I went by the former Norwich Brewdog last night for the first time since it closed and all the signage was removed. It’s a little strange how a building can change its look so quickly, it now gives the impression of being an office building.
I imagine it’ll get let out again by the landlord relatively quickly, it’s a substantial amount of space that has gone through numerous different names over the years. CAMRA notes that it has been known as Hideout, Knowhere, Noir, Indulge, Hogshead, City Ale & Wine Bar, Gundry Whites Cafe Bar, Drummonds and Whites over recent years.
This is a quirky little exhibit in the Kölnisches Stadtmuseum which is effectively just a bit of the frontage of the former Underground club in Cologne. I mentioned that it was a brick in the title of this post, although it feels more of a clump. The museum notes that the Ehrenfeld district used to be an industrial area which wasn’t particularly well-off, although looking at Streetview images, it seems to have been gentrified a fair bit now.
Underground opened in 1988 and became an important part of the local rock scene, with the graffiti on the front changing regularly. As I doubt they had a focus on craft beer I can’t imagine I would have ever gone there, but I like things that are a bit edgy and on-trend.
The building was demolished in 2017 and the site is now used for a school. But it’s rather nice to know that one little clump of that frontage is safely placed in the museum as a memory of the whole arrangement.
As I was looking something else up, I found this list of JD Wetherspoon pubs from 1994. Different times and all that….
The Bankers Draft — 80 High Street, Eltham, London SE9 The Bankers Draft — 36-38 Friern Barnet Road, Southgate, N11 The Barking Dog — 61 Station Parade, Barking, Essex The Beaten Docket — 50-56 Cricklewood Broadway, London NW2 The Beehive — 407-409 Brixton Road, London SW9 The Bird In Hand — 35 Dartmouth Road, Forest Hill, London SE23 The Blacking Bottle — 122-126 High Street, Edgware, Middlesex The Camdens Head — 456 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 The Coliseum — Manor Park Road, Harlesden, London NW10 The Crown & Sceptre — 2a Streatham Hill, London SW2 The Dog — 17-19 Archway Road, London N19 The Drum — 557-559 Lea Bridge Road, London E10 The Elbow Room — 503-505 High Road, Tottenham, London N17 The Elbow Room — 22 Topsfield Parade, Tottenham Lane, London N8 The Foxley Hatch — 8-9 Russell Hill Road, Purley, Surrey The Fox on the Hill — 149 Denmark Hill, London SE5 The Gate House — 1 North Hill, Highgate, London N6 The George — 17-21 George Street, Croydon, Surrey The George — High Street, Wanstead, London E11 The Golden Grove — 146-148 The Grove, Stratford, London E15 The Good Yarn — 132 High Street, Uxbridge, Middlesex The Great Spoon of Ilford — 114-116 Cranbrook Road, Ilford, Essex The Grid Inn — 22 Replingham Road, Southfields, London SW18 The Half Moon — 749 Green Lanes, Winchmore Hill, London N21 The Hamilton Hall — Liverpool Street Station, London EC2 The Hart & Spool — 148 Shenley Road, Borehamwood, Herts The Harvest Moon — 141-143 High Street, Orpington, Kent JJ Moons — 3 Shaftesbury Parade, Shaftesbury Circle, South Harrow, Middlesex JJ Moons — 56a High Street, Tooting, London SW17 JJ Moons — 12 Victoria Road, Ruislip Manor, Middlesex JJ Moons — 397 High Road, Wembley, Middlesex JJ Moons — 553 Kingsbury Road, London NW9 JJ Moons — Departure Lounge, Terminal 4, Heathrow Airport JJ Moons — 80-82 Chiswick High Road, London W4 JJ Moons — 19-20 The Broadwalk, Pinner Road, North Harrow, Middlesex JJ Moons — 46-62 High Street, Hornchurch, Essex The Lamb — 52-54 Church Street, Edmonton, London N9 The Last Post — 227 High Road, Loughton, Essex The Lord Denman — 270-272 Heathway, Dagenham, Essex The Lord Moon of the Mall — 16-18 Whitehall, London SW1 The Man in the Moon — 40-42 Chalk Farm Road, London NW1 The Man in the Moon — 1 Buckingham Parade, Stanmore, Middlesex The Masque Haunt — Old Street, London EC2 The Moon & Stars — 99-103 South Street, Romford, Essex The Millers Well — 419-421 Barking Road, East Ham, London E6 The Moon on the Green — 172-174 Uxbridge Road, Shepherds Bush, London W12 The Moon on the Hill — 373-375 Station Road, Harrow, Middlesex The Moon on the Hill — 5-9 Hill Road, Sutton, Surrey