Lamplighters progress!

In politics you get very used to promises and pledges; there's always a lot of talk and if something goes wrong, the emergency response is often to have yet another meeting or 'write a report '. It always reminds me of a certain scene in The Life of Brian ( fans will know which one I mean). Recently the national papers exposed not just my thighs in a picture of me in my old work outfit of a red swimming cozzy, but the fact I used to work on Cornish beaches as a surf life guard. In that line of work, talk cannot replace Action. So it is especially good to see actual physical action happening in re-opening the Lamplighters Pub. In a welcome break from paperwork, Cllr Wayne Harvey and I rolled up our sleeves and got busy in renovating the pub. Still a long way to go, but great to see Kathie and Dominic Gundry-White actually getting something done and bringing our pub back to life! 

Lamplighters Victory at last!

Celebrating Lamplighters with Champers!

Oh, there were doubters. "It won't happen" people said as we persistently, and possibly rather obsessively campaigned to get the wonderful "Lamplighters Pub" re-opened once again.

It's been a saga.

Back in 2009, it was shut under Enterprise Inns ( one of the big pub companies who are notoriously bad landlords, tie their tenants to buying their beer at hugely inflated prices, charge above market rent and generally seem to see their role as a property manager to pay off their debts, rather than a pub company.)

Hearts sank. It is seldom a pub that shuts ever has a pint poured again.I set up a petition - www.savethelamplighterspub.bristolpetitions.com to try to show a potential buyer that this place was a little gold-mine. ( After a bit of investment)

Then hope arose as Churchill Properties bought the pub and claimed they were adamant it should stay as a pub. But residents had heard that kind of stuff before and took some convincing. However, as a beacon of light ( no pun intended) Churchill Properties were every bit as good as their word - and set about looking for someone to run it as a pub.

Meanwhile, our dear old Lamplighters was being decimated by weather and vandals, and was becoming a far cry from the beautiful historical building we all knew, and turning into a sad disheveled relic. It was soon apparent that the only way it would be a viable venture was if some of its extensive pub garden was granted planning permission for some houses to fund its significant renovation.

That was the next battle. I remember at the 11th hour, just a day or so before the deadline, working with Planning at the Council to try to get it all sorted. And at the 11th hour it was.

But still no buyers...  and now it was 2013.  Four long years had passed.

So if Mohamed couldn't go to the mountain, as the saying goes, the mountain would come to Mohamed. ( In a sort of way) and we decided to see if we could run the pub as a community. I put together a survey for residents to try and find supporters, skills and everything we might need to set about turning it into a community pub. The prospect was somewhat daunting, but it felt like we had no choice, if we weren't to give up.

Then came the shining knights on their metaphorical stallions: Dominic Gundry-White and his wife Kathie. Dominic is business partner with the amazing Norman Routledge, who is currently transforming our beautiful Kings Weston House. They stepped in to buy the pub to turn it into their home, and a successful food-serving family pub.

The only thing to do was to open a bottle of bubbly to celebrate! But there's still a lot of work. If you want to get involved, get in touch with me, and I'll pass your name on to the owners. They will need all the help they can get.

A bottle of bubbly outside a new venture is one thing, we'll all really be celebrating when its a pint from behind the bar of our newly resurrected, much loved Lamplighters Pub. Beacon pub of Bristol. Cheers!

Happy Halloween from The Giant Goram!

Happy Halloween and thank you to Dawn, Kim and all at The Giant Goram Pub, Lawrence Weston, for making me so wickedly welcome!

Hot Weekend with a Chilli Challenge!

Trepidation and milk at The Mouse Pub's infamous chilli challenge

So it seems  I've accepted the challenge from BBC Radio Bristol's Steve LeFevre to join the 'Million Scoville Club', for (ominously) Friday 13th next week, Live, On Air. [LINK TO RADIO: at 2h 40]

For those sensible enough not to spend their time testing their taste-buds and sanity with chillies with the word 'scorpion' in their name, the Scoville is the measure of hotness of a chilli. As we found out  from expert Nick ( also known as Dr. Burnorium, of the Hotsauce Emporium) on Radio Bristol this morning, Tabasco sauce is around 5,000 Scovilles, which gives you an idea of how hot a Million Scoville beastie is.

