retiredmartin

June 2023. Addlestone. Not to be confused with Atherstone, no not at all.

Tucked away just inside the M25, 20 minutes from Heathrow, a world apart from Virginia Water (new Guide entry closed due to fire) and Chertsey and Weybridge; Addlestone is as gritty as Surrey gets.

In HG Wells’ War of the Worlds the second Martian invasion squad lands in Addlestone, but takes one look and scarpers.

Mrs RM drove straight past my GBG23 tick, so “unobtrusive” was the entrance.

The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes (RAOB) meets here, and believe me that’s less exciting than it sounds. Or is it ?

Wiki says “The Buffalo lodge is a fun fraternity in which men of any religious or political views are allowed to join. Discussion of politics and religion are forbidden from meetings“, but there’s no mention of CAMRA discounts or autovacs. 

I’ve only mentioned one RAOB club before, in Eynesbury, and that didn’t grace the Beer Guide, so well done, Addlestone.

Quite quiet on a Tuesday afternoon,

the drinkers mainly in the smoking shelter outside, so I didn’t miss any weird initiation ceremonies.

No flashing of CAMRA cards needed at the bar either, just £3.70 and some cheery chat about my visit.

“Where you from then ?”. No idea why, but I always say Cambridge, as though I’m ashamed of Sheffield.

The bar steward (probably called “Curatio Beerius” in RAOB parlance), seemed chuffed to be recognised by Beer Guide entry, and had visits from quite a few weirdy tickers already.

Not a pub for the Untappd ticker,

but an ultra-rare Spitfire (less pints sold than a 9.7% Imperial Stout brewed in old socks under a railway arch in Haywards Heath, I’ll bet), was cool and with bite (NBSS 3.5).

Some nice (actual) art in the Gents, too.

And as I headed off with a “thanks”, a chap came up to me with my CAMRA Gold Card I’d left at the bar. He could have sold that on Weybridge Thursday Market for several pence.

*I was tempted to head to the centre of town to bring you a complete dossier on the gentrification of Addlestone, until I read about the great pot hole problem.

“A 2023 review highlighted that Station Road, Addlestone high street has more pot holes than open businesses operating in the town centre regeneration project. With one large pot hole directly outside the project containing its own pot hole within its self. When interviewed, one local upstanding resident was quoted as saying “there is less craters on the moon, than on the road through Addlestone to Ottershaw” “The council could look at opening multiple new public swimming pools in a few of the pot holes“.”