></li><li>Alcohol in supermarkets is a fraction of the price of that in pubs.</li><li>'Trouble' involving pubs is always given disproportionate prominence in the media. <br /></li></ul>These could all be just coincidences, of course, and this CV19 measure which may well cause permanent pub closures could simply be yet another one, but I find that increasingly implausible.<br /><br />Concerning the last bullet point: pre-CV19, I'd go out for a pint between four and seven times per week, rarely less, and it is quite literally decades since I have seen anything worse than the occasional argument. However, the repeated drip-drip reporting of pubs as dangerous places can put people off going to them. In my last job, some of my colleagues were amazed that I went into town every weekend: "You wouldn't catch me doing that!" is the kind of thing I tended to hear, and my argument that I never saw any trouble was disregarded. <br /><br />This CV19 measure looks likely to cause precisely what we are told it is intended to prevent. If pubs are blamed for an upsurge and are consequently completely closed down again, many will never reopen. I believe that some people in the Establishment would welcome that; in their eyes, the more people supping supermarket drink at home rather than gathered in groups, the better. Some politicians like to be seen in a pub quaffing a pint, usually with a big head*, to show that they are 'men of the people', and they usually <i>are</i> men. This is all just for show. If after CV19 we have lost whole swathes of our pubs, bars and clubs, some will be mentally punching the air and shouting, "Result!" <br /><br />I also believe that, if they could get away with it, they'd have everyone watching sports, football especially, on subscription channels at home rather than in stadia.<br /><br />Would they deliberately provoke an upsurge by this 10.00 p.m. rule? I wouldn't put it past a government that wanted the virus to sweep through the population, regardless of the number of casualties, to achieve the unproved aim of herd immunity. There was a report in the press, later denied, that an unidentified individual (although I can guess who) in a government meeting about the virus said it wouldn't matter very much if old people in care homes died of the virus, and it is a fact that for several months those homes received almost no help despite high mortality rates. So yes, I do believe they are callous enough to provoke an upsurge, blame it on pubs and close them down again. <br /><br />Even if you disagree with my opinion, this point remains: because this measure is seriously flawed, either they are stupid, or they have an agenda which, if you reject my speculation, is what?<br /><br />I'd just finished writing this post when I noticed in the news today: <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-54323760" target="_blank">Co<span style="background-color: white; color: #3f3f42; font-family: inherit;">vid: Manchester mayor calls for 'urgent review' of 10pm closures</span></a><p></p><p>* I mean the pint rather than the politician.</p>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-66402703268187499552020-09-07T13:11:00.009+01:002020-10-19T17:33:36.748+01:00CAMRA Southport & West Lancs awards 2020<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiinm4TTCaua7OO9E_JDNgL0pIbL4rydfn9Avoe4q3Zvc5CdrMJy97Dal9n51WmOkvS8WN7jWLGs_E5U35uELLw-n_eQyJL-T-qOE64G4PKHnBjKXVWd6XrD8jgVJ-VMSLsLaXLGcU_MhZ/s540/1+awards+x+4+-+9.20.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="486" data-original-width="540" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiinm4TTCaua7OO9E_JDNgL0pIbL4rydfn9Avoe4q3Zvc5CdrMJy97Dal9n51WmOkvS8WN7jWLGs_E5U35uELLw-n_eQyJL-T-qOE64G4PKHnBjKXVWd6XrD8jgVJ-VMSLsLaXLGcU_MhZ/s320/1+awards+x+4+-+9.20.png" width="320" /></a></div>The Southport & West Lancs branch of CAMRA will shortly be presenting its branch awards to local pubs, bars and clubs. These awards are decided by the votes of ordinary CAMRA members who have visited all the finalists. Because the branch covers two quite dissimilar areas, Southport and Formby on the one hand and West Lancs on the other, there are two sets of awards. This year the winners include a traditional pub, two micropubs, a modern pub and a cricket club. </span></div><br /><b>West Lancs</b><br />• Pub of the Year is Tap Room No 12 (formerly the Hop Inn Bier Shoppe) at 12 