Category: Pubs, Clubs & Beer

Do you suffer from Piles?  Well, you are not alone.  There is a growing movement developing in the bowels of British society for understanding and recognition of this little understood and painful malady.

Piles, or to call it by its correct name, Haemorrhoids, causes suffering to many people in our society.  Identifying the number of sufferers has proved to be very difficult though.  This is due to it being one of those ailments nobody really likes to admit to having.

Can you remember the day you went into a chemist and started to go red?  You wanted to buy Pile ointment but lost your bottle and to hide your blushes, you ended up having to buy contraceptives instead.  Very embarrassing indeed!

Many Piles sufferers tend to bump into each other in pub toilets by accident.  They are often mistakenly accused of gross indecency by undercover police officers.  It must be pointed out how these meetings are random and purely coincidental, being based on individual need rather than arrangement.

To solve this thorny issue, suggestions have been put forward by sufferers to make Pile ointment available in pub toilet vending machines.  These are out of sight and this can help relieve pain and embarrassment for sufferers and anybody else who just happens to walk in on them.

The ointment is in sachets and will be inside boxes of a similar size to ones used for other popular products, such as condoms and erectile dysfunction tablets.  This should prove cost-effective and very handy to vending machine manufacturers as there is no need to replace any of the existing dispensers.  They will be re-labelled instead.  Also the ointment is now available in a wide variety of colours and aromas, i.e. strawberry, banana, cherry etc.

Dr Emma Royds has had a lifetime of experience suffering from Piles and is an expert on this subject.  She says: “If you have Piles, don’t just sit on it.  You are not alone”.

Along with requesting Pile ointment being made available in Blackburn’s pub toilet vending machines, extra soft cushions will also be requested.  There are also discussions about setting up a support group for sufferers.  Regular meetings would be held in town centre pub venues.  It has been suggested perhaps the most appropriate location for these would be the aptly named Grapes Hotel.

It’s nearly thirty years since Blackburn’s legendary Vulcan Hotel shut down.

Situated across from Blackburn College, this pub gave our town’s students a different kind of education.  It was called sex and drugs and rock ‘n’ roll.  Unfortunately this didn’t go down well with College Management.  After years of trying to get the pub closed down, they eventually had their wish granted in the early 1990’s.

Like most Blackburn teenage students, going in here was a must.  Plus in the mid-70’s they put on a really good spud pie with peas or gravy at dinnertime.  This was enough to convert me to the Vulcan, along with their jukebox and the great atmosphere which pervaded throughout the pub, both upstairs and downstairs.

When you think of this pub, you think of long hair, leather jackets, motorbikes, weed and glass fights in the back room.  But it was also full of characters who went on to enrich Blackburn’s folklore.  Remember when Viking Billy’s mum won Spot the Ball, or the pools, and him throwing cigars all over the pub?  Or thinking you were in the fairground hall of mirrors when you saw the Gardiner brothers.  No they were big lads, as a bunch of Burnley fans were to find out.  They decided to take a detour to Ewood Park when they saw them stood outside the Vulcan.

After the pub shut down it became a subject of great nostalgia to many of its former patrons.  This has spawned reunions and a very funny Facebook page called ‘I Drank In The Vulcan In Blackburn’.  Created in 2008, this brings together some of the old Vulcan stalwarts and shares news and views, along with featuring records which used to be played on the pub’s memorable jukebox. One of the highlights of this Facebook page has been its use as a vehicle for helping organise these Vulcan reunions.  They have previously taken place at the Havelock and Mill Hill pubs.

On March 14^th there was a Vulcan reunion with a difference.  It was held in Blackburn town centre in two pubs next door to each other, a joint venture between the Drummer’s Arms and Rock Box. This turned out be a really good event and brought about a big turnout.  I popped in the Drummers on the afternoon of this event.  After meeting up with Brian Rossall, an old Vulcaneer, we went back and forth a few times between the Drummers and the Rock Box that day.

Despite the sands of time having given most of us a good scouring, there were still a lot of familiar faces from those good old days of Blackburn’s legendary Vulcan.  Many old friends met up and a good time was had by all.  The great news is this event went down so well, we can expect another reunion to take place next year in the Drummer’s Arms and Rock Box.

Following an artistic workshop near Blackburn’s Drummer’s Arms, a snowman made from plastic cups appeared in the pub.  This turned out to be very popular and became a great success.