The Moon & Sixpence — 250 Uxbridge Road, Hatch End, Middlesex The Moon & Sixpence — 1250-1256 Uxbridge Road, Hayes End, Middlesex The Moon & Sixpence — 185 Wardour Street, London W1 The Moon & Stars — 164 High Street, Penge, London SE20 The Moon on the Square — 30 The Centre, Feltham, Middlesex The Moon Under Water — 84-86 Staines Road, Hounslow, Middlesex The Moon Under Water — 148 High Street, Barnet, Herts The Moon Under Water — 10 Varley Parade, Colindale, London NW9 The Moon Under Water — 53-57 London Road, Twickenham, Middlesex The Moon Under Water — 115-117 Chase Side, Enfield, Middlesex The Moon Under Water — 10-11 Broadway Parade, Coldharbour Lane, Hayes, Middlesex The Moon Under Water — 28 Leicester Square, London WC2 The Moon Under Water — 1327 London Road, Norbury, London SW16 The Moon Under Water — 194 Balham High Street, London SW12 The Moon Under Water — 44 High Street, Watford, Herts The New Fairlop Oak — Fencepiece Road, Barkingside, Essex The New Moon — 25-26 Kenton Park Parade, Kenton Road, Harrow, Middlesex The New Moon — 413 Lordship Lane, London N17 The Old Suffolk Punch — 10-12 Grand Parade, Green Lanes, London N4 The Outside Inn — 312-314 Neasden Lane, London NW10 The Paper Moon — 55 High Street, Dartford, Kent The Railway — 202 Upper Richmond Road, Putney, London SW15 The Railway Bell — 13 East Barnet Road, New Barnet, Herts The Red Lion & Pineapple — 281 High Street, Acton, London W3 The Regent — 19 Church Street, Walton On Thames, Surrey The Rochester Castle — 145 High Street, Stoke Newington, London N16 The Sarsen Stone — 32 High Street, Wealdstone, Middlesex The Sovereign of the Seas — 109-111 Queensway, Petts Wood, Kent The Spotted Dog — 72 Garratt Lane, Arndale Centre, Wandsworth, London SW18 The Sylvan Moon — 27 Green Lane, Northwood, Hillingdon, Middlesex The Tally Ho — 749 High Road, North Finchley, London N12 The Tollgate — 26-30 Turnpike Lane, London N8 The Three Horseshoes — 28 Heath Street, Hampstead, London NW3 The Tigers Head — 350 Bromley Road, Catford, London SE6 179 Upper Street — 179 Upper Street, Islington, London N1 The Village Inn — 402-408 Rayners Lane, Pinner, Middlesex Wetherspoons — Victoria Station, London SW1 Wetherspoons — Landside, Terminal 4, Heathrow Airport Wetherspoons — 33 Aberconway Road, Morden, Surrey Wetherspoons — 552-556 London Road, North Cheam, Surrey The Whispering Moon — 25 Ross Parade, Woodcote Road, Wallington, Surrey The White Lion of Mortimer — 125-127 Stroud Green Road, London N4 The White Lion of Mortimer — 1-3 York Parade, West Hendon Broadway, London NW9 The White Lion of Mortimer — 223 London Road, Mitcham, Surrey The Whole Hog — 430-434 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London N13 The Wrong ’Un — 234-236 The Broadway, Bexleyheath, Kent The Square Peg — 115 Corporation Street, Temple Court, Birmingham The Moon in the Square — 4-8 Exeter Road, Bournemouth, Dorset The Old Manor — Grenville Place, Church Road, Bracknell, Berkshire The Red Lion — Departure Lounge, North Terminal, Gatwick Airport The Falcon — 9 Cornmarket, High Wycombe, Bucks The Elms — London Road, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex The Moon Under Water — 68-74 Deansgate, Manchester The Bell — 5 Orford Hill, Norwich, Norfolk The Berkeley — 18-19 Queen’s Road, Clifton, Bristol, Avon The Commercial Rooms — 43-45 Corn Street, Bristol, Avon The Moon & Spoon — 86 High Street, Slough, Middlesex The Last Post — Weston Road, Southend, Essex The Golden Cross Hotel — 20 High Street, Bromsgrove, Hereford and Worcester Wetherspoons — 93-97 Lord Street, Southport, Merseyside The Last Post — 77 The Broadway, Chesham, Bucks Wetherspoons — 78-92 Foregate Street, Chester, Cheshire The Playhouse — 4 St. Johns Street, Colchester, Essex The Monk’s Retreat — 163 Friar Street, Reading, Berkshire Wetherspoons — 51-57 Chertsey Road, Woking, Surrey The Moon Under Water — 53-55 Lichfield Street, Wolverhampton, West Midlands
I’ve visited the Moon and Spoon in Slough a couple of times, but I have entirely failed to take any useful photos of it. So here’s a photo with the word Slough on it, which I accept is slightly sub-optimal. The pub is one of the older ones in the JD Wetherspoon estate, it’s included in their 1992 list of pubs, so it likely opened in the late 1980s.
