CULTURAL CARSHALTON

September 2025. Carshalton. Greater London.

The weekly drives down from Sheffield to Waterbeach (and often Tunbridge Wells) to see infirm parents are taking their toll on my knees and my sanity.

And also our “beloved” (ugh) vehicles, both of which gave up the ghost in the first week of September.

So I took the train “home” to check on Sunnyside and feed Dad Cornettos,

Someone buy it, please

and considered a trip to Pastore.

But the call of London was too strong, with only 3 ticks to complete the GBG chapter, and I almost coped with the lack of an ESB at the Parcel Yard.

Why a blue clip, Fullers ?

There’s nothing better than revisiting an unsung town you sort of know but don’t, really.

Carshalton is the first attractive place when you leave St Pancras and press on through tower blocks to a suburbia reminiscent of a Neville Shute novel.

The pubs can wait. Carshalton was gorgeous.

Who knew ?

Pubs by the pond,

picturesque churches,

a heron. Or is it a stork ?

Green tiles on the Coach & Horses almost lured me in,

but a Pub Man needs to stay focused on the end goal.

Even when that goal is a theatre hosting Bobby Davro.

American and Canadian and Hebden Bridge readers, NOW is your time to find out who Bobby Davro is (he’s not the one who ate the hamster, that was Ozzy Osbourne).

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Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

14 thoughts on “CULTURAL CARSHALTON”

  1. When I was on holiday last week I drove from near Acle in Norfolk to Baldock in Hertfordshire, but I missed a junction on the A11 near Newmarket and found myself on the A14 heading towards a place beginning with W.

    As it didn’t end with “atford” (that’s a football related reference that some readers of this blog might struggle with) I decided to stop there and take a short break. I had a half of Landlord in the White Horse, which cost £2.80 but was otherwise ok.

    There’ll be a prize of the fairly stale dregs from a pint of Doom Bar for anyone who can tell me the holiday-related word that ends the place name.

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    2. “I had a half of Landlord in the White Horse, which cost £2.80 but was otherwise ok.”
      Yes Will, we must pay for quality.
      Of my hundred most recent pints those over a fiver were
      Theakston’s Old Peculiar, £5.50, Milton Tap, Buxton
      Timothy Taylors Landlord, £5.30, Roscoe Head, Liverpool,
      Timothy Taylors Landlord, £5.20, Bridge, Stone,
      Bass, £5.30, Liverpool Arms, Conwy
      Boddingtons, £5.40, White Lion, Stockport.
      That makes 94% of my beer no more than a fiver but it only seems a couple of years since it was 94% of my beer at no more than £4. Using pubs is a dear game nowadays.

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      1. That Liverpool Arms in Conwy is a bit expensive! I was in the Albion there last week – a pint of Dark Side of the Moose for £4.20. Proper pub, that one.

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      2. Yes Will, but that’s Bass overlooking the Conwy estuary. Beforehand were two pints of Conwy Welsh Pride for £8.40 in the Albion, by far the best example of an unaltered inter-war pub in Wales. Both pubs were a few hours after Brains in Cardiff’s City Arms.

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      5. Will,
        I returned to the Albion this afternoon and found the Nottingham Brewery’s 5.2% Supreme at £4.40 to be better value than the session beers at £4.20.
        That and Bass in the Liverpool Arms suggests that Midlands beers is what they want around there.

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      6. I would love to know why a Conwy pub stocks beers from Nottingham Brewery. Is it because they’re cheap (like certain beers from Wigan clearly are) -No, are they exceptional beers sought out by beer lovers – No, are they particularly unusual – No . So why ?

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      7. It was a guest beer I’ve not seen in the Albion before.
        It might be all about offering a proper choice, one English cask beer alongside five Welsh ones.
        And I’ve always liked Nottingham Brewery beers which are occasionally on in Stafford’s Sun Inn.
        And the Conway Welsh Pride was absent yesterday afternoon.

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  2. “Carshalton. Greater London.”

    (Looks at the pic above… is speechless.)

    “The weekly drives down from Sheffield to Waterbeach (and often Tunbridge Wells) to see infirm parents are taking their toll on my knees and my sanity.”

    Ugh, sorry to hear that, and can commiserate.

    “And also our “beloved” (ugh) vehicles, both of which gave up the ghost in the first week of September.”

    Blimey! Ugh indeed. (sigh)

    “Someone but it, please”

    I think ‘buy’ it would be a better idea. 😉

    “and considered a trip to Pastore.”

    If that was Middle Earth instead of Little Earth…

    Also, as they make sour beers that would definitely fit the mood of the trip, the parents and the autos dying. (bleh)

    “But the call of London was too strong”

    (hums ‘London Calling’)

    “There’s nothing better than revisiting an unsung town you sort of know but don’t, really.”

    I had a similar feeling speech wise when I returned to England after backpacking around Europe (back in the early 80s). Thought I knew the language (English) but wasn’t ready for some of the slang!

    “reminiscent of a Neville Shute novel.”

    Hopefully not ‘On the Beach’.

    “Pubs by the pond,”

    (slow golf clap)

    “a heron. Or is it a stork ?”

    Or a Whooping Crane?
    (gonna go with Grey Heron)

    “but a Pub Man needs to stay focused on the end goal.”

    And avoid pubs with signage like that!

    “American and Canadian and Hebden Bridge readers, NOW is your time to find out who Bobby Davro is (he’s not the one who ate the hamster, that was Ozzy Osbourne).”

    I’m just surprised he can still do standup after topping over face first onto a concrete floor.

    Cheers

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