Last year, I was unwise enough to compete in The Mouse Pub's annual Chilli Eating Contest. Silly me, I thought it might have been nice bowels of chilli-con-carne, but no. It was raw chillis. We were handed nice raw chillis, getting increasingly hotter and hotter, to eat whole. No drink , water or beer, allowed - just big cartons of milk in the middle of the table. When you grabbed in anguish for the milk to sooth the inferno in your mouth and stomach, that is you out.

Suddenly the fun was wearing thin

I was quite proud to come joint fourth, with the only other lady taking part ( out of 19 I think), jointly bowing out just before a Habenaro (Orange, I think), in fear of the Scotch Bonnet...

My recollections of the evening are a bit hazy as the chilli has an extraordinary effect - all the contestents got increasingly jittery and hyper, and , yes, 'high'. And my memory isn't that clear...

What I do remember is a night of exceptional pain as the inevitabilities of digestion took their course, and swearing I would never do anything so stupid ever again.

But somehow, the good people at Radio Bristol have turned all that around. Steve LeFevre is himself a member of the 'Million Scoville Club' and it just seemed wrong to let that go without attempting to join him. All this was to celebrate Bristol's Chilli Festival this weekend.

Mad, maybe. But some say the chilli has real health benefits and, scientific or not, last year's chilli extravaganza certainly saw off a rather stubborn chest-infectiony-thing that I'd had hanging around too long...       But, political pundits, stand-by. Come next Friday's 'Million Scoville' test with Steve LeFevre, it might be by-election time...

Pub Politics at The Bear and Rugged Staff

I have to say, as an unrepentant supporter of our community pubs, it's always a pleasure, never a chore, to hold a 'Pub Politics'. They're always lively, lots of issues always get discussed and people often swap contact details and keep in touch if they don't already know each other. Last Friday's pub politics at The Bear and Rugged Staff in Southmead was particularly lively, since the landlord, Richard Porch had organised a surprise performance from the local street dance group D-Streets. (See other blog posts for how you can support them in their bid to go to the World Championships in Blackpool later this summer... ) That's something that's often underestimated about pubs - they are often not only a place where the community comes together, but also a place which does fundraising and supports local causes. In short, pubs are definitely 'Big Society'!
People stayed on after the performance and joined in the discussion. I find it really helpful to make sure I'm listening to what's really going on locally, and also getting a straight, honest opinion about what's going on, what what issues people are facing. That's the only way politicians can really keep an understanding on what's going on in the real world, outside the Westminster bubble. Oh, and half a can of Natch helps as well, thanks Richard!

Southmead's Ds Streets for world championships!

As I arrived at The Bear and Rugged Staff for my 'Pub Politics' session, the upper level of the pub had been mysteriously cleared of the pool table... It soon became clear. The landlord Richard had organised a big surprise performance by Southmead's very own Streetdance group, Ds Streets.

Their performance was really impressive - and they are raising money to go to the World Championships in Blackpool later in August.

We all chipped in, and at the pub alone they managed to raise over £400. They need more, and they are also fundraising to afford some basic equipment like mirrors and a proper sound system.

If you can donate, please email Dwain Trivett at martialparts78@hotmail.com - let's take Southmead's Ds Streets to the world championships - watch out Blackpool!

Proud of Pubs Day

As anyone who knows me will tell you, I am quite genuinely very proud of our nation's pubs - so it was a particular pleasure for me to take part in the national "Proud of Pubs" day yesterday.

I paid a visit to the only pub in Stoke Bishop - The Mill House, to chat to staff and the pub's area manager, and to talk about the future of our great British pub trade.

We agreed that cut-price, high-strength drinks like alco-pops and super-strength ciders are a problem, and that supermarkets should not be able to sell them below cost; and that there is a real problem of young people getting very cheap alcohol to consume at home before they go out to the pub.

But when I was at the Mill House, there were a good number of people there, enjoying the sunshine, enjoying a responsible pint and a bite to eat.

But if you're concerned about the threat to our great British pubs, sign up to the campaign to Back our Pubs HERE!

C'mon England.

It's not often you can watch the World Cup, (responsibly) enjoy a pint of beer with your friends and watch a sunset at the same time. But at the Mouse's pub beer garden you can do just that.

This is the happy scene just before the USA equalised last night.
There are very many more people who can provide more informed commentary on the match than I can, so I won't even go there; but suffice to say, if you have to watch England do it yet again, the Mouse garden with its outside TV is a very nice place to do it.