Using the chain’s history of the venue, they note:
“The author George Orwell described his ideal pub in a newspaper article and called it ‘Moon Under Water’. It is why ‘moon’ is used in the name of several Wetherspoon pubs. This pub stands on the site of the Black Boy Inn. First recorded in 1679, it was demolished in 1910 and replaced by the Fulbrook Motor Works. Later known as Fulbrook House, it was home to Slough’s first supermarket and then the Halifax Building Society.”
This was evidently a very different Slough, it’s a little difficult to picture it being a quaint town some way from London. It’s now rather more urban and vibrant shall we say.
This is the only photo that I took inside the pub, as obviously I didn’t want to neglect Untappd. For reference, as if anyone could possibly care, this is the Diablo from Mad Squirrel Brewery which was £1 for a half and was an interesting beer with a bit of lemon in the flavour.
The venue is one of the older style JD Wetherspoon outlets, quite a dark design and not overly large, but the team members were all friendly and welcoming. The online reviews are positive and towards the high end of the scale for the chain, but I like looking at some of the angry ones.
“Visiting home town Slough and was feeling merry and having a laugh with family as walking in Place looked like it needed some life and colour. Got refused a drink because we were having a laugh.”
I’m with the pub, I doubt that it did need life and colour.
“Went with my son for a drink.. ordered Stella by App.. all good, second Stella ordered by app came in non Stella glass. Tasted awful after a few sips. (due to the glass)…”
I mean, yes, Stella would say that their beer tastes better in their own branded glass. In reality, I would doubt anyone would be able to taste the difference, but the claim that the beer somehow tastes awful is something that the pub should ignore. And they did, they refused a replacement.
“Worst visit I have ever had in a Wetherspoons. Served by a girl with an IQ of about 5, three times had to point at Windsor Knot that I ordered, then served the beer that was at least 10% short of a full pint.”
Perhaps she was nervous that it would be a customer that would bully her and post all over Google abuse about her.
“Alcoholic drinks that you pay, they will bring them to the table. Free tap water, you need to get up and get it yourself. I believe they missed the point of why tap water is free in England on any establishment selling alcohol.”
I’m not sure there’s a law which requires tap water to be brought to the table by a team member because a customer doesn’t want to get it themselves….
“If you like going to the library the go its so quiet this pub”
Good.
Anyway, that’s enough review distraction and I note that at the moment the venue offers six different real ales, including from breweries including Mauldons, Hanlons and Peerless.
The pricing here is towards the lower end of the JD Wetherspoon scale, which is already pretty cheap. There’s more of a vibrant atmosphere here than in the newer and usually larger venues that they operate, but it’s all reliable enough and it’s been here long enough now.
I’m not usually much interested in vestments, in the same way as weapons, ceramics and silverware never really attract my attention in museums. But this one had an interesting story, and I can’t resist something with a bit of an intriguing history.
The cope, which is namely a ceremonial cloak, was made in England in the early sixteenth century. It was designed to be made for export and it’s quite a glamorous little effort which was initially destined for the Carthusian order near Grenoble. And it would have stayed there if it wasn’t for the Napoleonic troops that were storming across France closing down monasteries and seizing their possessions.