Not only was it an unusual and aesthetic work of art, but it was environmentally friendly too, as most of the cups could be used again in the vending machine they were borrowed from.  Unfortunately, the ones stapled at their base might have turned out to have been a bit leaky while you were drinking your cuppa.  But how often do you get dodgy drinks from vending machines anyway?  Half a cup of cocoa, topped up with chicken soup, often makes you want to put its cups to alternative uses.

This secret project followed plans to make a snowman which wouldn’t melt.  It was completed despite the pub being very busy over Christmas and many people going in to enjoy themselves during the recent festive season. With it being a mild winter this year, there had been no snow available.  Besides, things might have got a little bit messy if people had taken their own snow into the pub and started building a snowman inside.  Using plastic cups was an ideal substitute.

Building a snowman using plastic cups is also quite a symbolic gesture.  After the New Year festivities, we start to get bombarded by holier than thou commentators trying to persuade us to give up drinking for a month.  The first one of the New Year is always this Dry January campaign.  A plastic cup snowman sends a message out to people about not using vending machines for a drink, but to get to a pub and have a proper drink from a glass instead.  Our plastic cup snowman leaves no carbon footprint, because he has no feet.  What better way could there be to send those annoying Dry January people a message to leave us alone, by showing you don’t have to be a snowman to give them the cold shoulder.

Blackburn’s Grapes pub has re-opened.  The town centre pub at the junction of King William Street, Northgate and Sudell Cross re-opened in early September.

The new Grapes Town Tavern opening was delayed by a week due to electrical safety precautions, but this didn’t seem to hinder matters.  There was a good bunch in the Grapes on my afternoon visit of its Friday opening day.

Three real ales from Thwaites were on sale.  I plumped for Gold and was pleased to be charged £2.30 for a pint.  There were a lot of familiar faces in the pub, mainly Blackburn Times regulars, also behind the bar were former staff from there.  But other nearby King William Street pubs also had some of their punters in to check out this newly opened hostelry.  Having an artist and butties on helped boost the crowd, as did their big screens, showing live Ashes test match cricket.

A week is a long time in politics, so said Harold Wilson.  But something similar can also be said about happenings with Blackburn town centre’s pub scene.  A week later, on my next visit, it was still busy in the Grapes, but not so much in Blackburn Times.  After watching the amount of hand pump activity in the Grapes, perhaps this might send a message to Times not to have sour grapes, but to get those cask ale pumps back on again.

Unfortunately it’s going to be a fruitless trip across the road to the Squire, where they won’t be selling real ale for its foreseeable future.  Barely a week after the Grapes opened; their nearest neighbour threw in the towel and ceased to be a pub.  Word on the ‘grapevine’ is it may become an Indian restaurant.  This is not only a bad blow for staff and regulars who went in here, but very annoying too.  It was turning into a good run around King William Street and its immediate area.  Optimistic eyes were even starting to look towards the Borough maybe being the next one to open.

Unfortunately in Blackburn town centre, it always seems to be two steps forward and one step back these days.  But at least the Grapes has made a good start to its new lease of life as a public house.  Let’s hope it continues to mature like fine wine and this becomes a vintage year for the Grapes and Blackburn town centre.

Plans are afoot for Blackburn’s Adelphi pub to re-open in July.  The Railway Road establishment is under new management and is in the process of recruiting staff.

Though still owned by Admiral Taverns, the pub will be managed by Farnworth based Change Hospitality.  They already manage three other pubs around the Bolton area, including the Market Inn, Farnworth, where this business is located.

Harrison Clayton is the owner of Change Hospitality and behind plans to re-open Blackburn’s Adelphi.  I put together a few questions for him which have been raised by punters in Blackburn:

• Your Facebook page says the pub is under new ownership.  But is it not owned by Admiral Taverns?

• Have you been inside the pub to have a look at it?

• Do you intend to refurbish this place?

• Have you studied local Facebook comments and looked into the past history of this pub?

• Do you intend to serve food?

• Will real ale be available?

Unfortunately there has been no reply forthcoming from Harrison yet.  He is obviously a very busy man, running three pubs and his recruitment business, so his time is probably very limited.  No doubt he will have business plans for the Adelphi and his other ventures look to be a good recommendation for what the Blackburn pub’s future could be.  But he might find punters at this end of the A666 are going to be more sceptical than those at the other end of the Devil’s Highway.  There seem to have been a lot of false dawns with Blackburn’s Adelphi pub.  Many people remain convinced it cannot be turned around due to current economic conditions, people’s changing drinking habits and the Adelphi’s reputation. 