One of the great things about the World Cup is that it provides such a boost for our nation's pubs. So I'll use this opportunity to remind you to go to www.backthepub.com to support the campaign to save our nation's pubs. The World Cup just wouldn't be the same without them!

One of Britain's strangest pubs ?

This has little to do with Bristol, but it is so extraordinary, I thought it merited a blog anyway:

On my way up to the Conservative party conference in Manchester, I couldn't resist stopping by at what must be one of Britain's strangest pubs: Somerset House, in Stourbridge.

From the outside, an unremarkable red-brick pub. But Somerset House holds a secret - as yet unexplained by scientists: it is possible to suspend a full pint glass from the wall by rubbing it up and down on the wall until it 'sticks'.

One theory, when the pub was wall-papered instead of painted, was that it was the wall-paper-paste underneath that somehow stuck the glass to the wall: but the wall paper has since been stripped off and the wall painted over. And the pints still stick. A real mystery.

This picture isn't photo-shopped, it's real. Go to Somerset House, in Stourbridge and see for yourself.

Lamplighters Roast - one of Bristol's best kept secrets

...If you carry on down Hung road, on the south side of the Portway, you find the superb Lamplighters Pub.

There's something a bit other-worldly about the Lamplighters as you walk down to it - it's so unexpected and has an aura of real history about it. And as you walk outside, you find yourself over looking the mudflats of the estuary, fishing boats, and the club house of Shirehampton Sailing Club.

But they also do a really superb roast - pictured, steaming away merrily, here. Its so good, you'll note my eyes have turned red with anticipation. No mean slices of meat, they serve a half chicken, dripping in gravy, with all sorts of veg, and two kinds of potatoes. And as I was ordering, the bar staff brought bowels of Yorkshire pud bits out as bar snacks for customers.

As we all become ever more health conscious, I commend to you the health values of the great British Roast - full of protein, and I should think this plate contains a hefty proportion of my 5-a-day. Healthy eating doesn't have to be depressing looking salads, as this meal shows. Our great British roast is as healthy a meal as any! Long may it reign in our pubs!

carbo-loading for the connoisseur

It's two days before the dreaded Bristol 10k, for which I have, through a combination of injury and diary-saturation, managed to do next to no training whatsoever. ( NOT recommended.)

The Inn on the Green on Filton Road in Horfield is hosting a massive bank-holiday weekend-long beer festival. I have written elsewhere of how there is nothing wrong with enjoying a good beer, responsibly. So it is without apology that I go to carbo-load before the Big Day at The Inn on the Green, and sample some of their huge array of Britain's finest beers.

And what a selection: I'm afraid I have managed to lose the wonderful menu that we were given as we went into the pub, but I sampled such delights as The Guzzler, a lovely well balanced ale called "The Reverend James" (as I recall), and a very stylish little number brewed from Irish whisky.

In true English style, the gazebo tent blew away, and a live band played songs by 'Madness' as the smell of barbecued burgers and hotdogs wafted through our hair and adhered to our clothes. It's what a bank holiday weekend should be: There was little real drunkenness ( we had one half-pint glass which we had to queue up to get re-filled, and real beer is much harder to drink a lot of, fast than alcopops...) but a lot of friends were made, and a host of local brewers celebrated for their craft.

I am sure I am going to run stormingly come Monday... Thanks, Inn on the Green - keep the beer festival afloat!

Pub on the Common: Inn on the Green

The Inn on the Green, on the Filton Road (at the Gloucester Road end) boasts an enormous array of good English beers. You can just about see the extent of the choice in the number of taps in the background here.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying a pint of beer or a glass of wine in the evening. As long as you're not driving, and as long as that pint or glass of vino isn't followed by six more. And it's also a good excuse to support one of England's great traditional products - ale and proper beer, which is being replaced little by little by lager imports which are usually much stronger.

Here, I'm about to enjoy a 'Peat Porter', as my tasteful beer mustache reveals. My companions enjoyed a pint of the unfussily named " Beer!" and Butcombe Bitter respectively. We also enjoyed three packets of very exotically flavoured crisps. ( Sweet Chilli and Lemon, Bloody Mary - with a mysterious exclamation mark after it on the packet - and real parsnip crisps. I mean they are made out of real parsnips. ) As below.

For three pints of real ale and some packets of crisps, I can wholeheartedly recommend the Inn on the Green. It's been completely transformed recently into a really nice place to enjoy a great variety of British beverage. (In moderation, and responsibly, of course.)

potatoes don't get more exotic than this...