Still on “Friday Night in Douglas“, worryingly. In fact I’ve just been looking at the date stamps on the photos and find it was approaching 11pm by this stage, which is a) Well past my bedtime and b) getting close to the time when Chinese takeaways close.
Next up was a half (it was a half, honest) in the British Tavern, a pub that had cleverly avoided the Beer Guide but came highly recommended. You know what I mean.
The British (that’s what the sign says, even if they aren’t), is a North-Western pub, like the Railway on Stockport’s A6 or that Steamer in Fleetwood where BRAPA is hob-knobbing with celebs at the moment.
It’s a Proper Pub, whatever its architectural merits.
It had some people who were drunker than us,
and the second hen party of the night (Pubmeister records them all meticulously on his ledgers).
My notes say;
Most of all it had music. Bizarre keyboard medleys of “Anarchy In The UK” (you’re not !) and “Wonderwall” by a talented bloke aiming to match the dress sense of Matthew Lawrenson, but failing.
One man played along by tapping his fingers on the table. I was a bit scared.
I can’t believe I had TWO packets of Pipers, but I can’t swear to it. You can trust a pub that sells Pipers.
My notes say things like “You spotted a good moth on Love Island !” and “I love your tattoo“.
The beer was slightly irrelevant at this stage. But I can tell you we resisted the guest beer from Cornwall, and if it ever gets in the Beer Guide the British will deserve its place with the GBG immortals.
But we weren’t finished yet (regrettably).
As usual, the best photos are on Pubmeister’s blog. The benefits of relative sobriety.
retiredmartin 
At least the cushion matched my dress sense, dudes.
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H&B pubs generally get rather dull guest beers.
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I’ve always thought brewers should promote their own beers in their own pubs and serve consistently good beer; no interest in guest beers (1990 and all that).
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I was working for Okells when I was on IoM so I was ambivalent about it. That the guest beers were dull was great for showing how good Okells beers were, but it was pointed out to me that having dull guest beers did nothing to attract people to Okells.
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I wanted to be the first post, but not to be. Loved this one.
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I can rearrange the timings of comments if you like ! Did wonder what you’d make of these pubs, think you’d love them.
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Is Duncan actually moving onto becoming a hen night blogger?
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This post possibly made me chuckle more than any other of yours thus far and that’s saying something ! Pubs not in GBG are often far more amusing…
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It looks like seriously short measure in that last photograph – or were you on halves but they’d only got pint glasses ?
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It does, doesn’t it. I assume they were going to be topped up once the froth was settled.
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Would I be safe in thinking Okells have the IOM market cornered ?
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In regards your comparison with Scotland, bear in mind the IOM is a holiday resort and it is high season, and many of the NW exiles live there because (to them) it has that ‘all year round holiday feeling’ which Scotland doesn’t.
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Any chance that you could reduce blog productivity? I’m struggling to my home brew bottled on time. Brunning and Price move over.
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“The sort of fun you can’t have, by law, in a micropub.”
Only because, technically, there wouldn’t be enough room. 😉
“Tonight I’m gonna dress like it’s 1991”
Pork sausage crisps?
““You spotted a good moth on Love Island !””
And hopefully no one was mithering about it. 🙂
“But we weren’t finished yet (regrettably).”
Ooooooh.
Cheers
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Great report. The pubs along the quayside get more ‘interesting’ as you go on towards the sea…
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They do ! I popped back to Albert’s the next night, will no doubt find out what the photos reveal.
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