Various attempts at making a success of the Adelphi have been tried over the years.  Sadly, these have proved rather limited.  This pub seems to have had a recent history of opening and closing as often as the lion’s eyes on nearby Morrison’s clock chimes.  Sadly this clock’s jungle scenes have also been compared to life in the Adelphi.  Yet it sits between our railway and bus stations, thousands of people pass this pub every day and a new football season will soon be here with plenty of thirsty fans landing in Blackburn town centre when Rovers are at home.

Hopefully the new regime in charge of the Adelphi can transform this pub into a thriving hostelry its position in the town centre should command.  But they have one hell of a task on their hands.

Blackburn’s former Grapes pub looks like it could be available as a pub again, following the end of Liz ‘n’ Lil’s café.

Re-opening as a pub is just one of many options for this former Thwaites house, where Northgate meets King William Street and Sudell Cross

This was one pub I never really took to.  As a teenager going in here, what used to put me off this place was the number of police officers who used to frequent this establishment.  They were easy to spot, coming in the pub in their blue shirts, darker blue ties and regulation footwear.  Being coppers, they were usually big blokes and they watched everybody like hawks.  After all, coppers are never off-duty, like some of the characters they had their eyes on.  This was enough to put off any teenager in the 1970s, gaining this pub its nickname the Sour Grapes.

For some reason police officers seemed to stop going in the Grapes in the 1980s.  No doubt this went down very well with many young people and most of the criminal fraternity.  But on the other side of the coin, the pub seemed to become very seedy, gradually deteriorating as time moved on.  Eventually it closed down and became Liz ‘n’ Lil’s.  Now this latest chapter in its history is also coming to an end.

Unfortunately this building is still owned by Thwaites.  It does not inspire many of Blackburn’s pub-going community to expect the Grapes to become a public house again.  A lot of drinkers say Thwaites have done for Blackburn’s nightlife what Venky’s have done for Rovers.

But our former town centre brewery is open to offers and the Grapes becoming a pub again is not out of the question.  Perhaps Daniel Thwaites’ Scottish owners may even be rethinking their practice of sticking restrictive covenants on some of their licensed premises.  This has been very anti-competitive over the years, depriving many of us of our locals and favourite watering holes, while the brewery seems to be less interested in brewing beer and more interested in estate management and trying to conjure up phoenixes from burnt down buildings. 

But we have proved in Blackburn we don’t need Thwaites anymore.  Microbrewers are the future of brewing.  Though at the same time, it would be nice to see some of our old pubs return.  Wouldn’t it be great if we were able to go for a pint in the Grapes as a pub again?  If this could happen; how about the Borough next?

Blackburn town centre has another new pub.  Andy and Karen Joss have opened up the Rock Box on King William Street.

Andy’s first foray into the pub trade was nearly a decade ago.  His local, the Lion Hotel on Wensley Road, found itself without a landlord.  No temporary manager was available at that time, so he stepped into the breach and kept his local open until a new licensee was found.  Andy subsequently had spells running the Stop and Rest up Brandy House Brow and the Moorgate Arms on Livesey Branch Road.

This micro pub used to be cocktail bar, Tiki Monkey, conveniently located straight across from our old town hall and next door to the Drummer’s Arms.  It is a cosy setting with dimmed light and intimate without being claustrophobic.  This helps create a perfect atmosphere for watching classic rock and blues music on their big screens.  Real ale is also on sale in the Rock Box.  Their opening cask was appropriately Blackburn’s own Three B’s beer and they had two of this local brewery’s ales available when the pub made its debut in early December.  Other local real ales are also regularly on sale.

Andy says he wants to help improve Blackburn’s town centre pub culture.  The Napier has proved there is a demand for rock music in town.  This pub mainly attracts a younger clientele, whereas Andy saw a niche market and his pub focusses on Classic Rock and Blues.  Andy enjoys working in the pub trade and hopes to carry on this for as long as he can.  He would also like to register his appreciation of the help and support he has received from next door neighbours James and Katy Quayle in the Drummer’s Arms and the team from Shh Bar on Northgate.

The Rock Box is another piece in a jigsaw expanding the north side of Blackburn town centre’s pub availability.  Its opening is a very welcome addition to this area, giving even more choice for punters.  Interestingly, apart from Livesey Branch Road, King William Street is now the only road in Blackburn where three seven day a week pubs can be found open. 