Burscough Steet in Ormskirk. Formerly a shop, it was converted into a single-roomed bar, and the wooden panels and genuine pub furniture successfully recreate the atmosphere of a traditional pub room. There's a choice of real ale, as you'd expect, but they can also sell you 20+ gins as well as craft and continental beers. <br />• Cider Pub of the Year is the Court Leet on Wheatsheaf Walk, just off Burscough Street in Ormskirk. This JD Wetherspoons pub is much more modern than the customary house style of the pub group with large windows and a bright and airy interior. The pub is on two levels with an open air balcony on the first floor overlooking the Ormskirk skyline. <br /><br /><b>North Merseyside</b><br />• Pub of the Year is the Guest House, Union Street, Southport. The impressive exterior is half timbered, and inside the walls are wood-panelled. It is mostly unaltered with three separate rooms, a drinking area around the bar and an outdoor drinking area to the rear. It regularly sells up to 11 real ales.<br />• Cider Pub of the Year is the Grasshopper, Sandon Road, Hillside. In addition to a good selection of real ales, this two-roomed micropub has the widest choice of ciders in the area. There are tables to the front where you can sit and enjoy the sunshine – when we get any.<br /><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1F0A12JWlskomKaBXbWUwOeYbXfDzD7VxLGNl8b7GecyoTepsEcl4NPK-y-EC0XA_j64l2W8kaScTDpXrd2SjEgyLxOA6jCNTmmLxupTmMnbWEYvLHgwakbjaH-S4ivD5cVP1ynBBFNck/s316/Formby+CC.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="249" data-original-width="316" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1F0A12JWlskomKaBXbWUwOeYbXfDzD7VxLGNl8b7GecyoTepsEcl4NPK-y-EC0XA_j64l2W8kaScTDpXrd2SjEgyLxOA6jCNTmmLxupTmMnbWEYvLHgwakbjaH-S4ivD5cVP1ynBBFNck/w253-h199/Formby+CC.png" width="253" /></a></div><b>Club of the Year</b><br />Formby Golf Club in Cricket Path, Formby. This club has recently been celebrating the return to playing cricket after the lockdown. With a comfortable club house serving real ale, what better way to enjoy what has been described as the King of Sports? <br /><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br />► This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser. Older articles on local pubs are <a href="http://rednev-rearm.blogspot.co.uk/p/camra-column-in-visiter.html">here</a>.</span></div>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-59403464562089540412020-08-16T17:14:00.007+01:002020-08-16T19:38:26.485+01:00Petition to government re: Small Brewers Relief<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69ATul2FWJJlLTX5bbaj2DWly9UU4z63WBmOt2_tuSOpS8GCNChEMagI2WyVFW29guJcXgMBtMbudjouiqJ4AKN0LqJz5yxbesSpKNYBspMP7KkIlOOUqE9LThysm0bSUrg7vDqEXnhQI/s1016/Reverse+SBR+change.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="1016" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi69ATul2FWJJlLTX5bbaj2DWly9UU4z63WBmOt2_tuSOpS8GCNChEMagI2WyVFW29guJcXgMBtMbudjouiqJ4AKN0LqJz5yxbesSpKNYBspMP7KkIlOOUqE9LThysm0bSUrg7vDqEXnhQI/w262-h251/Reverse+SBR+change.png" width="262" /></a></div>The Treasury has announced changes to Small Brewers Relief (SBR) – the progressive tax system that has revolutionised UK brewing. These changes will reduce the 50% duty threshold from 5,000hl to 2,100hl: small breweries will have to pay more duty, whilst larger breweries could pay the same or less. <br /><br />The amount of extra revenue this may raise will be a pittance initially and is likely to dwindle to nothing as currently successful businesses close down. So much for joined-up thinking in government. <div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">► Please sign <b><a href="https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/334066">here</a></b>.</div>Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-49636809476881827852020-07-08T13:48:00.007+01:002020-10-20T03:57:12.553+01:00Wetherspoons: stories often have two sides<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbT2_9-KtwVAKKfjQ31DZ864dYDhYTvVxgBZFlKpi3oeux71jG18edjD-2DfqC8RqdTkWHhyphenhypheniM_LoUHrBIYbUVEFQXhl6rdeEHQGTqlEL7_V6fJDcXUx2rK17Syivh5kdj-zue24StOmb/s1600/1a.+NorthWest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="213" data-original-width="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbT2_9-KtwVAKKfjQ31DZ864dYDhYTvVxgBZFlKpi3oeux71jG18edjD-2DfqC8RqdTkWHhyphenhypheniM_LoUHrBIYbUVEFQXhl6rdeEHQGTqlEL7_V6fJDcXUx2rK17Syivh5kdj-zue24StOmb/s1600/1a.+NorthWest.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The impressive North Western JDW pub, Lime Street, Liverpool</td></tr>
