tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post811607891415984245..comments2024-03-28T17:11:52.333+00:00Comments on The Pub Curmudgeon: Happy daysCurmudgeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-60229209764588668332017-07-19T16:43:57.786+01:002017-07-19T16:43:57.786+01:00It's not just related to driving, either. When...It's not just related to driving, either. When at university in Birmingham in the late 70s, we used to go out on the bus to the backwoods of the Black Country to visit Ma Pardoe's and Batham's, Holden's and Simpkiss pubs. Hard to imagine youngsters doing anything like that nowadays.Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-4757870400493659902017-07-19T13:21:55.155+01:002017-07-19T13:21:55.155+01:00I'd say it's a case of six of one and half...I'd say it's a case of six of one and half a dozen of the other - as the demand for drinking in out-of-town pubs has fallen, those pubs have either closed or switched to a more food-led format, which in its turn has further reduced their attractiveness to drinkers. Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-82911710114793942522017-07-19T10:34:21.807+01:002017-07-19T10:34:21.807+01:00I too have fond memories of teenage trips with my ...I too have fond memories of teenage trips with my mates by car to country pubs around Manchester Airport and further out in Cheshire. We too had a 2-3 pint rule of thumb for the driver, and indeed once on the way back home late at night one of my mates who'd had a couple of pints earlier in the evening was pulled over by the police and breathalysed and passed.<br /><br />I think the real reason for the decline in such pub-going though is not so much the drink driving laws but that those places have been transformed into eating places for a mainly older clientele and teenage drinkers now either wouldn't feel comfortable or be made welcome there.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00387170913578542671noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-1237050123180132422009-08-12T21:06:39.374+01:002009-08-12T21:06:39.374+01:00I enjoyed reading your reminiscing about your earl...I enjoyed reading your reminiscing about your early drinking days, Curmudgeon, as they reminded me of my own experiences.<br /><br />I spent my teenage years living in a small village, about three miles from Ashford in Kent. There was an excellent pub in the village, complete with two bars and gravity-served beer, and we took these sorts of things for granted.<br /><br />As soon as I was 17 my parents bought me a motor scooter, and in the company of a friend from school we would spend the summer evenings going out exploring other country pubs. Most still had two bars in those days and my friend and I spent many a happy evenng playing darts and enjoying a few pints.<br /><br />Neither of us was silly enough to have too much to drink, but we both thought that the police would not bother stopping two lads on 90cc scooters. We were right of course, and there probably were times when we both had slightly more than we should have done.<br /><br />Later on, after a couple of other school friends had passed their driving test, cars became the prefered mode of transport, especially during the winter months.<br /><br />I look back on those days with real affection, as pubs were really pubs in those days, and not fancy, upmarket eateries, or trendy town-centre theme bars. If you were out with the lads, the public bar was the natural choice, especially if you wnated to play darts or bar-billiards. If, on the other hand, you were lucky enough to be dating a girl, then the saloon bar, with its carpet and plusher furnishings was the alternative choice. <br /><br />These options were avaialable in virtually every pub, as they had been for countless generations. Whilst occasionally there might be the odd scuffle, there was never any trouble of the kind we witness all too often in our town centres on a Friday or Saturday night. Something has gone seriously wrong somewhere along the line.Paul Baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09678639237696546268noreply@blogger.com