I can take the mick (he’s my Uncle) out of Fenland; I was born there.
Less than a year after my taxi service took BRAPA to Whittlesey,
I was back. The rail journey from Waterbeach to Whittlesey(/a) give you either 35 minutes or 2 hrs 35 minutes in town, so take a book.
Really, the only time you need come to Whittlesey is to watch Morris dancers at the Straw Bear festival in January.
On second thoughts…
Sometimes you walk past a pub and think “That’s a future GBG pub in waiting“.
I don’t think that sprung to mind walking past the Falcon Hotel.
The door slammed behind me, a dozen faces moved slightly to stare, a lady came over from hotel reception to serve me, wordlessly.
One beer on, which was a blessed relief.
Some beers make you go “Wow ! taste this“, which can be a bit embarrassing when you’re on your own.
Some pubs make you go “Wow !” and the Falcon is one of them.
I struggled to start the Grainstore, let alone finish it.
But that hardly mattered, as I was treated to what I can only assume was a final rehearsal of the Fenland Players upcoming production “Lounging“.
4 pm, half a dozen in, all younger than me.
Simon will dine for a week off the bants here
“Andy Murray. You know who he reminds me of ?“
“It went straight through his sternum”
“Shot him straight through the bum“
“We’re all f***** up in our own different ways”
So true.
All to the perfect accompaniment of Santana.
And this unexpected punk classic.
Wonderful people, wonderful pub, I hope the beer is better on Saturday when Si gets there.
With an hour to burn in Whittlesea, what to do ?
The craft called, but I had Spoons vouchers to use.
And a couple in front had just had the Elgood’s Golden Newt, which makes life easy.
More good Spoons beer, a rich and cool 3.5, and a perfect chance to observe the septuagenarian Fen folk doing their own form of lounging.
They have some work to do to match the lounging on display in the Falcon.
retiredmartin 
One of only a handful of Wetherbars I’m reasonably happy to drink in, except during Straw Bear weekend when it’s profitably rammed and the sound of morris bells approaching from the rear make going for a piss difficult 😳
Reviving old hotels like the George is Tims only saving grace for me. This, the Tewkesbury one, the big one next to Nottingham Cricket pitch, all very worthy improvements on their former declining years, and you won’t hear me say that about a Wetherspoon very often.
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Mark,
I’m not sure that “reviving” is quite what Tim has done with the Red Lion and Pineapple that’s not the proper pub it certainly was here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgDKtLPp46s
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Great t-shirt! I have been to several pubs there and football but need the Falcon. Amateurish on my part. Sounds you really enjoyed it.
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I some times say “wow taste this ” when I find a new outstanding beer, the reaction is normally a screwed up face.
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The pictures of the loungers really are funny. I’m not sure I’ve been anywhere that had so many people purposefully lounging. Great stuff.
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Yes, and in the second picture I’m not sure what Martin did to almost get a smile out of the young female lounger.
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LOL, I thought exactly the same thing.
She looks like she knows she is lounging. There’s a certain sense of pride in that room. People doing nothing and proud of it.
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Nothing wrong with that!
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Something to do with cask breathers, Paul.
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It reminded me of the Ramsey pub I went in with Si last year. Folk enjoying pubs.
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Strange that, I’ve never thought of going to pubs for enjoyment, but that’s probably to be expected of a curmudgeon.
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No-one lounges with quite the languid finesse of the Moggster.
Shortly adjourning to the Cider Press to watch the cricket in peace while Mrs PP-T takes Son 1 clothes shopping.
Warming to Bristol immensely.
We’re returning to Blighty next year and looking for somewhere to live …
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P P-T,
Houses are much cheaper in Stafford than Bristol and that’d give you more beer money.
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Might I remind you, that in the twenty seventeen General Election, Bristol West had the biggest swing to Labour in the country? The 52.1% majority was also the largest in that seat since nineteen thirty-one. In the twenty sixteen referendum to leave the European Union, the constituency voted remain by 79.3%. That was the second highest support for remain amongst all constituencies. It’s my great pleasure.
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Hi Etu.
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Grainstore have usually proven reliable on my trips up to Norfolk, although I will contend they aren’t the most exciting beers in the world.
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I doubt there’s anything wrong with the beer that selling 10 pints an hour rather than 1 wouldn’t solve.
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When a pub only has one cask ale on and they still can’t sell it frequently enough to maintain quality, how does that pub end up in the GBG? Or do you think you just caught them on a bad day?
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That’s what we like about you, Mark, you always see the best in a situation 😉
I’ll wait and see what Duncan and Simon (if he decides to complete Cambridgeshire this year) think.
Could be a quiet day, but it really didn’t look like a pub that sold a lot of cask.
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First pub wins hands down for me 😉 angst bike and that’s just the locals bantz! Holiday in Cambodia and California Uber alles should be on everyone’s song list…
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Had the pleasure of seeing Dead Kennedys play live in Detroit back in the early 80s– quite a wild show, both in terms of the band and the audience!
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You’ve gone up even further in our estimation, if such a thing is possible 😊
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That’s impressive!!!! I can quite imagine! Would loved to have watched Jeffro and the boys in his prime…
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