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I've written a few times, most recently in <a href="https://rednev-rearm.blogspot.com/2019/09/real-ale-isnt-dear-enough-and-its-all.html">September last year</a>, about the hostility I've detected among some drinkers against the JD Wetherspoons pub chain. With lockdown, the news that Tim Martin told his staff to go away and get a job in Tesco's has given Spoons-haters the perfect moralistic justification for their antipathy. I've seen many posts on Facebook by indignant drinkers declaring that they will never drink in Spoons again and encouraging others to boycott the pub group. It is stating the obvious to say that no one is obliged to drink in any pub they don't want to enter, but trying to organise a boycott is another matter entirely. Is it the right thing to do?<br />
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JDW employs 43,000 staff, and all were paid when they were supposed to be, receiving either their wages or their furlough payments. If a boycott were to succeed even partially, JDW would have to make many of them redundant at a time when tens of thousands (if not more) of other workers are likely to lose their jobs because of CV19. Other jobs - in pubs or elsewhere - will not be so readily available as they were pre-lockdown. I saw on Facebook one boycott advocate declaring that as people will still be drinking, ex-JDW staff will all be able to get jobs elsewhere. This is nonsense:<br />
<ul>
<li>The hospitality industry, including pubs, will be operating at a much lower level of income post-lockdown because some drinkers are still wary of coming out, especially those in vulnerable groups, and because social distancing reduces pub capacity.</li>
<li>Lower pub incomes will result in fewer staff employed by pubs.</li>
<li>With unemployment predicted to increase, and the incomes of many of those still in work likely to reduce, there will be less disposable income to spend in pubs.</li>
<li>Some pubs will never reopen - I already know of one or two around here, and I fully expect to hear of more.</li>
<li>As I wrote last September, "CAMRA says that avoiding isolation by going to the pub is a good thing, but without Wetherspoons, many people on low incomes could rarely, if ever, afford to go out for a pint." The number of such customers look set to increase, and it's logical to assume that many of them would be less able to afford the prices in non-JDW pubs.</li>
<li>BFAWU, the trade union which represents JDW staff, has urged the public not to boycott the pubs.</li>
</ul>
In view of the above (and as a trade unionist I find the final bullet point particularly compelling), I see no logic in punishing JDW staff for the 'sins' of their boss.<br />
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I was going to leave this article there until I picked up the latest issue of 'Wetherspoon News' on Monday. I do understand that this is an in-house journal and what it says must be viewed in that light. However, Tim Martin has written a spirited defence of his company's actions at the beginning of lockdown, denying the accusations, and blaming the press's tendency to spin stories out of recognition and create pantomime villains. It's interesting that people who'd normally be sceptical, or at least questioning, about what they read or hear in the media (or MSM as some dismissively call it) have uncritically swallowed the anti-JDW story in its entirety. In support of his assertions, Martin has reprinted in the mag seven different press corrections to the story and a right of reply that he was given in a local paper. Newspapers don't like to print corrections, and won't do it on a whim. That they have done so is an admission that what they published contained inaccuracies.<br />
<br />
I have no intention of reproducing his defence here - I'm not an apologist for the company which is much bigger and richer than me and, anyway, can speak for itself - but if you believe in seeing two sides to the story, I suggest you look at the mag, which is available free in all branches of Wetherspoons now.<br />