The last prior of the monastery in Grenoble evidently wasn’t entirely convinced about this end of Catholicism so he fled and took this cloak with him. His destination was Dorsten in Westphalia and the cope remained at St. Agatha’s Church in the town until 1910, when it was acquired by the museum. I can sort of imagine this being packed up by an angry French prior who was probably very happy where he was without all this moving hassle.
I quite like that this is an English cope, designed to be used in a French monastery but which ended up in a German church for various political reasons. And the museum seems very proud of this exhibit which depicts the Virgin Mary in the centre surrounded by the trappings of angels and bells. Very decadent.
We normally do 2Js to pubs and licensed venues which we feel might surprise and delight us, but this visit was to the local Government hustings being held at Norwich Playhouse.
The debate was introduced by Stephen Crocker, the Chief Executive of Norwich Theatre, and moderated by the editor of the EDP, Richard Porritt (on far left, although I don’t mean that in a political sense). Then we have Steve Morphew (Labour), Nick Taylor (Reform UK), Jan Davis (Green), James Wright (Liberal Democrats) and Andrew Jamieson (Conservative).
There was perhaps one error here from the organisers which is that they ended up with five male middle-aged candidates, which is great, but it didn’t feel very representative. Although the organisers said that they just asked every party to field a representative, there should have perhaps been some more joined up thinking here. James Wright mentioned that as soon as the situation was apparent he made efforts to find a different representative, but it seems they weren’t given enough notice. The issue was brought up by a member of the audience, and Richard Porritt was asked why he had selected two men to ask the first two questions from the audience.
The tickets were free of charge and the venue was around two thirds full. The audience seemed quite well balanced in terms of age, gender and political views, with no one group dominating the arrangement.
Julian had got us tickets on the balcony, which I didn’t even realise existed, and this gentleman was selected to ask a question. The set-up was that every candidate got ninety seconds to introduce themselves, then there were questions from the audience and then every candidate got some time to sum up why people should vote for their party.
Jan Davis.
James Wright.
Andrew Jamieson.
Nick Taylor.
Steve Morphew.
I won’t go into my political thoughts about the candidates as I think it was really useful that they all turned up for a debate such as this. There were interesting questions on the environment, local Government reform, younger people in politics, policing, public transport, care homes, well-being and culture.
One of the candidates seemed a little inexperienced when he bit back at the audience in a way that felt inappropriate, that was perhaps the only low point of the debate. Otherwise the debate was always polite and well mannered, although I always prefer just a little drama. There was a considerable amount of experience from the individuals being questioned and an evident passion for their local communities.
Anyway, this was an enjoyable ninety minutes or so and credit to the organisers for using their space in this manner to further the democratic process. As Stephen Crocker said at the end, the main thing is though to vote.
Everything continues to come down at some pace now, the central core of the buildings around Anglia Square are mostly down and there’s a lot of rubble everywhere.
Just meandering through my old photos and this is The Back of Beyond in Reading, operated by JD Wetherspoon. I visited in February 2022 and was mostly going to pubs in the Good Beer Guide, which explains the limited number of photos that I took in here.
As for the pub name, the chain explains:
“This pub stands on the site of a ginger beer factory, later used as a Salvation Army barracks, and takes its name from its location on the edge of town.”
I remember that this was an odd day as there were gale force winds and numerous venues weren’t opening at all, with all council buildings being closed. This pub is by the River Kennet and the chairs outside were blowing about so much that they were at risk of either losing them or one hitting a pedestrian. A team member calmly came in looking bedraggled from the gale to say the least and suggested “we had better close outside” in a rather understated manner. They certainly wouldn’t have closed inside.
As an aside, the beer is the Red Kite from Vale Brewery, but this was before the days that I wrote commentary on every beer as well as checking them in. Whilst I was there a member of the public was IDed by a polite team member, but they were aggressive and verbally abusive in response which created a bit of extra tension inside. I remember that the team members here seemed efficient and were evidently doing their best.
I remember that the pub was clean and seemed in a good state of repair, but I obviously couldn’t visit the outside area without the risk of being hit by a flying chair. There are some pubs that I visit that it’s the clientele that I worry about in that regard, but it was definitely just the weather on this instance.
Anyway, onto the reviews, with the venue being generally very well rated. The venue is still responding to reviews, which is a little unusual for the chain’s pubs.