Andy and Karen have put a lot of time, effort and their own money into opening the Rock Box.  Let’s hope this good work continues and it leads to even more pubs opening up in our town centre in the future.

One of  Blackburn town centre’s most popular pubs was the Borough on Exchange Street, beside the old town hall.  It was often frequented by councillors and even had its own scaly reptile – an iguana.

This pub was known for having the smartest toilets in our town centre, a bit like walking into the hall of mirrors.  Unfortunately it also had its ups and downs over the years, leading to its inevitable closure.

Meanwhile one of the Vietnamese boat people ended up in Blackburn and saw an opportunity to make some dodgy money.  Ho Chi Kokee (not her real name) turned the pub into a restaurant called Saigon Buffet.  Their slogan in here was:  ‘You love Rovers, now you have chance to eat them’.

In Vietnam they joke about eating anything with four legs, apart from their tables and chairs.  This wasn’t the case in Saigon Buffet.  In here nobody seemed to eat anything as you could never find a soul in the restaurant.  One joke about this place at the time was its staff were former Vietcong guerrillas secretly hiding in tunnels when the restaurant was open.

In reality it was a den of criminality, hosting such activities as human trafficking.  This all came to an end in 2017 when over a dozen police and immigration officers raided the place.  A 43 year old woman was arrested on suspicion of modern slavery offences.

Since then these premises seem to have carried on where they left off and once again, nothing seems to be going on.  This is a big shame because it is a really nice building in a prime location, right in the centre of Blackburn and contrasts differently to this side of our town centre which has made great strides in rejuvenating itself.

We have seen the re-opening of Blackburn’s rock pub, Sir Charles Napier and former Molloy’s, now renamed the Squire pub.  There is the nearby Drummer’s Arms continuing its refreshing impact on our pub scene and we now have another new addition to our nightlife in the recently opened Electric Church on Northgate.

Vietnam was known for being part of the oriental golden triangle.  But perhaps Blackburn town centre could have its own pub golden triangle.  This would be bounded by Sudell Cross, Richmond Terrace, Exchange Street and King William Street.

So it’s One, Two, Three, Four, what are we waiting for?  Yes we give a damn, the Borough’s in Blackburn, not Vietnam.

Blackburn’s Postal Order pub is turning its top floors into hotel rooms.  This sounds like a really good move.  Here are some of the characters who might be staying there when it opens.

Builders:

There always seems to be building work going on in Blackburn town centre.  These are the people who will really appreciate stopping in the Posty.  They will be there until last orders and first up next morning for their breakfast.  They are amongst the best behaved guests too.  It will be strictly tea or coffee for them, to wash down their gigantic breckies.

Sales Reps:

These are the kind of guests every hotel wants.  Flash cars, sharp suits and expense accounts.  They have deep pockets and are looking for deep cleavage.  The bar staff will have really good stories to tell about some of these characters.

Football Fans:

With Rovers back in the Championship, lots of football fans will be checking into the Posty before, during and after match days.  This means boozing until last orders in this place and then maybe out for a few more elsewhere.  Liquid breckies could be the order of the day next morning.  Let’s hope the only tops which are asked to be removed are from the bottles.

The Lovers:

Many blind dates and extra-curricular liaisons already take place in the Posty.  And with it having brand new bedrooms, nature is bound to take its course.  And like this building’s previous use, so it did for Fred and Doris.  She definitely found something in his sack and a late rising followed.  It wasn’t a cup of coffee for these two next morning.  They had something to celebrate – with British sparkling wine of course.

Left Handed People:

A pioneering experiment to help left-handed people become part of mainstream society is to be tried out in the Postal Order.  Wetherspoons want to reassure customers there is nothing sinister going on and intend to keep things even handed.  Punters may notice new left-handed coin slots on the gaming machines and two handles on the barrel glasses.  Apart from this, everything should be all right.

Rock Bands:

No doubt the Posty management will have been warned about taking in rock bands as guests.  If a television suddenly comes crashing down on Darwen Street, you’ll know they haven’t done their homework.  Those days seem to have long gone, when chemically debauched rock stars like Keith Moon and Keith Richards used to trash their hotel rooms.  Nowadays we have clean living manufactured groups who are tucked up in bed for 10.00pm.

Turning the top floors of the Postal Order into a hotel sounds like a really good idea.  What could be better for business than a captive audience?  This new hotel should give us something to celebrate in Blackburn – as long as it’s not with Champagne!