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Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-12763407350596179972020-07-03T15:27:00.000+01:002020-07-17T12:31:04.650+01:00Tales of tipples past<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEims56A3vuDhzRwJEIODcABRz0MGnwTHEpwxJu1RmulSWvFMkQr3SJQ7giSK66prOKugLVLaTcWxj0I_2wJKAN7FyJH8-cwME-D__p9wQ6sOC2GLNWQfk8coaw-ohk-8yUZLrJzv6FKZd7Y/s1600/1+Villacher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEims56A3vuDhzRwJEIODcABRz0MGnwTHEpwxJu1RmulSWvFMkQr3SJQ7giSK66prOKugLVLaTcWxj0I_2wJKAN7FyJH8-cwME-D__p9wQ6sOC2GLNWQfk8coaw-ohk-8yUZLrJzv6FKZd7Y/s1600/1+Villacher.jpg" /></a></div>
When I was 17, our scout troop went on a camping trip around the area where the borders of Austria, Yugoslavia (as it still was) and Italy meet. In Austria, we were staying near a city called Villach (pronounced Feel-ack). The local beer was Villacher Bier, which in itself we found mildly amusing because out loud it sounded to us a bit like 'feel like a beer'. About all I can remember is that it was a golden-coloured beer.<br />
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One evening, we were sitting in a beer garden and, having studied German briefly, I was instructing our group how to order beer in German ("Ein Bier bitte ... zwei Biere bitte ... drei Biere bitte ..." and so on). Some of the other drinkers were laughing at us when a dog walked in. It wandered hopefully from table to table and was completely ignored until it came to us; we of course patted and made a fuss of it. The dog with tail wagging furiously was loving every second of all this unaccustomed attention, but from the neighbouring table I heard just one word: "Englisch!"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG56RMM3zjEartJSWSrNFC4sMOcFCN7byT7ELponBLwUwy67-rPONHUAvKgCDTI05ObcNlCIMYk3isMpo8kBjPQ34Vf_pzOfU4NcN_TD-65V4ZWHX8gkst6l8uiRpHmkBPuYta_L1R5cV2/s1600/1.+BaronsBar2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="329" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG56RMM3zjEartJSWSrNFC4sMOcFCN7byT7ELponBLwUwy67-rPONHUAvKgCDTI05ObcNlCIMYk3isMpo8kBjPQ34Vf_pzOfU4NcN_TD-65V4ZWHX8gkst6l8uiRpHmkBPuYta_L1R5cV2/s320/1.+BaronsBar2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Scarisbrick Hotel</td></tr>
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In the late 1970s, at a time of petrol shortage, I had been to a party on the other side of Southport and in the early hours was cycling home on a bike borrowed from my brother. As I approached Lord Street, the main shopping street in Southport, it began to sleet and the bicycle chain broke. I managed to fix it, but it broke again a few minutes later.<br />
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Lord Street has a long canopy for most of its length so I was sheltered from the worst of the weather for part of the journey home, but it was going to be a long walk, until I had an idea, the kind that usually only occurs to you after a few pints. Treating the bike like a kid's scooter with one foot on a pedal and the other pushing on the ground, I was getting quite a good speed up.<br />
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Halfway along Lord Street is the Scarisbrick Hotel, something of a local landmark, and outside was standing a young policewoman. As I approached, she held up her hand to stop me and said: "I know there's a petrol shortage. Are you economising on bicycle oil?"</div>
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A few years later, I'd had several pints in the Park Hotel, a pub in Birkdale, and then went to a wine bar called the Grape Escape on Lord Street (now Waterstones book shop). A young lady helped me dispose of a couple of bottles of wine and promptly disappeared when the last one ran out, after which the bar shut anyway so it was time to go home.<br />
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As I started out, I realised I was going down a one-way street the wrong way so I carefully turned around and went a longer way home to avoid breaking any more one-way street regulations.<br />
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When I woke up the next morning, I remembered all of this - including the fact that I hadn't been driving: I'd been on foot all evening.</div>
Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-12131405926279240962020-06-11T17:46:00.000+01:002020-06-13T15:02:46.625+01:00'Coming out' with Mixed feelings<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYNiIN5u_p2bOU2ME4OzZsFS9Naj05GBy_xzmcT0T5JFwIiQWm7qqYZaDBq4jkeSurqOMFl8Unbb-nj89zuu6bysSUegqOl_yTEmJZ2NVoKA2GR3W2zNfY2geN8YU4YvstrTsRHwwK-Z-7/s1600/1+LM5.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="501" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYNiIN5u_p2bOU2ME4OzZsFS9Naj05GBy_xzmcT0T5JFwIiQWm7qqYZaDBq4jkeSurqOMFl8Unbb-nj89zuu6bysSUegqOl_yTEmJZ2NVoKA2GR3W2zNfY2geN8YU4YvstrTsRHwwK-Z-7/s320/1+LM5.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little Mix's fifth album</td></tr>
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No one could ever accuse me of being a Little Mix fan; apart from anything else, I am definitely not part of their target audience, and until I decided to write this post, I couldn't name any song they've recorded. However, while I don't usually pay much attention to acts that come through TV talent shows, I've always had a certain respect for this group. <br />
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When they were doing well on <i>X Fact</i>or, the name proposed for them was Rhythmix. At the time I thought this sounded very like the Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart band Eurythmics, but an even closer similarity came to light: when <i>X Factor</i> tried to trademark the name, it turned out that it was already being used by a children's music charity based in Brighton, who quite reasonably didn't want their name to be appropriated. I read at the time that Simon Cowell was all for brazening it out - clearly no one tells Simon what to do - but the young women themselves decided to change their collective name to Little Mix. "Good on them!" I thought, genuinely impressed.<br />
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Last week in the aftermath of the worldwide protests following the murder of George Floyd, the group's Leigh-Anne Pinnock published a video, now gone viral, in which she talks about her own experiences of racism. She described one particular incident as the biggest awakening of her life when she was filming the video for the group's single 'Wings'. The director and choreographer Frank Gatson, himself black, told her: "You're the black girl. You have to work 10 times harder." She said: "Never in my life had someone told me I would need to work harder because of my race", but in time she found he'd been right.<br />
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Other artists who have publicly described similar experiences have lost fans as a result, but Leigh-Anne's attitude is: "I don't care if I lose fans. Now the whole world is speaking about it and hopefully there is going to be a change. I feel hopeful." [More about this on the BBC news site <b><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52976652">here</a></b>.]<br />
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Her band mate Jade Thirwell has also described some of the racism she had been subjected to, saying: "If you weren’t evidently black, you were called the P-word or called 'half-caste'. I would get so confused because I’m not from Pakistan. One time I got pinned down in the toilets and they put a bindi spot on my forehead – my mam was fuming!... I’d identify myself as mixed-race; if I delved deeper, I’d say of Arab heritage, I guess. I’ve had an inner battle of not knowing where I fit in or what larger community I fit into."<br />
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Jade was rightly incensed when media coverage of her description of this racism was illustrated by a photograph of Leigh-Anne, telling them: "You might want to make sure you're using an image of the correct mixed race member of the group." A good example of casual racism - almost certainly unintended, but racism nonetheless.<br />
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Although I'm a white male, I can to a very limited extent identify with some of this. During the height of the 'Me Too' movement, I became sick of reading comments by people - mostly but not exclusively male - asking why it had taken so long for some of the accusers to tell their stories, with more than a few sarcastically suggesting the motive was money. I was so incensed by such stupidity that I 'came out' myself in a post on Facebook about my own experiences of being on the receiving end of sustained domestic violence. In response to anyone who questioned why it had taken some of these women perhaps 10 or 15 years to come forward, I pointed that my own 'coming out' had taken nearly 40 years.<br />
