retiredmartin

January 2025. Downham Market.

I’d allowed an hour and a half to do all 3 Downham pubs, my Tesco shopping, a bit of sightseeing and some dithering about a Chinese takeaway. I’d only need an hour.

From the Live & Let Live, where I sensed folk staring at me, to the modest Tesco, where again I sense the starers. Are they counting my fingers ?

Central Downham is tiny, but actually it bucks the trend by looking rather more modern than on my last, pre-Covid visit.

A few decent cafes, a music shop, hardware store,

a trad butcher,

and that superb bit of Victoriana in the market place.

Right, Abbot in the town hotel and GBG stalwart ?

The Crown was closed ! Shuts up every January, reports Saimon, which you’d never know from their website, of course.

Never mind, already ticked, possibly in Victorian times, so perhaps I’ll make the 19:54 instead.

But first, let’s follow that Hi-Vis to the Spoons.

Well, the Crown might not have enough trade to justify January opening, but the Whalebone is more confident that West Norfolk are saying “No, ta” to Dryanuary.

It’s packed. Couples, codgers, CAMRA, curry lads; I reckon a hundred in.

And that Plum Porter was a cool, chewy-with-a-touch-of straw NBSS 4, only let down by my failure to remember to bring my 50p vouchers to the party. What point is CAMRA if you forget your vouchers ?

A rushed pint as I realised it was half a mile back to the trains, a station containing a former CAMRA National Pub of the Year.

Honestly, the Railway Arms was the Cider Pub of the Year a decade ago.

Apart from twitching and Victoriana, it was the ONLY reason folk came to Downham.