Reading my own old posts is a BIT indulgent, and I’m appalled at some of the lies and half-truths I’ve foisted on you over the years (Maidenhead is actually really nice).
But it’s still 97.8% more accurate than the BBC, and that’s a fact.
Another fact is that there’s never been a better time to visit Seaford, apart from the fact you can’t (unless you live there).
The most important advice I can give you is;
“DON’T GET PISSED ON HARVEY’S IN LEWES BEFORE WALKING SEAFORD HEAD”
But DO walk the cliffs; they’re marvellous, Beachy Head on the cheap.
Ideal beaches for folk who don’t like getting sand in their toes,
and a gritty, lived-in feel rather at odds with Eastbourne and Lewes.
Walking along the coast reminded me of the finer points of Bill Bryson’s “Notes from a Small Island“, gentlefolk asleep in their cars, pointed out toward Dieppe (why ?), and groups of old dears saying “Are you sure you’re going to be warm enough ?” as the temperature topped 26.
The town is safer but uninspiring, which suits me. So does the new entry, the Old Boot,
which is notable for having TOO MANY BEERS, so the Harvey’s is fine but dull (NBSS 3).
Home of a short-lived supergroup featuring Hendrix, Anderson and an unidentified ’70s female vocalist.
Four GBG pubs on two visits, all of them worth a visit. But start at the Wellington.
Ah, Greene King livery. What can it signify ?
Yes, it signifies a drinkers pub. In fact, a tickers pub, judging by the jovial gent taking copious notes and downing halves at the bar (top).
Nothing wrong with tickers, of course, as long as their pop bottles don’t leak while I’m standing at the bar.
A bustling boozer, scoring extra Mudgie points by playing Toto’s Africa for the benefit of beer tickers and pub tickers alike.
“What about my pub with blokes in Hi-Vis jackets ?“, demands Dave,
That’ll be the White Lion, a little slice of South-West London on the coast.
More people in the smoking den than the pub, always a good sign. As is the fluorescent jacket and hand-written Gin menu.
“But what about the crafties ?” says reader Citra.
The Steamworks is the “polite” craft bar exemplar, running a sideline in tea, coffee and brownies to gentlefolk hoping for a bit of “Brief Encounter” style railway thrills.
Decent beer as you stand at the end of the line, waiting for the 15:59 to Brighton.
Enjoy the sunset from the train back to Lewes, where you’ll inevitably break your journey and head for the Lewes Arms.
Without that hi-res jacket he would have blended right in with the carpet.
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I always wondered what had happened to Beryl Cooke’s famous portrait of Janis Joplin.
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‘TOO MANY BEERS’ in the Old Boot – you don’t get that problem in Chester.
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“Maidenhead is actually really nice” –Nearly fell off my chair, reading this. Do you mean to say you were repeatedly slagging off Maidenhead for COMICAL EFFECT?! 😉
When I saw the reference to “scoring extra Mudgie points by playing Toto’s Africa” it occurred to me, “Perhaps I don’t know Mudgie’s taste in music quite as well as I thought.” But then I realized, “Come on, man, you haven’t a *clue* as to what Mudgie’s taste in music is!”
Had a good chuckle at your warning regarding getting “PISSED ON HARVEY’S IN LEWES BEFORE WALKING SEAFORD HEAD.” Looking at those photos (and the utter absence of guardrails), I’d say it was unwise for anyone to head out to those cliffs having had anything so much as a shandy!
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There was a group of Asian students making a film, perched on the edge of that drop, and I felt queasy watching them 😱
I suspect Mudgie is more a “Rosanna” or “Hold the Line” man!
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Mudgie likes Rory Gallagher, which is all I need to know.
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(Maidenhead is actually really nice).
Is this another lie?
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Accidentally pressed the irony button on the laptop.
I wonder if you could contstruct a passable pub crawl by sticking to the surrounding villages. Doubt even that.
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If Reading counts as a surrounding village, then yes, otherwise……..
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which is notable for having TOO MANY BEERS.
Can’t have too many good beers, as long as they’re good that is, a fine selection in The Old Boot.
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A good pub with 10 beers on could be improved 10 fold by taking 9 out and leaving the Doom Bar on. Law of physics.
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Presumably it is a good pub because it offers customers a choice,restricting customers to one beer,a particularly lack lustre one at that,would make the good pub a bad one and lead to its failure
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Counter intuitive, but undoubtedly true, John.
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I’m not going to like that last comment.
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But I’ve only ever seen you drink one pint at a time, Citra, and in the new world we’re likely to be restricted to one pint per pub, so best make it a good one, eh 😉
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That’s going to be a lot of pub visits in a day then.
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