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I'm not deluded: I do understand that I don't have the public profile of Leigh-Anne and Jade, but I also know it is not easy to put something so personal and painful in the public domain, so I admire the steps they have taken: it cannot have been easy, but if my own experience is at all relevant (and I leave others to judge that), I'm sure they won't regret doing it.<br />
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[Read more in <b><a href="https://metro.co.uk/2020/06/11/little-mix-using-platform-highlight-racism-trolling-lgbt-issues-exactly-what-celebs-should-12838003/">this Metro article</a></b>.]Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-6847842554022261812020-06-03T17:31:00.000+01:002020-06-04T11:04:27.587+01:00Lockdown thoughts & pubs<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QLEPWsJqEZhdup3BT4iAFw-2dB9kOaM8heaTEI-SgA-sHZ41Zdviw02kKW2k9u_DPMKjY7MR6KSfkD7ztXRo-L-dqleSnL1LuSCMx2Ac9e86Ps_Y-JKH_-Yjpq7C4d8cVpQr8Zvre8W3/s1600/GuestHouse3+red.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="548" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0QLEPWsJqEZhdup3BT4iAFw-2dB9kOaM8heaTEI-SgA-sHZ41Zdviw02kKW2k9u_DPMKjY7MR6KSfkD7ztXRo-L-dqleSnL1LuSCMx2Ac9e86Ps_Y-JKH_-Yjpq7C4d8cVpQr8Zvre8W3/s320/GuestHouse3+red.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the rooms in the Guest House (floor not shown)</td></tr>
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The last time I went for such an extended time without going to the pub was forty years ago when I was on the dole. That spell of involuntary abstinence ended on 7th July 1980 when I began working for the DHSS in Liverpool which, as I used to say at the time, involved me jumping from one side of the counter to the other.<br />
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Back then I'd sometimes walk past busy pubs in which it seemed everyone was having a really great time. They probably weren't especially - it would have been just another day to them - but forbidden fruit does have a special allure, particularly when you can observe others enjoying it seemingly without a second thought.<br />
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The big difference is that today, while everyone is currently excluded from pubs, abstinence has not ensued: off sales have gone through the roof as people resort to drinking at home. This includes me, even though previously I rarely did so as I view having a pint as a social activity. Home drinking is easier today than it would have been had this pandemic occurred 40 years ago. In 1980, only heavily-regulated off licences were allowed sell alcohol for consumption off the premises. The current situation whereby supermarkets, corner shops, petrol stations and other retail outlets can sell alcohol in the same way as any other goods was still years away.<br />
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I remember in the 1980s when a supermarket in Southport applied for a licence to sell alcohol, rigid restrictions were imposed: the alcohol had to be confined to a separate room with its own till, and you couldn't wander into the main shop with a bottle and pay for it at one of the normal tills. This controlling, paternalistic approach to the sale of alcohol was based on a mistrust of ordinary people who, it was thought, would go on wild booze-filled orgies of destruction if restrictions on selling alcohol were eased. I recall worried letters in the local press about the dire consequences of allowing that particular supermarket the licence it wanted. Images were dreamt up of of drunken crowds in the streets and tipsy housewives neglecting child care and household duties - the ultimate horror of paternalists everywhere: no dinner on the table!<br />
