Wednesday 31 July 2019

Local acoustic music events to 15 August

All events are free, unless otherwise stated. At singarounds and music sessions, you can perform, sing along or just listen to suit yourself.
  • Friday 2nd: Untrained Melody - folk and blues in the Tap & Bottles, Cambridge Walks, Southport from 8.30 pm.
  • Sunday 4th: summer singaround at the Bothy Folk Club, Park Golf Club, Park Road West, Southport from 8.00 pm.
  • Monday 5th: song session in the Guest House, Union Street, Southport from 8.15pm.
  • Sunday 11th: Folk in the Park, 1.00 pm to 6.00 pm, Hesketh Park, Southport.
  • Sunday 11th: summer singaround at the Bothy Folk Club, Park Golf Club, Park Road West, Southport from 8.00 pm.
  • Monday 12th: tunes session in the Guest House, Union Street, Southport from 8.15pm.
  • Tuesday 13th: singaround at the Lion Tavern, 67 Moorfields, Liverpool L2 2BP from 8.15 pm.
  • Wednesday 14th: singaround at the Grasshopper, Sandon Road, Hillside, Southport from 8.15 pm.

Sunday 28 July 2019

The Victoria – Southport Promenade

The Victoria, Southport Promenade
The Victoria is a large, prominent pub on the Promenade in Southport close to the Marine Way Bridge. It tends to have a mixed clientele: local residents, theatre-goers, conference delegates and visitors to the town. I have sometimes enjoyed a pint after a show in the nearby Southport Theatre or while sitting on its fine beer garden to the front on a sunny day. Inside it is a large pub with separate drinking areas, one of which to the rear has a pool table. There is also a dart board, and I noticed that the Ladies Darts Team has been particularly successful recently.

This is a Thwaites house, and the two real ales that were on when I visited were Original Bitter and Gold, a pale citrus beer. As I've had the bitter many times previously, I tried the Gold and found it pleasant and in good condition. A third handpump had an Old Rosie Cider pumpclip but this had run out at the time. I also noticed that they have an extensive gin bar as well as a good range of all the usual bar drinks.

The food menu has a wide choice of pub favourites, and I saw signs advertising Sunday lunches, chippy teas at £7.95 and a children's menu. Overall there are very positive reviews of the food on Tripadvisor.

Music is popular here with karaoke every Friday and Saturday, while every Sunday there is live music in the afternoon followed by a disco karaoke in the evening. Live sports are shown on HD television, particularly Premier League matches and golf. The pub is family-friendly, which includes your dog as long as it is kept on a lead. Perhaps a good place to relax after taking your canine friend for a walk along the Prom. This is clearly a pub with a broad range of activities to cater for different tastes.

Contact details: 01704 544121 and Facebook. Website: victoriasouthport.co.uk.

► Linda, team leader in the Willow Grove, Lord Street, Southport, was obviously very pleased to tell me that the pub has been awarded Cask Marque accreditation. This is an independently-assessed measure of beer quality, so well done to all concerned.

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 here.