“Me and my university friends are regulars at this spoons, my friends accepted a drink that we assumed is a gift from a family member. There was a mistake from the bartender who provided us with the wrong drink. And recognised the mistake and threatened us to be kicked out of the spoons if we didn’t pay, they went as far as stating that we have committed theft, when me and my friend rightfully asked him for his name he did not provide it, he was an older person with glasses. The customer service is a disgrace.”
Amazing how many reviews there are along the lines of “I assumed it was a gift from someone” when a customer has merrily gone and drunk something brought to the table in error.
“Myself & my husband have been regular customers for many many years of The Back of Beyond to eat & drink on Saturdays. We waited patiently at the bar to be served, lady behind bar said who was next & despite my husband saying it was him & putting his hand up she proceeded to serve someone else! We were clearly next as had been stood next to the lady she had just been serving. When we spoke up she said “don’t start anything” At this point we walked out. Needless to say we won’t ever return with that kind of treatment. Staff training in customer service is clearly required here!!”
To be fair to the bar staff, this sort of stuff is going to happen in a busy pub and this is why I like they have an app to order from…
“I’ve never felt so unwelcome by some of the staff here. My friends were celebrating my birthday and they called us out over a microphone for singing happy birthday. Im really disappointed in the service here”
I’m liking the pub even more.
“Got told off by the Quiz Master for singing happy birthday”
Yes, I’m on board with the pub now.
“You should review your age id identification. These days everything is checked online and no one’s carry an id after them.”
They carry an ID with them if they want to be served.
“People took over front part of pub by Office louder than your music on phone I played a little bit on my phone to be told it was too loud, but people can be louder. Brought food for 15 year old daughter with option of soft drink, choose alcohol free cider as in soft drinks, Girl brings drinks over and is Rude her words You got ID You got ID, not can I see ID Please. Also Law say she’s having Food she can have a alcohol free, Please educate your staff in UK Rules on this, Oh and to make us A Family feel even more uncomfortable in this Pub she when over to Bar to tell the other staff/ Managers of this, to which they end up staring at us the whole time in there. I no longer recommend this pub, not for families”
So playing music on a phone and then ordering non alcoholic beers for a 15 year old, it’s not going to end well….. I like JD Wetherspoon’s stance on both and their staff seemed very well trained on them to me.
Anyway, they usually have around eight real ales and it all seemed well run when I was there. The pricing is somewhere around the middle for the chain and it feels as if it has more of a student crowd in there. The venue had first opened in the 1990s and received an investment of over £850,000 in 2021 to modernise the pub, so I visited soon after all of that work was completed. If I go back, I’ll get some more photos to surprise and delight my two loyal blog readers….
I’d never much thought about this (like many things) but this is a promissory note that service personnel fighting in the first Gulf War were issued with. If anyone was shot down or otherwise caught in enemy territory, then the Foreign Office would give £15,000 to anyone who returned them to safety. They each have a serial number so that they could be verified.
Also known as a Safe Conduct Pass, they had been used in the past but as more of a demand that the member of service personnel was properly treated. This ultimately was more of a demand that may or may not be met, but the offer of money was a much more tempting arrangement.
This fragment of fabric skin from Manfred von Richthofen’s (1892-1918) Fokker Dr.I does look rather modest, but it underpins something of a dramatic story. It was removed from the wreck of the triplane following the crash on 21 April 1918 by Corporal Harry Potter, part of the salvage team although souvenir hunters ended up with various bits of the aircraft.
The importance is Richthofen himself and the making of the Red Baron myth. He was not merely a successful German fighter ace, but one who understood, whether instinctively or otherwise, the value of visual identity. By having his aircraft painted red, he turned himself into something more than a pilot and more into a symbol of bravery and leadership. As the war progressed, the idea that one aircraft was painted red was seen as a little sub-optimal as it made Richthofen a target, so more planes were painted the same colour.
I like little survivals like this and because there were souvenir hunters, bits of the aircraft’s fabric skin are in museums around the world, not just here at the Air Force Museum, but at locations such as the Australian War Memorial museum. And, as another minor point that intrigued me, Richthofen was born in what is now Wrocław in a part of the city which is where I stay when visiting. I wonder what he would have thought about his birth place now being part of Poland.