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Curiously, the world didn't end, and I'd expect that younger drinkers today would regard the restrictions on alcohol sales that I grew up with as a quaint, ancient curiosity as remote from their own lives as rationing or the BBC Home Service.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgzUCz9UhbJO4B53YRBN0kKz7mcr9aEHBQyGZubpBI7tLmUhV36UXviI4CRhX0oBjHn2HFcg9FvXDCycnHoNm_Iv5MOWzyfvueXfJePiuLF4p042Z10vb0teQLvbwV5McIHznamg7ME8PU/s1600/Roscoe+demo+15.915+adj+red.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="548" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgzUCz9UhbJO4B53YRBN0kKz7mcr9aEHBQyGZubpBI7tLmUhV36UXviI4CRhX0oBjHn2HFcg9FvXDCycnHoNm_Iv5MOWzyfvueXfJePiuLF4p042Z10vb0teQLvbwV5McIHznamg7ME8PU/s320/Roscoe+demo+15.915+adj+red.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A demo to save the Roscoe Head in September 2015.<br />
Licensee Carol Ross is centre front.</td></tr>
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I've had quite a few chats with friends who, like me, are looking forward to when we can go to the pub again, but it is becoming increasingly obvious that we won't be returning to the way things were. Most of us realise that some pubs will be unable survive a loss of trade for so long and will never reopen, but there will be two other causes of permanent closures. After restrictions are lifted, I anticipate that home drinking will remain significantly higher than it was pre-CV19, and I've little doubt pub-owning companies will use the prolonged closure to argue that reopening some pubs is not viable, allowing them to implement lucrative redevelopment schemes that have previously been successfully opposed. For example, Liverpool's Roscoe Head, which has been run by the same family for 35 years and is the only pub in the North to be in every edition of the Good Beer Guide, was under renewed threat even before we'd heard of lockdown. For this pub, the timing of the pandemic couldn't be worse.<br />
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I have read in the CAMRA newspaper that it is possible that we may lose as many as 40,000 pubs. I sincerely hope this is wrong, but am not much reassured by the fact that such worst case scenarios rarely come to pass.<br />
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► I was pleased to see on the Facebook page of my local, the Guest House in Southport, a photo of the newly-varnished floor. It had been looking rather tired, and the fact they have used the closure to improve the pub is encouraging news, suggesting it is not in line for redevelopment or conversion to another use. I hope so anyway.Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-83012508630276803002020-04-28T05:06:00.002+01:002020-10-19T17:34:26.598+01:00Locked down beer in pub cellars<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_5fblbHd8G35oYXj5ZGYf0WV6RnHnBnhwK1PZTUCK8mrgOeaiyet-WoM3si7eaFEpwp1r-JfHu8whRFyvCpVquZ3nVzuqh7YDmV7UTZr3IjCesSyBjPp66Nm-vTuvRl5L1NO7m3k5kDkw/s1600/1+Churchtown+pubs.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_5fblbHd8G35oYXj5ZGYf0WV6RnHnBnhwK1PZTUCK8mrgOeaiyet-WoM3si7eaFEpwp1r-JfHu8whRFyvCpVquZ3nVzuqh7YDmV7UTZr3IjCesSyBjPp66Nm-vTuvRl5L1NO7m3k5kDkw/s1600/1+Churchtown+pubs.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Two locked down pubs in Churchtown, Southport.<br />The Bold (left) and the Hesketh (in the distance)</span></td></tr>
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The order to close pubs, like many other businesses, was not unexpected, but the actual date came at very short notice. As a consequence, pub licensees had little chance to run down their stocks by reducing the size of their orders in the run-up to closure, meaning that the cellars of many pubs and bars have large quantities of unused beer, cider and perry. It is estimated that if they stay closed into the summer, 50 million pints will have to be discarded. <br /><br />"It's a very sad waste of all the work and talent that goes into producing great beer," says Tom Stainer, CAMRA's chief executive. "People won't get to drink it and all those resources have been used up for nothing." <br /><br />The shelf life of beers, ciders and perries depends on how it's produced, stored and served. Keg products, which include most beer sold in British pubs such as lagers, smoothflow beers (including a famous Irish stout) and ciders on fonts, can last for several months. Real ales and ciders, on the other hand, will only last for weeks, with any that have been already opened going off after a few days. All real ales, ciders and perries that had been opened at lockdown will probably have already been disposed of. <br /><br />One suggestion is converting out-of-date beer into hand sanitiser by extracting the alcohol, which independent brewer Brewdog is already doing, but this is ultimately a very limited solution. <br /><br />According to the BBC, supermarket alcohol sales increased by more than a fifth last month after pubs, cafes and restaurants closed. <br /><br /><div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3rzgHkhpH2Dxu4XsX0woFgfrhewORpY8kknZRzFNCcWnO2mWf0LVdEBkNH0I7FexMn9GDkS-MdnsQgT1o8ye6It4HMDqCL6rYMHwgedy1gBBhxLfvu3dJ5yaJtQBvdSKCavb66UyMcud/s1600/1+Bold+sign.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3rzgHkhpH2Dxu4XsX0woFgfrhewORpY8kknZRzFNCcWnO2mWf0LVdEBkNH0I7FexMn9GDkS-MdnsQgT1o8ye6It4HMDqCL6rYMHwgedy1gBBhxLfvu3dJ5yaJtQBvdSKCavb66UyMcud/s320/1+Bold+sign.png" width="212" /></a>"People are missing these things in their lives," says Tom Stainer. "It's not the biggest issue that the country is dealing with, but aspects of life like going to the cinema or café, or going for a pint, are something we treasure." </div>
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<br />Many breweries and distributors have offered to take back barrels at no charge once the lockdown is over, taking some of the financial pressure off licensees. However, more can be done, as Tom Stainer, explains: <br /><br />“The Government needs to recognise the impact of an extended lockdown on [hospitality] businesses and confirm that the support package in place is extended until all restrictions are lifted. It must also consider a support package for pubs, breweries and cideries after they reopen, in recognition that it will take many months for businesses to recover fully.”<br /><br />► This is one of a series of articles that I write for the CAMRA column in our local papers, the Southport Visiter and Ormskirk Advertiser.</div>
Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8285162121291357473.post-87605854060421837262020-04-10T08:19:00.000+01:002020-04-10T10:52:12.597+01:00Keg Buster RIPBill Tidy has announced in the latest edition of the CAMRA newspaper <i>What's Brewing</i> the sad demise of the legendary real ale campaigner, Keg Buster. This news is not very surprising, seeing that Bill himself is 84 and in poor health. Over the years he has created several wonderful long-running cartoon strips in addition to <i>Keg Buster</i>, such as <i>The Cloggies</i> and <i>The Fosdyke Saga</i>.<br />
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In the 1980s, Bill Tidy was a neighbour of ours in Westbourne Road, Southport. He was a regular at the Berkeley Arms, a hotel bar well-known for a fine choice of real ales and home-made pizzas; my friends and I spent a lot of time there. I occasionally saw Bill with his friends in the bar, although I never had the opportunity to speak to him. Bill drew a cartoon about the Berkeley which was framed and proudly displayed on the wall. I can't recall after all this time what the joke was, and this was in the days before we all had a mobile phone camera in our pockets. Unfortunately the Berkeley closed well over a decade ago when the building was converted to flats; I have occasionally wondered what happened to the cartoon.<br />
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By affectionately mocking us real ale campaigners, <i>Keg Buster</i> was a welcome corrective to the tendency to solemn self-importance and pomposity that some committed advocates for any cause can occasionally be prone to. I don't know whether there are any plans to replace <i>Keg Buster</i>, but if there are, the cartoonist concerned has a hard act to follow.<br />
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RIP Keg Buster, and best wishes to Bill on his retirement.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjszeTxRdFZ5_f4MpjSXPObJPM0dwPWjQTY_rTZYn1N_qGXQJMG80_XTik-JYdrPFFp6vNnxSueZ3LjGHiOJ8EaDyvEQDwn-5_BvB5dmZvhmdxr9nPb2248frHqS1iS1JWf-6fCd37O568L/s1600/KB.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="562" data-original-width="782" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjszeTxRdFZ5_f4MpjSXPObJPM0dwPWjQTY_rTZYn1N_qGXQJMG80_XTik-JYdrPFFp6vNnxSueZ3LjGHiOJ8EaDyvEQDwn-5_BvB5dmZvhmdxr9nPb2248frHqS1iS1JWf-6fCd37O568L/s400/KB.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From November 2017. Click on the cartoon to see a larger image.</td></tr>
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Neville Grundyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10923209266005338452noreply@blogger.com4